Financial Crisis
»	Italy: Child Labour Re-Emerges in Naples
	USA
»	Facebook Buys Instagram for $1 Billion
»	Manufactured Anarchy Will Not Cow Nations
»	Obama Uses Taxpayer Cash to Back ACORN Name Changes Used to Dodge the Law
»	Yes, Barack Obama is a Marxist
	Europe and the EU
»	Britain Remains a Slave to Euro Judges
»	British Man ‘Fathered 600 Children’ At Own Fertility Clinic
»	France: Marine Le Pen Favourite Among the Very Young
»	Hungary: Anti-Semitic Blood Libel in Parliament
»	I Was Forced to Marry at Five — While Living in UK: Horrific Story of the British Child Bride
»	Ireland: Corruption at Heart of Celtic Tiger
»	Italy: Bossi Used Northern League Election Grants for Travel and Home Improvements
»	Palestinian Activist Ordered Not to Come to Britain Wins Appeal Against Government’s Attempt to Deport Him
»	Separatists Marching Under the EU Banner
»	UK: Abu Hamza Could be Deported Despite Human Rights Ruling
»	UK: Nothing is Sacred to Metal Thieves
»	UK: World’s Biggest Wind Farm ‘To Blight the South Coast’ If 200 Near 700ft Turbines Are Erected Just Off Stunning Shore
	Balkans
»	Obama Shuns Kosovo Leader Thaci
	North Africa
»	Egypt Military Warns Against Interference in Its Businesses
»	Egypt-Israel Pipeline Sabotaged Again
»	Former Egyptian Intelligence Chief: “Not Supported by Army”
»	Mario Monti: Egypt-Israel Peace Treaty to be Left Alone
»	One Hundred Broken Mirrors
	Israel and the Palestinians
»	‘Universal’ Cancer Vaccine Developed
	Middle East
»	Da Vinci Was a Muslim, Iranian Author Claims
»	Iran Rejects Rollback on Nuclear ‘Rights’ But Sees Room to Bargain at Talks
»	Jerusalem Prelate Warns on Plight of Christians
»	Malta-Based Iranian Company and Ship Help Syria Defy Sanctions
»	Western Powers to Demand Closure of Iran’s Best-Protected Uranium Facility
	South Asia
»	Frank Gaffney: Political Compromise of Our Security
»	Indonesia: Prosecutors of Atheist ‘Have Proved Nothing’
	Far East
»	Why We Should All be Very Concerned About Fukushima
	Australia — Pacific
»	Ban the Burqa Protest Offends Sydneysiders
	Sub-Saharan Africa
»	Cancer Victim Robert Mugabe is ‘Fighting for His Life’ In Singapore Hospital
»	Explosion in Somali City of Baidoa Kills at Least 12
	Immigration
»	Most Greeks Support Crackdown on Illegals, Poll

Italy: Child Labour Re-Emerges in Naples

Mario Spada/prospekt — Le Monde

In one of Europe’s poorest cities, thousands of children are leaving school to help their families make ends meet. Part of a trend that has been accentuated by the crisis, they find work in the black economy or they are recruited for sinister purposes by the mafia. (Extracts.)

Cécile Allegra

7 a.m. in San Lorenzo in the heart of Naples: the kid is struggling to carry a heavy crate of canned goods through a humid labyrinth of city streets. Dressed in his faded overalls, hoodie and and busted trainers, little Gennaro has already begun his day at work.

No one is surprised to see him slaving away at such an early hour. In September 2011, Gennaro found work in a grocery shop. On the job six days a week and 10 hours a day, he stocks shelves, unloads orders and delivers shopping to customers in the neighbourhood.

Gennaro dreamed of becoming a computer programmer, now he is a shop assistant — the most common profession for Neopolitan child workers. He is paid in cash, earning less than a euro an hour. In a good week he can expect to take home 50 euros. Gennaro has just turned fourteen.

Gennaro’s mother, Paola Rescigno, never thought there would come a day when she would deprive her son of school. For 20 years, she and her husband lived in a 35-square-metre flat that gave onto an interior courtyard in the San Lorenzo neighbourhood, the most densely populated area in the city centre.

Then the father died, carried off by a sudden and virulent cancer, and Paola Rescigno was forced to live from hand to mouth. She organised a micro-company offering cleaning services, which nets her and some of the other unemployed women in her neighbourhood 45 euro cents an hour, or 35 euros a week — significantly less than the wage brought home by her son.

At age 10, the children work ten hours a day

She is the one who wakes Gennaro at dawn every morning so that he will arrive on time at the grocery. His younger sister is only six, and difficult choices had to be made: “I don’t have the means to buy books for both of them. It was either one or the other.” On the kitchen table, there is an “8-day loaf”: 3 kilogrammes of bland long-lasting rye bread, a throwback to the post-WWII Italian famine, which costs only five euros.

In Naples, thousands of children like Gennaro have been forced to work. In 2011, a local government report sounded the alarm on the surrounding Campania region, where more than 54,000 children left the education system between 2005 and 2009 — 38% of them were less than 13 years old.

Shop assistants, waiters, occasional delivery boys, apprentice hairdressers, shop floor hands in the back country tanneries and big brand leather workshops, gofers for market stall holders: they are plainly visible, clearly working, and hardly anyone seems to mind. “Of course, we were the poorest region in Italy. But we haven’t seen a situation like this since the end of the Second World War,” says Naples deputy mayor Sergio d’Angelo. “At age 10, these kids are already working 12 hours a day, which is a clear breach of their right to development.” The parents, who have put themselves in an illegal position, have to contend with the possibility that social services may place their children in foster homes.

The Italian economic crisis has played a major role in all of this. Since 2008, a succession of financial reforms have introduced drastic cuts. In June 2010, the Campania region put an end to its minimum welfare scheme, plunging more than 130,000 families into poverty.

At the time, the average income in the region was 633 euros per inhabitant: today, half of the region’s residents believe they are worse off. “The younger generation has been obliged to suffer the entire weight of the worst economic crisis in the post-war period,” says Sergio d’Angelo.

“A state that abandons its children”

In Naples, the vast majority of children from poor families are faced with a choice between struggling to stay in school or dropping out to work in the black economy. Then there is a third option, which is to join the ranks of the Camorra, the Neopolitan mafia. Specialist educator Giovanni Savino, age 33, has devoted his life to preventing young people from opting for this most brutal choice. His home turf is one of Naples worst neighbourhoods: Barra, a decayed highrise area of the city which is now an openair drugs supermarket under the control of the Camorra clans.

Every week, Giovanni Savino visits Rodino secondary school, located at the centre of one of the suburb’s housing projects, where drug trafficking is a major business and one in every two children is out of school for more than 100 days per year.

By law, absences of more than 60 days should automatically lead to expulsion. For Savino, each case is a race against the clock. Every week, the school’s head teacher, Annunziata Martire, gives him a list of absentees, for whom he must find a solution within ten days before their files are referred to social services.

More often than not, he encourages his charges to sit state exams as external candidates to ensure that they are not taken away from their families and placed in foster homes.

Local government officials are afraid to enter the area’s tower blocks, and there are very few educators like Giovanni Savino who are able to enter Barra.

At the head of an association called Il Tappeto di Iqbal, “Iqbal’s carpet”, named after a Pakistani child-slave who led a revolt and was subsequently murdered, Giovanni Savino has angry words for the mafia, a failing education system, and a state “which abandons its children.” In Italy, there is no automatic access to benefits. Support for the young people and their families is distributed by 150 associations, which are wholly dependent on local government financing.

Since the onset of the crisis, funding for such initiatives has been cut by 87 %: and the 20,000 educators in the Campania region, who have not been paid for two years, have to rely on their own resources to do their work. If no alternative funding is found, Il Tappeto di Iqbal will soon be forced to close down…

— Hat tip: C. Cantoni

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Facebook Buys Instagram for $1 Billion

Facebook has acquired Instagram, the popular photo-sharing application, for about $1 billion in cash and stock, the company said Monday. In a Facebook post, the company’s chief, Mark Zuckerberg, said he planned to build Instagram independently from the social network, allowing users to post on other social networks, follow users not on Facebook and opt out of sharing on Facebook.

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Manufactured Anarchy Will Not Cow Nations

And so it begins.

The day after Easter, April 9, 2012 was chosen as the one to unleash chaos and confusion on the unsuspecting masses.

It’s the day after Easter and the New Black Panthers (NBP) and Occupy Wall Street (OWS) are kicking off the Revolution.

“Shock Video: “Suited, booted and armed. Unbelievable audio from the NBP on Bloody, Anti-capitalist, ‘Race War’ against White Devils. We’re talking about some blood, is the cover story on The Blaze this morning.

Beginning the ‘training’ of some 100,000 activists with mostly George Soros money, the same day message from OWS is “This Spring We Rise!”

It’s more plan than coincidence that both parties are heading toward anarchy on the same day.

— Hat tip: JD

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Obama Uses Taxpayer Cash to Back ACORN Name Changes Used to Dodge the Law

The Obama administration has showered its allies at ACORN Housing with $729,849 so far this year despite powerful, newly unveiled evidence of corruption and massive accounting irregularities at the longtime affiliate of ACORN (Association of Community Organizations for Reform Now).

Watchdog group Cause of Action recently pressured NeighborWorks America, a taxpayer-funded federal nonprofit that funneled more than $26.5 million in federal foreclosure-avoidance money to ACORN Housing, to disclose an internal audit furnished to then-Senate Banking Committee Chairman Christopher Dodd, Connecticut Democrat, late last year.

[…]

ACORN itself is a nonprofit version of Enron, the infamous failed energy company that imploded under the pressure of hopelessly confusing, misleading and illegal accounting practices. The ACORN network has developed a tangled, deliberately complex mess of interlocking directorates and affiliated tax-exempt groups that routinely swap seven-figure checks and that has long cried out for a probe under federal racketeering laws.

— Hat tip: JD

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Yes, Barack Obama is a Marxist

It’s been four years and the mainstream media still refuses to address the fact that Barack Obama is a Marxist. In fact using that word gets you branded as a crazy (guilty but not on this issue) and someone who uses divisive “tone.

Some who brand Obama Marxist use as their evidence his policies such as the takeover of the domestic auto business, Obamacare, “redistribution of income” etc. Others examine his associations, from Frank Marshall Davis and Bill Ayers to people he hired such as Van Jones and Rev. Jim Wallis. While valid, the examples above are purely circumstantial.

I use a simpler and more direct method of proving my case. When the President was running for the Illinois State Senate, not only did he run with the endorsement of a local socialist organization, but also he signed a contract with one of them, The New Party. The party was a Marxist Political coalition. This was not guilt by association thing. Senator Obama sought out their nomination. He was successful in obtaining that endorsement which required that he sign a contract with the group.

Most New Party members hailed from the Democratic Socialists of America and the “Community Organizing” group ACORN. The party’s Chicago chapter also included a large contingent from the Committees of Correspondence, a Marxist coalition of former Maoists, Trotskyists, and Communist Party USA members.

— Hat tip: JD

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Britain Remains a Slave to Euro Judges

Yesterday, Theresa May promised to instruct the British courts to stop letting foreign criminals claim they have a human right to a ‘family life’ in the UK.

The Mail welcomes any attempt —however belated — to crack down on the egregious abuse of Labour’s insidious Human Rights Act.

But, sadly, the Home Secretary’s plan does not tackle the core of the problem: Britain’s slavish adherence to the edicts of the unelected European Court of Human Rights.

Whatever new rules she passes here, foreign rapists and killers will still be able to march to Strasbourg — at taxpayers’ expense — to claim they have been wronged.

And, inevitably, Europe’s cardboard judges will continue to grant them victories which appal the public — just as they did when ruling hate preacher Abu Qatada must remain in the UK.

— Hat tip: JD

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British Man ‘Fathered 600 Children’ At Own Fertility Clinic

A British man may have fathered 600 children by repeatedly using his own sperm in a fertility clinic he ran, it has emerged.

Bertold Wiesner and his wife Mary Barton founded a fertility clinic in London in the 1940s and helped women conceive 1,500 babies.

It was thought that the clinic used a small number of highly intelligent friends as sperm donors but it has now emerged that around 600 of the babies were conceived using sperm from Mr Wiesner himself.

Two men conceived at the clinic, Barry Stevens a film-maker from Canada and David Gollancz, a barrister in London, have researched the centre and DNA tests suggest Mr Wiesner, an Austrian biologist, provided two thirds of the donated sperm.

Such a practice is outlawed now but at the time it was not known that Mr Wiesner was providing the majority of the samples.

The same sperm donor should not be used to create so many children because of the risk that two of the offpsring will unwittingly meet and start a family of their own, which could cause serious genetic problems in their children.

— Hat tip: Fjordman

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France: Marine Le Pen Favourite Among the Very Young

(AGI) Paris — Marine Le Pen and Francois Hollande top the polls among new voters in France for the presidential elections. The latest CSA poll published in Le Monde gives the leader of the Fronte National 26 percent among voters in the 18 to 24 year category. The daughter of former paratrooper Jean Marie Le Pen just beats Hollande on 25%. The same poll puts Nicolas Sarkozy on 17% and the ultra leftist Jean-Luc Melenchon on 16% amongst the very young.

— Hat tip: C. Cantoni

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Hungary: Anti-Semitic Blood Libel in Parliament

A centrist analyst wonders what reasons a radical right-wing representative may have had when he addressed the House to request the commemoration of a young girl who disappeared from her village in 1882, and who, according to the old anti-Semitic narrative, was murdered by local Jews.

Why did Zsolt Baráth, a Jobbik MP bring up the 19th century blood libel case in Parliament? How does this anti-Semitic topic fit into Jobbik’s political message? Why did he consider it prudent?, political analyst Ferenc Kumin asks in his blog.

On Wednesday, the Jobbik MP asked Parliament to commemorate Eszter Solymosi, a peasant girl, who died in 1882. The trial of the alleged Jewish murderers became a typical blood libel case. Although the court cleared them of all the accusations, the case is brought up from time to time by anti-Semitic groups in Hungary. In his speech Baráth claimed that the the court acted under the pressure of “circles who still have the economy of Hungary and the whole world in their hands.” His anti-Semitic speech was condemned by all parliamentary parties except his own, and several deputies also demanded Baráth’s resignation. Even Krisztina Morvai, one of the three Jobbik MEPs said she would not have used such rhetoric.

Kumin admits he was surprised by Baráth’s speech, since Jobbik has been trying to portray itself as a sensible political force. He admits however that in this case he cannot find any political rationality behind the scandalous event. It is not known whether speeches by Jobbik MPs have to be approved by the leadership of their parliamentary group in advance. They should be. But since MEP Krisztina Morvai distanced herself from “that language” on the following day, the issue may not have been discussed beforehand. On the other hand, the text of the speech has still not been removed from the Jobbik party homepage.

Kumin concludes that the incident can be considered as a test of how far a Jobbik MP can go in his or her public speeches. And if Ms Morvai had to dissociate herself from the speaker, then Baráth obviously went too far.

— Hat tip: heroyalwhyness

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I Was Forced to Marry at Five — While Living in UK: Horrific Story of the British Child Bride

A successful businesswoman has told of her agony after being forced into an abusive marriage at the age of five — despite living in Britain.

Samina Shah, who is now in her 40s and too frightened to reveal her real name, spoke out after revelations that Britain’s Forced Marriage Unit had handled the case of another five-year-old girl last year.

— Hat tip: JD

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Ireland: Corruption at Heart of Celtic Tiger

The Irish Times, 23 March 2012

“Corruption and abuse of power ‘endemic’ in politics,” headlines the Irish Times, one day after the publication of the report of the Mahon Tribunal, the longest running public inquiry in the history of the state.

Launched in 1997 to investigate corrupt payments to politicians mainly over planning permissions and land re-zoning issues, the tribunal accused former Taoiseach Bertie Ahern of untruthfulness. It found former European commissioner Pádraig Flynn behaved corruptly, and said another former taoiseach, Albert Reynolds, had abused his power.

The tribunal states that Ahern did not tell the truth over payments worth more than IR£275,000 [€349,177] which passed through bank accounts connected to him. Ahern has always claimed that the cash was not taken for planning favours granted to property developers but “personal loans” from friends to help during a difficult period in his life when he was going through a separation.

The 3,200 page report also found former EU commissioner Padraig Flynn guilty of taking bribes during his time as Irish environment minister from 1987-1993. Flynn had accepted a IR£50,000 [€63,486] “donation” from a property developer who wished to purchase a farm in the west of Ireland. It also condemned the involvement of senior government figures such as ex-Taoiseach Albert Reynolds “in seeking financial contributions from businessmen who were in turn lobbying government to support various commercial projects.”…

— Hat tip: C. Cantoni

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Italy: Bossi Used Northern League Election Grants for Travel and Home Improvements

Resignation of party treasurer Belsito, now under investigation for embezzlement, fraud and money laundering

Bossi Used Northern League Election Grants for Travel and Home Improvements

MILAN — The treasurer of the Northern League, Francesco Belsito, now under investigation for fraud, embezzlement and money laundering, has resigned from his position in the party. The news came from sources close to the party at the end of a dreadful day for the Northern League…

— Hat tip: C. Cantoni

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Palestinian Activist Ordered Not to Come to Britain Wins Appeal Against Government’s Attempt to Deport Him

A Palestinian activist, who was allowed to enter Britain despite being banned on the grounds he might incite racial hatred, has won an appeal to stay.

Sheikh Raed Salah, 53, leader of the Islamic Movement in Israel, arrived at Heathrow Airport on June 25. An investigation revealed Border officials had missed six chances to stop him entering the country.

— Hat tip: JD

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Separatists Marching Under the EU Banner

Uwazam Rze Warsaw

Scotland, like Catalonia or the self-proclaimed Padania in Italy, is now talking openly of its independence. For these regions the European ideal is a political argument, even if a place in the European Union would not necessarily be a good thing for them.

Marek Magierowski

Gerard Piqué owes his celebrity status to several things. Firstly, he’s an excellent footballer, a pillar of FC Barcelona and the Spanish national team. Secondly, he’s engaged to the Colombian star Shakira. Thirdly, Piqué is also a fierce Catalan nationalist, if not a chauvinistic, a foul-mouth and more.

During the famous “Clasico” match between FC Barcelona and Real Madrid last spring, Piqué turned to his rivals while the players from both teams were leaving their dressing rooms and preparing to run out onto the field. “Hey, Spaniards,” he called, “with our eight-point lead we’ve already tied up the championship! All we have to do now is take the King’s Cup. Your King’s cup.”

Sporting events provide perfect setting

Piqué was just saying aloud what many players and supporters of Barça are thinking. Everyone wanted Barcelona to win its victories in the name of the Catalans, wanted the Catalan team to be able to play for the World Cup and wanted Piqué, Puyol, Busquets, Xavi and Fabregas to bring the trophy home not for Spain or for King Juan Carlos but for Catalonia. For now that’s not possible, since FIFA has refused to let the team enter international competitions.

The sport has always been an important element of national identity for Catalan nationalists. Especially under the Franco dictatorship, when Real Madrid was the favourite club of the regime, the goals scored against the “royalists” had the sweet taste of revenge for the years of humiliation and cultural discrimination.

It’s the same with the Scots, who are calling more and more openly for a sovereign state [an independence referendum is planned for 2014] and who take football very seriously. They give their all to support their team, and cheer equally hard for everyone else who plays against England.

Sporting events provide the perfect setting for separatist demonstrations. The chanting, the waving flags, the highlighting of “national unity” are the fixed decor of stadiums in Catalonia, the Basque Country, Scotland and in Corsica. But this is only the backdrop to an acute political struggle over power and money. The street was, until recently, the favourite battleground for that war: in various corners of Europe separatists left bombs in department stores, killed policemen and staged hunger strikes. Often enough, fearing chaos and disintegration of the state, politicians — whether Spanish, British or French — responded with blind brutality…

— Hat tip: C. Cantoni

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UK: Abu Hamza Could be Deported Despite Human Rights Ruling

Ministers are determined to kick Abu Hamza out of the country even if his extradition to the US is blocked by European judges on human rights grounds tomorrow.

The Home Office is looking into whether or not the terrorist “recruiting sergeant” could be deported to his native Egypt, despite him winning a battle to keep his British passport.

Senior politicians are also urging the Government to go ahead and send the radical Muslim preacher to America to face trial regardless of the European Court of Human Rights verdict.

If he and five other alleged extremists win their claim that facing life imprisonment in a “supermax” jail would breach their human rights, they could be freed from prison almost immediately. Hamza has already served six years for sermons urging the murder of non-Muslims.

Such a decision would also seriously damage relations with the American authorities, which have been trying to put him on trial for allegedly trying to set up a training camp in Oregon as well as supporting jihadis in Yemen and Afghanistan.

Within weeks Abu Qatada, described as “Osama Bin Laden’s right-hand man in Europe”, could also be released from effective house arrest if the Strasbourg court decides he cannot be deported to Jordan, where he faces a trial that may rely on evidence obtained under torture.

It would mean two men considered by the Government to be dangerous Islamist recruiters being back on the streets of London in time for the Olympics, considered to be a prime target for terrorists as well as occupying police in the country’s biggest peacetime operation.

Douglas Murray, of the Henry Jackson Society think-tank, said: “Abu Hamza was probably the most successful person that has been in this country for recruiting extremists. He’s not the sort of person you’d want on the streets.”

Hamza, now 53, was an Egyptian engineer who acquired British citizenship after marrying an English woman, and lost an eye and both hands while clearing mines in Afghanistan.

— Hat tip: Steen

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UK: Nothing is Sacred to Metal Thieves

Theft is up in Britain as commodity prices soar. Crooks are willing to haul away rails, war memorials, even church roofs.

Naomi Wormell is a vicar, not a vigilante. But these days, she finds it hard to choose Christian charity over some swift — and terrible — retribution. The centuries-old church she leads in this quiet English village has fallen victim to a plague sweeping across Britain. Like hungry locusts, metal thieves have repeatedly attacked St. Mary’s Church, swooping down on its roof in the dead of night and stripping away large sections of its Victorian-era lead cladding.

The soaring thefts track a surge in worldwide metal prices. Demand for metals such as copper and lead has boomed as rapidly developing countries including China and India race to build skyscrapers, factories, homes and gadgets for a rising middle class.

Thieves in Britain are ripping up railway and telephone cables, prying off manhole covers and carting away aluminum access ramps for the disabled. Children shiver in schools where heating pipes have been stolen. In a development Prime Minister David Cameron denounced as “absolutely sickening,” memorials to fallen soldiers are being pilfered at the rate of one to two a week.

Last year, grave robbers dug up six tombs in a Welsh cemetery, apparently in search of lead coffin linings. In the English coastal town of Blackpool, despairing officials were forced to pull public artworks from display after thieves lifted three of four lead-based figures from a park and part of a statue from the seaside promenade.

The nationwide epidemic prompted Scotland Yard to announce in December that it was forming a unit devoted to tackling metal theft. But apparently someone forgot to notify the poachers, who, that same day, helped themselves to a large outdoor bronze sculpture by noted artist Barbara Hepworth, valued at $800,000, in South London.

The British are not alone in their growing losses to enterprising metal thieves. Other European countries are struggling with the same problem, including Germany, whose rail system has also taken a big hit. But the extent of the thievery and the wide variety of targets in Britain have been especially notable.

— Hat tip: Fjordman

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UK: World’s Biggest Wind Farm ‘To Blight the South Coast’ If 200 Near 700ft Turbines Are Erected Just Off Stunning Shore

The world’s biggest wind farm is being planned for the South Coast of England.

The 200 turbines would earn Dutch company Eneco billions of pounds in Government subsidies. Critics say they will ruin coastal views, while yachtsmen warn they could cause crashes.

The Royal Yacht Squadron, the prestigious sailing club whose patron is the Queen, has written to 200 sailing clubs on the Isle of Wight and along the South Coast to call for action against the development, named Navitus Bay.

— Hat tip: JD

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Obama Shuns Kosovo Leader Thaci

Washington, 6 April (AKI) — Kosovo prime minister Hashim Thaci ended a three-day visit to Washington on Friday, winning support for Kosovo’s independence and membership in the European Union, but was shunned by president Barrack Obama.

Thaci met with Secretary of state Hilary Clinton on Wednesday and vice-president Joseph Biden on Thursday. He had announced a meeting with president Obama on Friday, but the meeting wasn’t realized and there was no explanation.

At a joint press conference with Thaci, Clinton hailed a recent EU decision to work on a feasibility study for Kosovo’s membership. “It is a step forward towards Kosovo’s membership in the European Union, which confirms that Kosovo and EU statesmen are determined to strengthen relations,” Clinton said.

Belgrade opposes Kosovo independence, but Clinton pledged continued support to Pristina and called on Kosovo and Serbian leaders to remain “dedicated to dialogue” and to implement recently reached agreements.

Under the auspices of the EU, Belgrade and Pristina recently agreed on joint border control, representation of Kosovo in regional meetings, recognition of university diplomas and exchange of birth and land registers.

Kosovo media reported the meeting with Biden was held behind closed doors and there were no statements. But Thaci’s office said in a statement Biden congratulated him on the “courage for making very important decisions in the interest of Kosovo”.

“Biden gave guarantees that the US will remain maximally engaged in Kosovo and will demand implementation of all agreements reached,” the statement said.

Kosovo independence, declared by majority Albanians in 2008, has been recognized by more than eighty countries, including the United States and 22 out of 27 EU members.

— Hat tip: C. Cantoni

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Egypt Military Warns Against Interference in Its Businesses

Egypt’s ruling military has warned against any interference in its murky economic empire amid a burgeoning power struggle with Islamists who control parliament, state media reported on Wednesday.

The warning comes as the military prepares to hand power to a civilian leader when presidential elections end in June, and as the dominant Islamist Freedom and Justice Party (FJP) pressures the generals to sack the government.

Major General Mahmud Nasr, a member of the ruling council, warned that the military “will not allow any interference from anyone in the armed forces’ economic projects,” the official MENA news agency reported.

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Egypt-Israel Pipeline Sabotaged Again

(AGI) Cairo — An explosion damaged the Egyptian gas pipeline that supplies Israel and Jordan. This is the 14th sabotage since the beginning of the revolt that toppled Hosni Mubarak .

— Hat tip: C. Cantoni

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Former Egyptian Intelligence Chief: “Not Supported by Army”

(AGI) Cairo — Omar Suleiman, ex 007 Chief and Egyptian presidential candidate, assured not having the support of the Army. Hosni Mubarak’s former secret service chief accused Islamists of having threatened to kill him. 74-year old Omar Suleiman announced his candidacy on Friday and, to confirm his continued influence, he succeeded collecting 72,000 signatures in a single day, more than twice as many as the required 30,000.

— Hat tip: C. Cantoni

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Mario Monti: Egypt-Israel Peace Treaty to be Left Alone

(AGI) Cairo- According to Mario Monti the peace treaty between Israel and Egypt should be “left alone and respected”. During his first visit to Cairo the Italian Prime Minister asked his Egyptian counterpart Kamal Ganzouri for assurances that the agreement signed by President Sadat in 1979 remains “a pillar for a peaceful and stable Middle east”. Mr Monti expressed “a strong belief” in that regard and told the Egyptian Prime Minister that this was “borne out in the close talks” in Lebanon, Israel and the Palestinian Territories. Italy’s Prime Minister said Mr Ganzouri “reassured” him regarding parliamentary initiatives which did not appear to be “in line with the Treaty”. . .

— Hat tip: C. Cantoni

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One Hundred Broken Mirrors

Thirty-nine years after the last major war between Israel and Egypt, the Muslim Brotherhood will unveil a constitution based on the Al-Azhar document, a lovely piece of work which emphasizes the importance of democracy and freedom—and the subservience of both to Islamic law. Western observers still working up their enthusiasm for the Arab Spring are noting the former and not the latter.

Virtually everyone has ignored one the final clauses of the Al-Azhar document and its commitment to the “Palestinian” cause. For the Muslim Brotherhood, the Palestinian cause is Hamas, which is to say themselves. A commitment to Hamas is a commitment to an arm of the Brotherhood. A war against Israel is inevitable, but not until the Brotherhood sucks as much aid out of the Great Satan as it can, under the pretense of serving as a moderating influence on Hamas.

[…]

Americans have already gotten a taste of what that system looks like. A corrupt elite overseeing a broken economy being goosed for the benefit of the few. A lapdog media that is forever searching out enemies, bleating denunciations, exposing new threats and conspiracies, to distract everyone from the disaster up top. The Obama era is only a small taste of how people in Russia or Egypt live. In the wake of the Cold War, rather than them becoming more like us, we are becoming more like them.

— Hat tip: JD

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‘Universal’ Cancer Vaccine Developed

A vaccine that can train cancer patients’ own bodies to seek out and destroy tumour cells has been developed by scientists.

The therapy, which targets a molecule found in 90 per cent of all cancers, could provide a universal injection that allows patients’ immune systems to fight off common cancers including breast and prostate cancer.

Preliminary results from early clinical trials have shown the vaccine can trigger an immune response in patients and reduce levels of disease.

The scientists behind the vaccine now hope to conduct larger trials in patients to prove it can be effective against a range of different cancers.

They believe it could be used to combat small tumours if they are detected early enough or to help prevent the return and spread of disease in patients who have undergone other forms of treatment such as surgery.

Cancer cells usually evade patient’s immune systems because they are not recognised as being a threat. While the immune system usually attacks foreign cells such as bacteria, tumours are formed of the patient’s own cells that have malfunctioned.

Scientists have, however, found that a molecule called MUC1, which is found in high amounts on the surface of cancer cells, can be used to help the immune system detect tumours.

The new vaccine, developed by drug company Vaxil Biotheraputics along with researchers at Tel Aviv University, uses a small section of the molecule to prime the immune system so that it can identify and destroy cancer cells.

A statement from Vaxil Biotheraputics said: “ImMucin generated a robust and specific immune response in all patients which was observed after only 2-4 doses of the vaccine out of a maximum of 12 doses.

“In some of the patients, preliminary signs of clinical efficacy were observed.”

The results are still to be formally published but if further trials prove to be successful the vaccine could be available within six years.

As a therapeutic vaccine it is designed to be given to patients who are already suffering from cancer to help their bodies fight off the disease rather than to prevent disease in the first place.

— Hat tip: Vlad Tepes

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Da Vinci Was a Muslim, Iranian Author Claims

Author of ‘Leonardo Da Vinci’s Drawings’ says in this book he has proved that Da Vinci had been converted to Islam: “The book presents a comprehensive biography of Da Vinci and here for the first time I have proved that the artist had been converted to Islam based on authentic documents.”

IBNA: Morteza Khalaj Amirhosseini’s book “Leonardo Da Vinci’s Drawings” contains best drawings as well as a detailed biography of this eminent artist. Based on valid sources, the book proves that Da Vinci had been converted into Persian.

Amirhosseini added: “I have prepared the book in order to address the needs of art students as there was no comprehensive book of Da Vinci’s works available in Iran. We should know an artist by his works, but unfortunately Da Vinci is just an icon in Iran with mythological fame.”

Amirhosseini went on to say that the book presents a complete biography of Da Vinci in which he has proved based on first-hand sources that the Renaissance artist had become a Muslim. However, the west prefers to keep silent on the subject, he added.

He added: “A French writer in the 19th century has evaluated the issue of Da Vinci’s conversion to Islam in a treatise, but the west has banned the publication of this treatise.”

‘Leonardo Da Vinci’s Drawings’ is compiled by Morteza Khalaj Amirhosseini and published by Ketab-e Aban in 172 pages.

‘The Wings of Simorgh’, ‘On Oil Painting’, ‘On Watercolor Painting’, ‘Mysteries of Miniature’, ‘The Life of Rafael’, ‘The Life of Rembrandt’, ‘The Life of Rubens’, and ‘The Magic of Drawing’.

— Hat tip: Steen

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Iran Rejects Rollback on Nuclear ‘Rights’ But Sees Room to Bargain at Talks

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates — When talks between Iran and world powers collapsed last year, Tehran quickly blamed the West for trying to trample its “nuclear rights.” The Iranian line appears little changed — signalling that critical negotiations could begin this week where the impasse left off.

But Iranian officials also display a hint of confidence going into Friday’s talks. They believe Tehran may have beaten back the toughest Western demands for a complete halt to uranium enrichment — the key issue of the standoff — and some bargaining room could open for new proposals.

“They have not gained anything through confrontation with Iran,” said Alaeddin Boroujerdi, head of the Iranian parliament’s influential committee on national security and foreign policy.

His message Saturday reflected the challenges of finding a new tone for dialogue with much on the line, including Israel’s threats of possible military action, allegations of covert attacks that have killed Iranian scientists and targeted Israeli officials, and Western sanctions that have taken aim at Iran’s key oil exports and helped drive inflation past 21 per cent.

Iranian envoys in Istanbul will face a cross-section of its foes and allies: the five permanent Security Council members plus Germany. The manoeuvring has already begun, with various policy probes, trial balloons and a flap over the venue that was only resolved Sunday with Iran agreeing to return to Turkey for negotiations.

Yet neither side seems willing — in public declarations, at least — to budge too far from the positions that undercut the last round of talks 14 months ago.

Iran insists it will never surrender the ability to enrich uranium, which allows Tehran to make its own nuclear fuel and is a cornerstone of what the Islamist Republic’s leaders call patriotic efforts toward technological self-sufficiency.

“The nuclear industry is like a locomotive that can push ahead other industries such as the space industry that takes up tens of other industries with itself,” Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad said Sunday, according to the official IRNA news agency. “This is the same clear path we must continue.”

The U.S. and Western allies may demand that Iran agree to close and dismantle a new enrichment lab built into a mountainside bunker south of Tehran and transfer stockpiles of its most high-grade uranium out of Iran, The New York Times first reported, citing U.S. and European diplomats.

No issue looms larger than uranium enrichment, which Iran is permitted to do under a U.N. treaty overseeing nuclear advances. The U.S. and others fear the labs could be used to make weapons-grade material. Iran says it nuclear program is only for energy and medical research.

“Without some new ideas or proposals on the table, it’s hard to imagine the talks finding some kind of breakthrough,” said Shadi Hamid, director of research at the Brookings Doha Center in Qatar.

But there have been some tiny cracks in the wall of distrust between Washington and Tehran that could at least offer some toeholds in the talks.

Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei gave a rare nod of approval last month toward President Barack Obama’s assertion that there is still room for diplomacy. Washington now says they want to hear further details about Khamenei’s pledge that Iran would never seek nuclear arms.

“Diplomacy has not reached a deadlock,” said Iranian lawmaker Heshmatollah Falahatpisheh, a conservative member of parliament’s foreign policy and national security committee.

However, he echoed the common stance among Iranian officials that Western demands to halt uranium enrichment are a dead end…

— Hat tip: Nick

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Jerusalem Prelate Warns on Plight of Christians

The Latin Patriarch of Jerusalem, Fuad Twal, warned yesterday in his Easter homily of the plight of Christians in the region, saying that the world was now “less concerned” about the minority.

“I wish all of you a beautiful and holy feast of the Resurrection, in the knowledge that the events unfolding in the Middle East threaten our region, our people and our Christians, that add a sombreness to this Easter joy,” he said.

Patriarch Twal, the most senior Roman Catholic in the Middle East, evoked the “fear” of Christians in the region in the traditional address, delivered at the Church of the Holy Sepulchre in Jerusalem’s Old City.

Many, he said, “live in fear: fear due to the unrest in our region; fear of an uncertain, even dark future.”

“Politicians and the international community are a little less concerned about our freedom and our fate. Personal interests overwhelm the goodwill of those trying to seek and advance peace and justice,” he added.

Christian communities in the Middle East have come under increasing threat in recent years, and the Arab Spring, which has ushered in more Islamist leadership, has raised new uncertainties for the embattled minority. Patriarch Twal, 71, nonetheless saluted “an enthusiastic youth” which he said had “shaken from his feet the dust of a dark, miserable and totalitarian history.”

“This is a new generation in search of a new life of justice, freedom and dignity; seeking resurrection and reform for its people. The only means of bringing about these changes are strength of will and confidence in a better future,” he said.

“We help them through our prayers, our encouragement, our advice to be guided by reason while being faithful to their motherland.”

Catholic and Protestant Christians celebrated Easter yesterday, marking the most important date in their religious calendar.

Orthodox Christians, who are more populous in the region, celebrate Easter next Sunday, a day after the spectacular “Holy Fire” ceremony in the Holy Sepulchre church.

— Hat tip: Nick

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Malta-Based Iranian Company and Ship Help Syria Defy Sanctions

At least one company within the significant web of shell companies set up in Malta by the Iranian government to hide its illicit shipping activities and circumvent international sanctions, as well as a Malta-flagged ship it owns, is helping the Syrian regime defy Western sanctions by shipping Syrian oil worth US$80 million to a state-run company in China.

In a special report, the Reuters news agency quotes a source in the shipping industry, who said he had been approached by Syrian state oil company Sytrol, as stating that Syria planned to sell oil directly to the Chinese but had trouble finding a vessel. The Iranians, however, had stepped in to lend a helping hand through one of its Malta-based companies, which sent one of its ships to collect and deliver the cargo.

The Chinese buyer was named as the Zhuhai Zhenrong Corp, a Chinese state-run company sanctioned by the US government back in January. A spokesperson for the company, however, denied knowledge of the shipment.

The US State Department said in January that Zhuhai Zhenrong was the largest supplier of refined petroleum products to Iran, on which the West has imposed sanctions over suspicions that it is seeking to develop nuclear weapons.

Iran is one of Syria’s closest allies and has pledged to support the Assad regime and even went so far recently as to have praised Syria’s handling of the year-long uprising in which at least 9,000 people have been killed so far. China has also protected the Syrian regime from the imposition of sanctions, having controversially vetoed two resolutions at the United Nations against the bloodshed. China is not bound by Western sanctions against Syria, its oil sector or its state oil firm Sytrol.

But the European Union had sanctioned Sytrol in September of last year and the fact that a Maltese-registered company and ship is carrying out the shipment is very dubious indeed.

The Maltese-flagged tanker, MT Tour, is owned by shipping firm ISIM Tour Limited, which is also registered in Malta and has been identified by the US Department of Treasury as a front company set up by Iran to evade sanctions.

The ship is reported to have reached the Syrian port of Tartus last weekend where it took on 120,000 tonnes of light crude oil, according to the industry source and ship tracking data. Like the Chinese, Reuters reports that Syrian and Iranian authorities did not comment on the shipment.

The vessel was last spotted near Port Said in Egypt, where it was due arrive on Wednesday and, while its final destination was not available, the industry source speaking to Reuters said the vessel was likely to head to China or Singapore.

— Hat tip: Nick

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Western Powers to Demand Closure of Iran’s Best-Protected Uranium Facility

Major Western powers are to set two demands, including the closure of Iran’s best-protected uranium facility, when negotiations over the country’s nuclear programme resume this week.

The United States and its European allies will also tell Iran that it must stop refining uranium to a concentration of 20 per cent — a level considered a short step away from weapons grade — and move existing stocks of fuel already enriched to such levels abroad.

The demands signal a Western acceptance of the most important conditions that Israel says must be fulfilled if it is to be persuaded to drop its threat of unilateral military action against Iran’s nuclear facilities.

President Barack Obama has warned Iran that the talks, which begin on Friday, represent its “last chance” for a diplomatic resolution to the crisis.

Iranian media said the talks, which collapsed more than a year ago, would be held in Istanbul, apparently dropping a push by Tehran to stage the talks in a new venue.

In a significant softening of its position, the Iranian government dropped its opposition to the negotiations being held in Istanbul. Officials in Tehran had previously called for the talks to be held in Iraq or even conflict-ravaged Syria in a tactic seen as a time-wasting ruse.

According to Western diplomats quoted by the New York Times, Iran will be told it must seal and ultimately dismantle its Fordow uranium enrichment plant, buried deep inside a mountain near the holy city of Qom, as a sign of its sincerity.

Iran has begun enriching uranium to 20 per cent at Fordow and is moving much of its nuclear fuel to the plant in a step that has caused deep concern in Israel, whose US-provided “bunker-busting” bombs would probably not be able to destroy the facility.

Iran has already enriched 240 lb of uranium to 20 per cent according to UN inspectors, a little less than the material needed to supply one nuclear bomb if it is refined further. Iran says it plans to triple its stocks of the higher-grade fuel, saying it needs them to supply a research reactor in Tehran that produces medical isotopes.

The Israeli government has demanded a halt to all Iranian enrichment, including to lower levels of 3.5 per cent, but has agreed to allow its Western allies to adopt a “staggered approach” by concentrating first on Tehran’s higher-grade fuel.

“We told our American friends, as well as the Europeans, that we would have expected the threshold for successful negotiations to be clear, namely that [they] will demand clearly that no more enrichment to 20 per cent,” Ehud Barak, Israel’s defence minister, told CNN.

— Hat tip: Nick

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Frank Gaffney: Political Compromise of Our Security

A troubling pattern of putting U.S. and allied security interests second to the Obama administration’s political priorities is now well-established. If allowed to continue, it will not only make the world more dangerous. It is going to get people killed — probably in large numbers and some of them may be Americans.

A prime example of the phenomenon was the disclosure of minute details of the 2011 raid by SEAL Team 6 within hours of its successful liquidation of al Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden in Pakistan. The revelation of special operations tradecraft horrified those in and out of the U.S. military who appreciate that safeguarding the secrecy of such techniques is essential toensuring their future utility, and the safety of those who employ them…

— Hat tip: CSP

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Indonesia: Prosecutors of Atheist ‘Have Proved Nothing’

Jakarta, 6 April (AKI/Jakarta Post) — Indonesian prosecutors have fouled up the indictment of Alexander Aan, the civil servant in Padang, West Sumatra accused of professing his atheism on Facebook, his lawyers say.

Alexander should have been charged under a joint regulation of the Religious Affairs Ministry, the Attorney General’s Office and the Home Ministry, Ronny Saputra, an attorney from the Padang office of the Legal Aid Foundation (LBH), said.

Ronny said sections of the indictment alleging that Alexander had called on others to “embrace atheism” were unclear.

“The prosecutors have yet to describe when or where my client had done such acts,” he said.

Alexander only posted images and text from the “Minang Atheist” Facebook group on his own account, Ronny said, including such as comics titled “The Prophet Muhammad has been attracted to his own daughter-in-law” and “The Prophet Muhammad had been sleeping with his wife’s maid”.

“The article was first circulated in a forum called “Faith Freedom Indonesia 2008” and has been accessible until now. Meanwhile, the same comic was aired by Metro TV on January 20th in 2010,” Ronny said.

Alexander was merely one of the 2,602 members of the “Minang Atheist”, which he said was founded by 70-year-old Jusfiq Hadjar, a resident of Leiden, the Netherlands, according to the attorney.

“The defendant has never met or directly spoken with Jusfiq,” Ronny said, adding that Alexander had made a public apology for his mistake.

— Hat tip: C. Cantoni

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Why We Should All be Very Concerned About Fukushima

Very little attention is being paid to TEPCO’s Fukushima nuclear power plant in Japan. The devastating earthquake that hit Japan in March of 2011 is long out of people’s minds. Tragically, what the Japanese government should have done right after the earthquake was what the Russian government did after Chernobyl in 1986: [url]

There’s no saving Fukushima; containment is a complete failure. When, not if, the next big earthquake hits Japan and Reactor 4 collapses, it will be a catastrophe beyond words. Japan is the earthquake capital of the world.

If you think I’m blowing smoke, this from someone who has been following Fukushima daily since the earthquake:

“Fukushima is built on landfill. The whole thing is a geological joke. There is nothing that is going to be done. TEPCO closes the place and no one even works there on the weekends! Reactor 2 is completely untouchable…NO ONE can go near it. However, THE WORST is the spent fuel pool at Reactor 4 , which could literally end life as we know it when — WHEN — it falls to the ground. Listen, there is is 460 TONS of enriched nuclear fuel in that pool …enriched to nearly weapons grade. It takes only 10 pounds to make a thermonuclear bomb. Do the math and prepare to be sick…because that is how many nuclear weapons worth of plutonium, et al, will fission and spew it death into the air for YEARS. Sorry, but it’s all true.”

— Hat tip: JD

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Ban the Burqa Protest Offends Sydneysiders

A group of protesters wearing burqas gathered in various places in Sydney today to argue for Australia to ban the face veil. They say the wearing of the Islamic headwear donned by women, should be outlawed because they pose a security risk. Security and police were called when the burqa-clad non-Muslims incited anger outside state Parliament House.

Members of the public were extremely offended by the male protesters wearing the burqa. Zubeda Raihman from the Muslim Women’s National Network says, “I think it is pretty offensive because we live in this democratic country and we are given the freedom of choice.” The group ventured to the Downing Centre Local Court, a city pub, a bank, and the NSW Parliament House.

— Hat tip: Fjordman

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Cancer Victim Robert Mugabe is ‘Fighting for His Life’ In Singapore Hospital

Zimbabwean dictator Robert Mugabe is said to be fighting for his life in a Singapore hospital.

According to the Zimbabwe Mail a senior official of the 88-year-old’s ZANU-PF party, said the President was undergoing intensive treatment in Singapore and that some members of his family had joined him after boarding a chartered private jet on Saturday.

The alarm was raised yesterday when the government postponed a cabinet meeting set for today.

— Hat tip: Vlad Tepes

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Explosion in Somali City of Baidoa Kills at Least 12

(AGI) Mogadishu- At least 12 people were killed as a bomb went off in the Somali city of Baidoa. Al-Shebaab Islamists have claimed responsibility for the explosion, whose target consisted of Somali and Ethiopian troops which took over the city from al-Qaeda associated Islamic fundamentalists in February.

— Hat tip: C. Cantoni

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Most Greeks Support Crackdown on Illegals, Poll

(ANSAmed) — ATHENS, APRIL 9 — Nearly 62% of Greek citizens support the government’s recent crackdown on illegal immigration, says an opinion poll carried out in the country, as the local newspaper Kathimerini reports. 83.4% of respondents say illegal immigration is a huge problem, while 48.3% believe the main priority of an immigration policy should be gradual expulsion of all immigrants from the country. The Greek government plans to set up 30 centers for illegal immigrants. Those who do not get asylum will be deported.

— Hat tip: Fjordman

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	Financial Crisis
»	Europe May be Heading Back Into Debt Storm
»	Global Great Depression and Population Reduction by 2030: MIT and the Club of Rome Prophecy
»	The Real Face of Bernanke and the Federal Reserve
	USA
»	Do the Media Want a Race War?
»	DOJ Attempts to Install Monitor in Sheriff Joe’s Office
»	Longtime Correspondent Mike Wallace Dead at 93, CBS News Reports
»	Obama’s Make-Believe Life
»	Why Obama’s Political Mentor Deserted Him
»	Why the President Should be Fired
	Europe and the EU
»	Burglar Swoops on Swiss Funeral-Goers’ Homes
»	Copenhagen Really is Wonderful, For So Many Reasons
»	EU Plays Down Financial Impact of Carbon Tax on Airlines
»	Germany: Some Chocolate Leaves a Bitter Aftertaste
»	Germany: Owl Wings Provide Example for Airplanes
»	Hate Crimes in Europe
»	Swine Flu Vaccines Cause 17-Fold Increase in Narcolepsy, Horrified Scientists Discover
»	UK: University Boat Race 2012: Towpath Guerrilla Trenton Oldfield Sticks His Oar in
	Balkans
»	Macedonia to Block Roma From EU
	Israel and the Palestinians
»	Israel Declares German Writer Grass “Persona Non Grata”
	South Asia
»	Afghans: US Paid $50,000 Per Shooting Spree Death
»	Pakistani President Visits India on Rare Trip
	Far East
»	China ‘Concerned’ Over North Korea Rocket Launch
»	North Korea Says Interception of Its Satellite is ‘An Act of War’
»	North Korea: Construction Boom Aims to Impress Populace
»	North Korea Threatens ‘Merciless Punishment’ As it Readies Rocket Launch
	Sub-Saharan Africa
»	Nigerian Car Bombs Kill Many in Kaduna
	Latin America
»	‘War on Drugs’ Has Failed, Say Latin American Leaders
»	Washington’s Neglected Southern Neighbors
	Immigration
»	Stereotyping of Roma Continues in Germany
	General
»	Pope Benedict XVI Gives Easter Sunday Message

Europe May be Heading Back Into Debt Storm

(PARIS) — A flood of easy money courtesy of the European Central Bank made for a calm start to 2012 but a poor Spanish bond sale last week signals it may only have been a lull before the debt storm breaks, analysts warn.

The ECB injected roughly one trillion euros ($1.3 trillion) into eurozone banks at auctions in December and February, helping to ease concerns banks would face a funding crunch.

Some of this cash ended up in the sovereign bond markets, helping reduce the rates countries need to pay to raise funds after a year of high tension over whether Italy and Spain — the eurozone’s third- and fourth-largest economies — might also need to be bailed out after Greece, Ireland and Portugal.

“The first quarter was exceptional for eurozone state borrowing,” said Jean-Francois Robin at France’s Natixis bank.

The first three months of the year are important as countries often try to meet a huge chunk of their annual borrowing needs at the outset and they made the most of the early calm.

“Paris and Berlin borrowed at historically very favourable rates and Madrid got a long way towards covering its financing needs this year,” noted Robin.

Spain covered 43 percent of its annual medium- and long-term financing needs in the first quarter, taking advantage of rates of around 4.0 percent compared to near 7.0 percent at the height of the crisis late last year.

But in the first week of April the calm on European debt markets abruptly ended.

Spain barely raised the amount it sought in a bond auction on Wednesday and had to pay investors sharply higher rates just after announcing a tough 2012 budget that aims to make a whopping 27 billion euros in savings.

Madrid’s warning that its public debt will jump by 10 percentage points this year to nearly 80 percent of gross domestic product (GDP) clearly rattled investors who also faced the prospect of an economy slipping deeper into recession.

While ECB liquidity measures helped shield Madrid from immediate danger, economist Raj Badiani at IHS Global Insight warned the risks are expected to intensify next year as Spain is battered by recession and high unemployment and bad real estate assets drag down banks.

This would make it difficult for Spain to achieve its target of reducing its public deficit to the EU ceiling of 3.0 percent of GDP by austerity measures alone, he said, and raised the possibility it would need some sort of help from its European partners.

“This could entail the ECB providing more protection than its current policy of making limited Spanish bond purchases in the secondary market,” he said.

However, ECB chief Mario Draghi made it clear on Wednesday that such a move was not on the cards, although the central banker would not rule out further action to support the region’s banks.

— Hat tip: Fjordman

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Global Great Depression and Population Reduction by 2030: MIT and the Club of Rome Prophecy

A U.N policy paper recently outlined the building blocks for a world government that would enforce a “heavy-handed” approach toward humanity’s impact on the environment, as this new epoch of The Anthropocene Age has begun to negatively alter the planet in irrevocable ways.

A rather infamous book, from a rather infamous group called The Club of Rome, is making a reappearance as humanity hurtles toward demise if its stewardship is not turned over to technocrats. Limits to Growth (1972) is nothing short of a blueprint for population reduction and neo-feudalism; or, as Yale economist Henry Wallich stated at the time of its release, its implementation means “consigning billions to poverty.”

It appears that this plan has been green-lighted by the elite, as recent MIT research validates the conclusions drawn by Limits to Growth at this crucial time when we see the world economy imploding, and a jack-booted green police ready to hit the streets. According to MIT, we are headed toward a guaranteed planet-wide economic collapse and “precipitous population decline” if we do not heed the words of The Club of Rome.

Austerity riots and suicides are filling the streets throughout Europe, as draconian measures are being taken to curb runaway debt. This debt has provably been created by the Ponzi scheme of international banksters who have employed a loan-shark framework that is only paying dividends to those in position to buy up deliberately collapsed assets for pennies on the dollar.

The global elite continue to ignore that the problems which have been generated across the globe have very little to do with true resource shortages, unsustainable economies, or overpopulation; but rather the centralized control, mismanagement, and outright theft by corporate entities using globalization as a means of reducing sovereignty and self-determination.

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The Real Face of Bernanke and the Federal Reserve

Here is how the establishment media portrays the bankster minion Ben “Helicopter” Bernanke: [picture]

They expect us to believe he is a “hero” who saved the global economy when the exact opposite is the case. Bernanke and the Federal Reserve rigged an already rigged system of fiat paper money manipulated by the bankers. The monetary policies of the Fed created the economic environment that led to the slow motion Greatest Depression now underway.

Check out this primer [url] on how the fixed monetary game is really played.

Here’s a true representation of the Federal Reserve. It will never be published by The Atlantic or any other establishment publication: [picture]

During president Andrew Jackson’s effort to free the country from the grip of the bankers, newspapers routinely published political cartoons similar the one above. See one here [url].

— Hat tip: JD

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Do the Media Want a Race War?

It’s no surprise that Al Sharpton and his fellow rabble-rouser, Jesse Jackson, are doing everything they can to stir passions to the boiling point regarding the death of Trayvon Martin in Sanford, Florida. That’s been their modus operandi for more than 20 years. Does anybody remember Tawana Brawley, the fake rape victim Sharpton used as his first stepping-stone to national fame (or should I say infamy)?

But I can’t remember a time when the media were so eager to give nationwide publicity to every vicious lie and racist accusation. Forget about trying to get calmer heads to prevail or any of that nonsense about not rushing to judgment. The media want someone’s head on a platter (or at least George Zimmerman’s body in jail). And they want it now.

If they have to doctor the facts a bit to get it, so what? They’re willing to use some incredibly dishonest means to see that “justice” is done.

— Hat tip: JD

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DOJ Attempts to Install Monitor in Sheriff Joe’s Office

The Department of Justice in Washington has accused Sheriff Joe Arapio’s Office of engaging in what they describe as ‘racial profiling and mistreatment of illegals aliens and hispanics’ and alleged ‘human rights violations’ in its patrols and jails.

— Hat tip: JD

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Longtime Correspondent Mike Wallace Dead at 93, CBS News Reports

Mike Wallace, a pioneer of American broadcasting who confronted leaders and liars for the newsmagazine “60 Minutes” for four decades, has died, CBS News said. He was 93.

His death was announced on CBS by the anchor of its Sunday morning program, Charles Osgood. The network did not immediately specify when or where he died. Mr. Wallace had been ill for several years.

As one of the original correspondents and hosts of “60 Minutes,” which was started in 1968, Mr. Wallace helped to establish the television newsmagazine format. “60 Minutes” is now the most popular such program on American television.

An earlier version of this news alert incorrectly stated that Mr. Wallace was 94.

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Obama’s Make-Believe Life

I have this theory about Barack Obama. I think he’s led a kind of make-believe life in which money was provided and doors were opened because at some point early on somebody or some group took a look at this tall, good looking, half-white, half-black, young man with an exotic African/Muslim name and concluded he could be guided toward a life in politics where his facile speaking skills could even put him in the White House.

In a very real way, he has been a young man in a very big hurry. Who else do you know has written two memoirs before the age of 45? “Dreams of My Father” was published in 1995 when he was only 34 years old. The “Audacity of Hope” followed in 2006. If, indeed, he did write them himself. There are some who think that his mentor and friend, Bill Ayers, a man who calls himself a “communist with a small ‘c’“ was the real author.

His political skills consisted of rarely voting on anything that might be deemed controversial. He went from a legislator in the Illinois legislature to the Senator from that state because he had the good fortune of having Mayor Daley’s formidable political machine at his disposal.

He was in the U.S. Senate so briefly that his bid for the presidency was either an act of astonishing self-confidence or part of some greater game plan that had been determined before he first stepped foot in the Capital. How, many must wonder, was he selected to be a 2004 keynote speaker at the Democrat convention that nominated John Kerry when virtually no one had ever even heard of him before?

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Why Obama’s Political Mentor Deserted Him

Alice Palmer, the avowed communist who helped launch Barack Obama’s career, continues to haunt Obama even today.

In 2008, Palmer showed up at the Democratic National Convention in Denver as a Hillary Clinton supporter, still resentful toward Obama for knocking her and three other candidates off the ballot for an Illinois state Senate seat some 13 years earlier by challenging voter signatures.

“The Democratic primary, what I witnessed, was one of the most appalling, disgusting things I’ve ever seen in my entire life,” Hollywood-based digital photographer Michele Thomas told WND in a joint interview with Hollywood film producer Bettina Viviano.

Thomas began as a volunteer for the 2008 Clinton campaign then launched a petition drive when she learned the Democratic National Committee was not going to allow delegates to cast their votes for Clinton at the convention.

“I just felt like the entire process was being eviscerated and rules were being changed all along to ensure that no matter what, Barack Obama was the nominee,” Thomas said.

— Hat tip: JD

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Why the President Should be Fired

Decide now to fire the President in November, and start now preparing to win your precinct, district, county, state, and nation.

There are far more reasons to fire President Barack Hussein Obama than can be addressed in a single column. Here are just a few reasons that should be considered.

President Obama believes that the U.S. Constitution is flawed, and despite his oath to protect and defend it, he has consistently ignored it.

[…]

President Obama believes in the “One World” vision under the authority of the United Nations. From his first trips to foreign countries, he has bowed to foreign leaders and apologized for America’s accomplishments. He has accepted the U.N.’s theory that the earth is dying because of population growth and abuse of resources. His entire energy policy is based on complying with the U.N.’s theory that climate change is caused by carbon emissions from fossil fuel.

More than 31,000 scientists say publicly that there is no human-caused global warming, nor is it likely in the future. The U.N. theory is based on computer models that fail to reflect reality. Models predicted a two-degree rise in temperature since the industrial revolution. Reality is a temperature rise of less than one degree, which cannot be attributed to carbon dioxide in the atmosphere.

Obama has embraced the U.N.’s Agenda 21 program for achieving “sustainable development” by government control of land use, and of about every other facet of human experience. When Congress refuses to enact his policies, he finds another way to prevail. Through Executive Orders, he has created special councils that engage virtually every federal agency in the implementation of the recommendations contained in Agenda 21.

— Hat tip: JD

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Burglar Swoops on Swiss Funeral-Goers’ Homes

A 50-year-old man from Neuchatel has been arrested for a spate of burglaries committed while the victims attended the funerals of loved ones.

“He stole from me while I was crying for my husband,” 66-year-old Gilberte Guillaume told online newspaper Le Matin. She had been attending a late-night vigil at the time of the break-in.

“I cannot even find the words to express how indecent it is.”

Guillaume is one of 22 victims who were all burgled while attending funeral services. The offender is thought to have studied the death announcements printed in the press the day before each crime to identify the towns and names of his future victims.

The burglar has been particularly active in the cantons of Jura, Neuchatel, Fribourg, Bern and Vaud, stealing mainly money and jewellery before his arrest at the end of March. The police first tried to catch the man using surveillance, but were finally able to track him using evidence from his last burglary.

The man, known to the police for having committed similar crimes in the past, said that bad financial circumstances had driven him to burgle.

Although the man acted alone, it is clear to police from the pattern of burglaries that he was not responsible for all of those committed in the canton of Vaud while funerals were taking place.

“We continue to monitor the homes of friends and family during funeral ceremonies,” the cantonal police spokeswoman Donatella Del Vecchio told Le Matin. “But we cannot be everywhere.”

— Hat tip: Vlad Tepes

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Copenhagen Really is Wonderful, For So Many Reasons

Denmark has just come top in the UN’s survey of global happiness — far ahead of 18th-placed Britain. One former Londoner who moved to the Danish capital three years ago can see why

It feels incredibly safe. I run in the dark with my iPod in full view and, like most Danish mothers, I would leave Liv sleeping in a pram outside a cafe. Yet occasionally I miss the edginess of Shoreditch high street late on a Friday night.

It’s very white too — markedly so for us former inhabitants of Finsbury Park — and with this comes a lack of the cultural diversity and understanding that is such an important component in making London the great city it is. The Danes are gradually opening up their borders, but there’s an unspoken fear among many that this perfect society, which functions so efficiently because of universal high taxes, might shatter under the strain of an influx of immigrants.

In many ways the city feels like London might have 60 years ago and for us, at this point in our lives, it truly is a case of wonderful, wonderful Copenhagen. Whether it can retain its spot at the top of the World Happiness Report will be fascinating to see.

— Hat tip: Fjordman

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EU Plays Down Financial Impact of Carbon Tax on Airlines

(PARIS) — The EU’s climate commissioner played down the impact of the controversial carbon tax being imposed by the bloc on airlines, saying Friday it would cost less than a cup of coffee per passenger.

With the tax, sharply criticised by China and the United States, “a flight from Beijing to Frankfurt for example will cost around an extra two euros per passenger,” Climate Commissioner Connie Hedegaard told the French daily Les Echos.

“In other words, an amount less than that of a cup of coffee at the airport,” she added.

With the dispute intensifying over the tax, Hedegaard said it was important to keep a sense of proportion.

Last month plane maker Airbus, plus half a dozen airlines including British Airways, Lufthansa, and Air France wrote a letter to the British, French, German and Spanish governments warning the tax could cost them billions of dollars in lost orders and business and lead to the loss of the thousands of jobs.

A subsequent letter by French Prime Minister Francois Fillon to European Commission head Jose Manuel Barosso made similar points, noting that China had already suspended an important Airbus order.

“We, as Europeans, of course cannot let ourselves be swayed by such threats,” Hedegaard told Les Echos, stressing that China’s payments due under the levy this year would be only 1.9 million euros.

“That is very, very little to be bandying around such threats for,” she added.

Hedegaard said Europe “was as determined as anyone to achieve an ambitious and coordinated approach at the international level” to combat global warming emissions.

“But such an accord will not be possible if certain countries who have opposed the measure up to now do not seriously change their position,” she said.

— Hat tip: Fjordman

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Germany: Some Chocolate Leaves a Bitter Aftertaste

Germans love chocolate. But the labor and living conditions of cocoa planters are bad, and child labor is common. The German initiative “Forum Sustainable Cocoa” wants to change that.

Statistics say every German eats eleven kilos of chocolate per year, making Germany one of the most important markets for cocoa. Five to six million farmers in Latin America, South East Asia, and especially Africa produce 90 percent of world production of cocoa.

As much as 70 percent of the cocoa traded across the world is produced in western Africa, with Ivory Coast, Ghana, Nigeria, Cameroon and Togo being the major exporters.

But according to a 2009 survey conducted commissioned by the US Tulane University, in Ivory Coast and Ghana alone, more than 250,000 children work on cocoa plantations under conditions that violate both domestic laws and international rules set by the International Labor Organization (ILO).

— Hat tip: Fjordman

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Germany: Owl Wings Provide Example for Airplanes

Engineers are trying to learn how owls fly through the night without making a sound. Their wings could serve as models for quieter planes, turbines, or air-conditioning systems.

Bionics is the technical term for a field of research where scientists try to emulate nature. Owls are among the animals that have much to teach mankind. It is fascinating, say the scientists from the RWTH Aachen University, how the birds of prey fly without making any sound when they’re hunting.

“Owls hunt at night, when visual information is very limited,” explains biologist Thomas Bachmann. “That’s why owls have specialized in detecting their prey with their ears. And that can only work when they fly quietly.”

When analyzing the aerodynamics of an owl’s flight, Bachmann noticed that barn owls weigh almost as much as pigeons, but their wings are considerably larger and more cupped. “This enables the bird to maximize uplift in fairly low speed,” Bachmann says.

— Hat tip: Fjordman

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Hate Crimes in Europe

Studies suggest that 85% of hate crimes in Europe with an anti-religious background are directed against Christians. It is high time for the public debate to respond to this reality! We also notice professional restrictions for Christians: a restrictive application of freedom of conscience leads to professions such as magistrates, doctors, nurses and midwives as well as pharmacists slowly closing for Christians. Teachers and parents get into trouble when they disagree with state-defined sexual ethics. Our research shows that only with a more accommodating approach to religion and specifically to Christianity, Europe will live up to its foundational value of freedom.

— Hat tip: The Observer

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Swine Flu Vaccines Cause 17-Fold Increase in Narcolepsy, Horrified Scientists Discover

(NaturalNews) The long-term health damage caused by the great H1N1 swine flu scam “pandemic” of 2009 — and particularly the mass vaccination campaign that accompanied it — is already becoming apparent in the form of an autoimmune disorder. A new review published in the journal Public Library of Science ONE confirms that Pandemrix, a swine flu vaccine produced by drug giant GlaxoSmithKline (GSK), is responsible for causing an up to 1700 percent increase in narcolepsy among children and teenagers under 17 years of age.

Based on their findings, a cohort of scientists has determined that narcolepsy rates increased significantly following mass vaccination campaigns with Pandemrix. Compiled data has revealed that between 2002 and 2009, the narcolepsy rate among children under age 17 was 0.31 per 100,000. But in 2010, that number jumped to 5.3 per 100,000, which represents a 17-fold increase.

Similarly, research compiled by Markku Partinen of the Helsinki Sleep Clinic and Hanna Nohynek of the National Institute for Health and Welfare in Finland, both of which were also involved in the new research, has determined a link between Pandemrix and narcolepsy. Children not vaccinated with Pandemrix were found to have a 1300 percent less risk of developing narcolepsy compared to children who were vaccinated with Pandemrix.

— Hat tip: JD

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UK: University Boat Race 2012: Towpath Guerrilla Trenton Oldfield Sticks His Oar in

An Australian activist with an anti-elitism manifesto has been named as the man who disrupted the University boat race between Oxford and Cambridge by swimming in the River Thames.

First, Sir Matthew Pinsent, the former Olympic rower, thought he saw debris in the water. Then, he and hundreds watching on the banks of the river thought it must be a dog, swimming towards the Oxford and Cambridge boats as they sped past Chiswick on a choppy Thames.

But when he realised that it was a bearded man in a wetsuit who was heading straight for Oxford’s vessel, he desperately signalled to stop the Boat Race, eight minutes after it had begun.

Staring from the water at Sir Matthew, the assistant umpire, was Trenton Oldfield, an Australian activist who had swum in to publicise his bizarre manifesto. As the two crews stopped, the oars inches from Mr Oldfield’s head, officials dragged him out of the water and on to another launch.

— Hat tip: Fjordman

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Macedonia to Block Roma From EU

Macedonia plans to punish Roma who seek to apply for asylum in the EU. Behind this curb on freedom of travel are warnings from Brussels threatening Skopje’s EU aspirations.

Since December 2009, citizens of Serbia and Macedonia no longer need a visa to travel to the European Union. Many Roma from those countries see this as a chance for a better life in the West. The flow of Roma immigrants to the EU has been steadily on the rise and while many of them apply for asylum once in the EU, none has actually been recognized as a political refugee.

— Hat tip: Fjordman

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Israel Declares German Writer Grass “Persona Non Grata”

Israel has barred famous German author Gunter Grass from entering the country, after Grass wrote a poem in which it is depicted as endangering global peace. Grass says he is a friend to Israel despite his comments.

In a statement, Interior Minister Eli Yeshai was cited as saying: “Gunter’s poem is an attempt to fan the flames of hate against the state of Israel and the Israeli people.” Yishai said on Sunday: “If Günter wants to continue disseminating his distorted and mendacious works I advise him to do it from Iran where he will find a supportive audience.”

In the verses published last week, titled “What Must Be Said,” Grass said Israel must not be allowed to launch military strikes against Iran over fears that Tehran is building nuclear weapons.

Israe lhas threatened to take military action against Iran to halt what Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has described as a threat akin to the Holocaust. Iran claims its nuclear program is solely for civilian purposes. It has, however, called for Israel’s destruction and questioned the Nazi genocide.

— Hat tip: Fjordman

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Afghans: US Paid $50,000 Per Shooting Spree Death

The United States has paid $50,000 in compensation for each Afghan killed and $11,000 for each person wounded in the shooting spree allegedly committed by a U.S. soldier in southern Afghanistan, an Afghan official and a community elder said Sunday.

The families of the dead, who received the money Saturday at the governor’s office, were told that the money came from U.S. President Barack Obama, said Kandahar provincial council member Agha Lalai. He and community elder Jan Agha confirmed the payout amounts.

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Pakistani President Visits India on Rare Trip

Pakistani President Asif Ali Zardari is in India on an informal one-day goodwill trip. The two nuclear-armed rivals have long been at loggerheads over a number of sensitive issues. Pakistani President Asif Ali Zardari arrived in India on Sunday on what is the first trip by a Pakistani head of state since 2005.

Zardari’s trip has been described as “private.” He is to lunch with Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh before visiting a Muslim shrine 350 kilometers (220 miles) from New Delhi. Zardari and Singh were expected to hold private talks before the lunch. Diplomatic sources said no statements were likely to be made after the meeting.

— Hat tip: Fjordman

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China ‘Concerned’ Over North Korea Rocket Launch

The foreign ministers of China, Japan and South Korea have all met to discuss a planned rocket launch by North Korea, which some suspect may be a disguised ballistic missile test.

Chinese Foreign Minister Yang Jiechi hosted talks with his Japanese and South Korean counterparts on Sunday, expressing concern over escalating tensions on the Korean peninsula as the North prepares for a rocket launch.

Beijing’s official news agency Xinhua reported that Yang told both ministers separately on Saturday that China was “concerned and worried about the latest development on the Korean peninsula.”

“It is in the common interest of all sides to maintain peace and stability on the Korean peninsula and realize long-term peace and stability in northeast Asia,” Yang said. “China hopes all parties involved will keep calm and exert restraint.”

North Korea has announced plans to launch a rocket sometime between April 12 and 16 in honor of what would have been the 100th birthday of its late founding leader, Kim Il-Sung, on April 15. Pyongyang said the rocket will put a satellite into orbit to research crops and natural resources.

The move angered the United States and its regional allies Japan and South Korea, who regard it as a thinly-veiled ballistic missile test in violation of UN Security Council resolutions.

Both Japan and South Korea have warned that they may shoot down parts of the North Korean rocket if they threaten their territory. Japan reportedly deployed missile batteries in Tokyo and sent out three destroyers carrying sea-based interceptor missiles into the East China sea.

— Hat tip: Fjordman

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North Korea Says Interception of Its Satellite is ‘An Act of War’

SEOUL-North Korean leader Kim Jong-un has ratcheted up his regime’s militaristic rhetoric as Pyongyang threatened to retaliate against any country that intercepts a North Korean rocket booster or collects the rocket debris.

This developed as The Associated Press (AP) reported that North Korea may have moved the first stage of a rocket to a launch stand, indicating it is on schedule for a controversial mid-April launch, according to a new analysis of satellite images.

The rocket isn’t visible at the Tongchang-ri site, but an analysis provided to the AP by the US-Korea Institute at Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies says evidence suggests the first stage may be in the launch stand’s closed gantry, a support frame, ahead of the launch planned for April 12 to 16.

The North has vowed to launch a rocket to put an earth observation satellite into orbit, a move widely seen as a pretext to disguise a banned test of its ballistic-missile technology.

The Committee for the Peaceful Reunification of Korea in Pyongyang warned that interception of the satellite would be “an act of war” and would cause a tremendous catastrophe.

Whoever “intercepts the satellite or collects its debris will meet immediate, resolute and merciless punishment” from the North, the committee said in an English-language statement carried by its Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) late Thursday.

The warning came days after South Korea said it was exploring measures to intercept the rocket booster in case it veers off its trajectory. Japan has also ordered its troops to shoot down the rocket if there is concern it or parts of it could land on Japan.

South Korea expects the rocket’s first-stage booster to land in international waters, some 170 kilometers south of its southwestern city of Gunsan, before the rocket’s second-stage booster falls east of the Philippines.

The North has said it chose a safe flight path to ensure carrier rocket debris jettisoned during the flight will not impact on neighboring countries.

— Hat tip: Fjordman

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North Korea: Construction Boom Aims to Impress Populace

North Korea has long been known for its military-first policy, which in effect translated into a military-only policy with little room left for investment anywhere else. But now, without abandoning its focus on what it calls defense, it also appears to be trying to revive a dying economy and rebuild on the home front.

The stated aim of the reconstruction sweeping Pyongyang is to put North Korea on the path of being a “strong and prosperous nation” in time for the 100th anniversary of the birth of founder Kim Il Sung on April 15. But the campaign also serves another political purpose: It sets up Kim Jong Un as the new leader of a great people, just as a construction frenzy heralded his father’s ascension before him.

“This is to show their own people they are not poor and underdeveloped,” said Hazel Smith, a professor of humanitarianism and security at Britain’s Cranfield University who lived in North Korea for a few years. “Construction is the cheapest thing you can do and show visible results if you’re an economy that hasn’t got much money.”

— Hat tip: Fjordman

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North Korea Threatens ‘Merciless Punishment’ As it Readies Rocket Launch

Japan and South Korea have put their armed forces on standby in response to North Korea’s plans, prepared to shoot down the missile if it passes over their territory.

North Korea was this weekend believed to be at the first stage of launching the rocket, expected between April 12 and 16, claiming that it is part of the centenary celebrations for the birth of the state’s founder Kim Il Sung.

However, the United States, Japan and South Korea believe that in reality it will be a ballistic missile test in violation of UN resolutions.

— Hat tip: JD

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Nigerian Car Bombs Kill Many in Kaduna

Two car bombs have exploded in the northern Nigerian city of Kaduna, killing at least 16 people, officials say.

Several others were seriously injured in the attack and have been taken to hospital.

The death toll could be higher, with one official, Abubakar Zakari Adamu, telling the AP news agency 38 had died.

A bomb later exploded in the central city of Jos, injuring several people.

The blasts in Kaduna, which caused extensive damage, happened near restaurants, a hotel and two churches.

Religious conflict

The area has been the scene of a religious conflict in recent years that has claimed hundreds of lives.

There had been warnings of attacks in the region over Easter.

Many of the dead are thought to be motorcycle taxi drivers and beggars.

Witnesses say debris was thrown dozens of metres from the centre of the blast.

Kaduna can be found on the dividing line between Nigeria’s largely Christian south and Muslim north.

‘Horrific act’

No one has yet admitted carrying out the bombing, but the BBC’s correspondent in Nigeria, Mark Lobel, says the radical Islamist group Boko Haram recently said it would carry out attacks in the area over the Easter holiday.

Local Christian groups have speculated that the bombers were targeting a nearby church, but that heavy security meant they detonated their explosives in a nearby area instead.

— Hat tip: Vlad Tepes

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‘War on Drugs’ Has Failed, Say Latin American Leaders

Watershed summit will admit that prohibition has failed, and call for more nuanced and liberalised tactics

A historic meeting of Latin America’s leaders, to be attended by Barack Obama, will hear serving heads of state admit that the war on drugs has been a failure and that alternatives to prohibition must now be found.

The Summit of the Americas, to be held in Cartagena, Colombia is being seen by foreign policy experts as a watershed moment in the redrafting of global drugs policy in favour of a more nuanced and liberalised approach.

Otto Pérez Molina, the president of Guatemala, who as former head of his country’s military intelligence service experienced the power of drug cartels at close hand, is pushing his fellow Latin American leaders to use the summit to endorse a new regional security plan that would see an end to prohibition. In the Observer, Pérez Molina writes: “The prohibition paradigm that inspires mainstream global drug policy today is based on a false premise: that global drug markets can be eradicated.”

Pérez Molina concedes that moving beyond prohibition is problematic. “To suggest liberalisation — allowing consumption, production and trafficking of drugs without any restriction whatsoever — would be, in my opinion, profoundly irresponsible. Even more, it is an absurd proposition. If we accept regulations for alcoholic drinks and tobacco consumption and production, why should we allow drugs to be consumed and produced without any restrictions?”

He insists, however, that prohibition has failed and an alternative system must be found. “Our proposal as the Guatemalan government is to abandon any ideological consideration regarding drug policy (whether prohibition or liberalisation) and to foster a global intergovernmental dialogue based on a realistic approach to drug regulation. Drug consumption, production and trafficking should be subject to global regulations, which means that drug consumption and production should be legalised, but within certain limits and conditions.”

— Hat tip: Fjordman

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Washington’s Neglected Southern Neighbors

It seems to be US President Obama’s ‘Latin America Month’: He hosts the presidents of Mexico and Brazil and will later be off to a regional summit in Colombia. But Latin America is still far from a priority for the US.

If you’re browsing US papers for articles on Latin America, you’ll have to look very closely to find some. On the day after the North America summit at the White house, President Obama met with his Mexican counterpart Felipe Calderon and Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper — but the New York Times printed a picture of the three of them only on page 17.

The headline was “President confident health law will stand.” As usual, the US journalists’ main interest was Obama’s domestic policy: the health reform is currently in limbo, pending a decision by the US Supreme Court. Only towards the end of the three leaders’ press conference, the questions focused on the relations of the US with Mexico and Canada.

In fact, there are plenty of issues to discuss — the stream of illegal immigrants and the drug and weapons trafficking from south to north being the most pressing. At least those topics do regularly make it into US papers.

— Hat tip: Fjordman

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Stereotyping of Roma Continues in Germany

Foreign, free, travelling and lazy — the people who are dismissed as “gypsies” have been stereotyped for centuries. Hundreds of thousands of them were killed by the Nazi regime, and segregation continued after 1945.

‘Romani village to move to Berlin’ ran one headline in Berlin daily BZ on April 2, and the Berliner Morgenpost followed up with ‘Romani children too much to handle for Berlin teachers’ the next day. Those were just two recent headlines in German newspapers.

Such articles go on to describe aggressive begging, welfare payments allegedly obtained under false pretences and mountains of garbage. This kind of reporting has strengthened the distorted picture of a minority group that has been disparaged in Europe for centuries.

According to polls conducted by conflict researcher Wilhelm Heitmeyer, some 44 percent of the German population believe that Sinti and Roma have a tendency to criminal conduct. Four out of 10 say it is a problem for them to have Sinti and Roma nearby. And yet, say Heitmeyer and other researchers, the respondents are not likely to know any members of the minority they dislike so much.

— Hat tip: Fjordman

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Pope Benedict XVI Gives Easter Sunday Message

The pope has called for peace in Syria and across the Middle East in his traditional speech on Easter Sunday. The message coincided with a car bombing at a church in Nigeria that left several dead.

— Hat tip: Fjordman

[Return to headlines]

	Financial Crisis
»	“Not in Labor Force” At New All Time High
»	Portugal on Track But Problems Elsewhere a Threat: IMF
	USA
»	Democrats Responsible for Black Culture of Anger
»	Florida Pastor at Dearborn Protest: ‘Islam Has One Goal — That is World Domination’
»	Fox News Hires Supporter of Jeremiah Wright and Derrick Bell
»	Hundreds Pack Public Hearing on Proposed Mosque in Norwalk
»	Muslim Brotherhood’s $1.5 Billion Holy Week Windfall
»	NBC Fires Producer in Flap Over Manipulated 911 Call in Trayvon Martin Case
»	Photos: U.S. Army Domestic Quick Reaction Force Riot Control Training
»	Subsidized and Expensive Solar Energy Bites the Dust Again
»	Task Force Searches for North Tulsa ‘Random Shooter’
	Europe and the EU
»	Brussels Public Transport Halted After Fatal Staff Attack
»	France: Conference for Muslims Underway Amid French Security
»	France: Toulouse Killer Was No Lone Wolf
»	Malmö: Hatred of Jews in a Swedish City
»	The ‘Islamic Art’ Hoax
»	Turkey Will Not be Deterred From EU Bid: Minister
»	UK to Propose Laws Allowing the Monitoring of E-Mail and Visited Websites
»	UK: “The Number One Driver of Not Voting Conservative is Not Being White”
»	UK: And After We’ve Left the EU …
»	UK: Disgrace of PC in Drunken Race Rant: Scotland Yard’s Racism Crisis Deepens as Vile Abuse of Asian Shop Manager is Revealed
»	UK: It’s Time to End the Tory War on Multiculturalism (Reprise)
»	UK: Ken Livingstone, George Galloway and Britian’s Drift to the Politics of Race
»	UK: Leicestershire Councillor Facing Probe Over Message Criticising Muslims
»	UK: MPs: We Speak Up for Israel — and Get Death Threats
»	UK: Playing the Faith Card is a Risky Game
»	UK: Sentenced to Death for Being Old: The NHS Denies Life-Saving Treatment to the Elderly, As One Man’s Chilling Story Reveals
»	UK: Tory Cabinet Ministers Ordered to Attend Eid and Diwali Festivals to Appeal to Asian Voters
	North Africa
»	Tunisia: Should the World Trust Islamists?
	South Asia
»	Airborne Prayers Problem Solved for Tech-Savvy Muslims
»	Avalanche Buries 130 Pakistani Soldiers in Kashmir on ‘World’s Highest Battlefield’ Near Indian Border
	Far East
»	Fukushima Reactor 4: Life on Planet Earth in the Balance
	Sub-Saharan Africa
»	British Embassy Staff Withdrawn From Mali as Islamic Insurgents Declare Independence
»	Nigeria: Sharia: Amputee Seeks N20,000 to Revive Chicken Trade
»	Triumphant Tuareg Rebels Fall Out Over Al-Qaeda’s Jihad in Mali
	Culture Wars
»	A Society That Persecutes Christ is Heading for Terrible Trouble
»	Melinda Gates: Worrying About Population Control “Has Led to Much Suffering and Death”
»	UK: Baa Baa Little Sheep: How Private School Abandoned Nursery Rhyme’s Lyrics for Easter Show Sparking Political Correctness Accusations
	General
»	How Muslims View Easter
»	In the Shadow of the Sword by Tom Holland — Review
»	Interview: Tom Holland on the Origins of Islam

“Not in Labor Force” At New All Time High

March NFP big miss at just 120K. Unemployment rate declines from 8.3% to 8.2%. Futures slide, for at least a few minutes before the NEW QE TM rumor starts spreading. The household survey actually posted a decline in March from 142,065 to 142,034. Considering Birth Death added 90K to the NSA number, the actual number was almost unchanged. And as always, as we predicted when Goldman hiked its NFP forecast yesterday from 175K to 200K saying “if Goldman’s recent predictive track record is any indication, tomorrow’s NFP will be a disaster”, Goldie once again skewers everyone. Finally, Joe LaVorgna’s +250,000 forecast was just 100% off… as usual.

The unemployment rate drops to 8.2% for one simple reason: the number of people not in the labor force is back to all time highs: 87,897,000.

— Hat tip: JD

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Portugal on Track But Problems Elsewhere a Threat: IMF

Bailed-out Portugal is on track to meet its debt-rescue targets but faces “formidable challenges,” the International Monetary Fund said Thursday, warning that the EU might have to stand by promises of more support. The country faces a tough task to get into strong enough shape to borrow the funds it needs by returning to the bond market next year, the IMF said.

“Programme implementation remains solid but formidable challenges remain,” an IMF staff paper released a day after the fund, the lender of last resort, approved a 5.17-billion-euro ($6.79 billion) installment of rescue funds.

IMF officials in Washington said after a regular joint review that Portugal was making “good progress” on its economic programme under a 78-billion-euro EU-IMF rescue agreed last November.

The IMF staff review Thursday echoed that finding but also highlighted the difficulties and risks ahead, in particular an aggravation of the debt crisis in other eurozone countries which could knock Portugal off track.

It said Portugal was generally implementing its programme as planned and fiscal and trade deficits were narrowing. “However, the recession will likely deepen in the short term and unemployment, already higher than envisaged under the programme, is likely to rise further in the coming months,” it warned. The economy is now set to shrink by 3.25 percent this year.

The IMF staff report said the government would have to work hard to ensure it cuts spending and raises tax revenue while undertaking reforms to boost growth in order to restore its access to private debt markets. But it warned that even if Lisbon did so, problems elsewhere could hurt.

— Hat tip: Fjordman

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Democrats Responsible for Black Culture of Anger

Black twenty-year-old male Danielle Simpson with two black associates were interrupted by 84 year old Geraldine Davidson while in the process of burglarizing her home. They duct taped her mouth, bound her hands and legs and threw the white former school teacher and church organist into the trunk of her own car. Ms Davidson was severely brutalized before the trio eventually tied a rope attached to a cinder block around her legs and threw her, still alive, into the river.

Brutal crimes are not unique.

But, here is what makes this case remarkable. For seven hours, Simpson rode around in Ms Davidson’s car stopping for fast food and opening the truck to show off his victim to his black friends. Due to fingerprints left on the car, detectives estimate that around ten people viewed Ms Davidson in the trunk.

Incredibly, not one person called the police or lobbied to set the poor elderly woman free. What could possibly harden these black youths to such an extent?

Perhaps one of the detective investigating the case nailed it when he described the black criminals and their friends as part of a “culture of anger.”

— Hat tip: JD

[Return to headlines]

Florida Pastor at Dearborn Protest: ‘Islam Has One Goal — That is World Domination’

Speaking today in front of the biggest mosque in Michigan, the Florida pastor known for burning the Quran blasted Islam and called upon Americans to take back their country.

“Islam has one goal — that is world domination,” said Terry Jones, wearing sunglasses, jeans and a faded black-leather jacket. “It’s time to stand up.”

Holding signs in English and Arabic that read “I Will Not Submit,” about 20 supporters cheered as Jones and his assistant spoke outside the Islamic Center of America, a Dearborn mosque that sits off Ford Road. Framed by the mosque’s minarets, Jones said he’s concerned that the growth of the Muslim population in metro Detroit and the U.S. will lead to the oppression of non-Muslims.

“Muslims, no matter they go around the world … they push their agenda on the society,” said Jones. “We must take back America.”

The mosque was placed on lockdown Saturday afternoon, with about 30 police cars from Detroit, Dearborn, Wayne County and Michigan surrounding the complex, which also includes several churches. Traffic in and out was prevented, disappointing some worshippers who were not aware of Jones’ rally and couldn’t access the mosque. During the anti-Muslim rally, an electronic billboard with the Islamic Center read: “Happy Easter.”

About 500 feet from Jones was a group of counter-protesters, some of whom were with an activist organization, By Any Means Necessary (BAMN). Police prevented them from approaching the grassy area in front of the mosque where Jones spoke. Muslim leaders had urged people not to attend the counter-protest. Unlike Jones’ last two visits to Dearborn, this one was uneventful with no arrests and no street clashes.

Jones said during his talk that he’s also concerned about the free speech rights of Americans. Over the past year, Jones has battled the City of Dearborn for the right to speak in front of the mosque. Last year, a Dearborn judge threw him briefly in jail and ordered him to stay away from the mosque for three years. That decision was later overturned by a Detroit judge.

Last month, the city asked Jones to sign a legal agreement before protesting. Jones then filed a lawsuit, prompting a Detroit federal judge to rule Thursday in his favor. Jones was represented for free in his battles with the city by the Ann Arbor-based Thomas More Law Center, a conservative Christian group established by Domino’s Pizza founder Tom Monaghan.

During the talk, some supporters of Jones made derogatory remarks and jokes about Muslims. When Jones criticized Rev. Al Sharpton and Rev. Jesse Jackson during his speech, one supporter blurted out: “Throw ‘em in the pit with the Muslims.”

After the rally, supporters of Jones posed for photos in front of the mosque.

A crew from Real Catholic TV, a media outlet based in Ferndale that’s owned by a member of Opus Dei, was at the rally. Its host, Michael Voris, said he supports Jones’ right to free speech and some of his views. Jones, who was a pastor in Germany, said Europe is increasingly under the sway of Islamic law.

“There are whole sections of London ruled by sharia law,” Voris said. “I think there’s the potential to happen in the U.S. what has happened — and is happening — in Europe.”

Tim Voss, 64, of Wayne, said he came Saturday to support Jones because “sharia law is the most dangerous thing. We can’t have it in this country.”

Down the road, counter-protester Laura Dennis, 38, of Detroit, held up a sign that read: “God Loves Us All.”

Speaking about Jones, Dennis said: “This guy’s just a hate monger, no different from the Klan or a Nazi.”

[Return to headlines]

Fox News Hires Supporter of Jeremiah Wright and Derrick Bell

Fox News is once again moving to the left, hoping to avoid left-wing attacks on its news operations and commentators. But the move risks alienating conservative viewers. The current controversy involves new Fox News contributor Santita Jackson, who lists the notorious Rev. Jeremiah Wright, Jr., as being among her personal “activities and interests” on her Facebook page.

Wright, who was Obama’s pastor for 20 years and baptized Obama’s children, became a major controversial figure during the 2008 presidential campaign when it became known that he blamed the 9/11 terrorist attacks on American foreign policy and claimed the U.S. manufactured the AIDS virus to kill black people.

The link on the Santita Jackson page, which promotes matters of personal interest to Ms. Jackson and other things she likes to do, directs people to Wright’s official home page.

But her taste for racial and divisive politics has taken on added significance in view of a blog post from 2010, in which Jackson praised New York University law professor Derrick Bell, who has recently become known as “Obama’s Beloved Law Professor” at Breitbart.com because of videos showing the President embracing him. J. Christian Adams, a former Justice Department lawyer, wrote, “Both Obama and Bell demanded that Harvard hire professors on the basis of race. Obama and other students rallied to Bell’s side after Bell quit teaching in an attempt to force Harvard to implement race-based hiring policies.”

He added, “The Obama-Bell connection is the latest in a pattern of Barack Obama’s associations with individuals who promoted a racially divisive America.”

— Hat tip: JD

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Hundreds Pack Public Hearing on Proposed Mosque in Norwalk

NORWALK — Several hundred people packed Norwalk Concert Hall on Wednesday for a public hearing on Al Madany Islamic Center of Norwalk’s proposed mosque for 127 Fillow St.

Many wore buttons reading ‘Keep 127 Fillow Street Residential.’ Others wore t-shirts reading ‘All Faiths Can Co-Exist Peacefully Support the Mosque in Norwalk.’ Joseph Santo, Norwalk Zoning Commission chairman, told all those present at the beginning of the hearing that the commission would not vote on the plan Wednesday night — and would continue the public hearing if it went to 11 p.m. “We will not be voting tonight. If we don’t finish (the hearing) tonight … we’re going to close the hearing around that time … and continue it next Wednesday, April 11,” Santo said. “The application will probably be sent back to committee. We’ll discuss it in committee and then put together a resolution (regarding the application).” Santo said the Zoning Commission has 65 days from the beginning of the public hearing Wednesday night to approve or reject the proposed plan.

— Hat tip: JP

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Muslim Brotherhood’s $1.5 Billion Holy Week Windfall

On the same day that Hagmann and Hagmann Report radio host and senior Canada Free Press (CFP) columnist Doug Hagmann confirmed that the Muslim Brotherhood was having their friendly little tete-a-tete with the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, the Brotherhood left with a booty of USD 1.5 billion in foreign aid.

“Washington, April 5, Kuwait News Agency (KUNA)—The White House defended the decision to release USD 1.5 billion in foreign aid to Egypt, on Thursday, following meetings between U.S. officials and lawmakers and representatives of the Muslim Brotherhood in Washington.”

In his Wednesday CFP report, Hagmann, who described the “Origins of the Freedom and Justice Party (FJP) as having been founded in Egypt on 30 April, 2011 by the Muslim Brotherhood, “which is the ideological forefather of al Qaeda and Hamas, supporter of Sharia Law, and an advocate of terrorism against Israel and the West”, named names:

— Hat tip: JD

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NBC Fires Producer in Flap Over Manipulated 911 Call in Trayvon Martin Case

NBC News has fired the producer it deemed most responsible for the airing of a selectively edited 911 call placed by George Zimmerman the night he killed Trayvon Martin.

Sources at NBC who asked not to be identified confirmed a New York Times story saying that a Miami-based producer was fired Thursday, though the sources refused to identify the former employee.

The offending segment aired on NBC’s Today show March 27 but went widely unnoticed until it was highlighted by conservative outlets such as the Media Research Center and Breitbart.com.

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Photos: U.S. Army Domestic Quick Reaction Force Riot Control Training

The following photos are from March and February of this year and were taken at Joint Base Lewis-McChord, Washington. The first four photos from March depict riot control training for a “domestic quick reaction force” that would aid in civil disturbances. The second set of photos from February depict the 67th Military Police Company that typically mans the area’s Regional Correctional Facility attempting to quell riots among “restless prison inmates” that have created a disturbance. The photos are similar to a collection from May 2010 that depict several National Guard units from different parts of the U.S. quelling protesters in mock communities holding signs that say “Food Now”. A description of one of the events was posted to Facebook by the U.S. Army’s 5th Mobile Public Affairs Detachment:

The Soldiers in a closed formation bang their batons in cadence against their shields as an angry mob approaches.

“When I initially picked up my shield, the thought of the movie 300 was the first thing that came to mind,” said Spc. Kyle Wilhelmi.

— Hat tip: JD

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Subsidized and Expensive Solar Energy Bites the Dust Again

Solar Trust of America, filed Chapter 11 bankruptcy in Delaware courts—the ninth solar energy company to bite the dust—adding to the previous list of BrightSource, Beacon Power, Ener1, Evergreen Solar, Fiskar, Solyndra, Sunpower, and Spectrawatt.

Solar Trust of America, which listed assets between $1 to $10 million and liabilities between $10 and $50 million, was unable to meet the Department of Energy loan guarantee deadline. The $2.1 billion loan guarantee was “the largest amount ever offered to a solar project.” (The Washington Examiner)

[…]

Spiegel Online reported that even Q-Cells, the biggest solar cell manufacturer in Germany and the world, has filed for bankruptcy on Tuesday, April 3, 2012, with a record loss of $1.1 billion in 2011. In Bitterfeld-Wolfen, 2,200 workers have lost their jobs. Q-Cell’s share price was 9 cents.

Q-Cell blamed competition from China, management issues, and solar energy subsidies. When the government subsidies dried up, Q-Cell was not able to compete in a real market as their product was expensive to make. Production prices have fallen in China by 30 to 40 percent, much faster than other companies could scale down their costs, especially when relying on government subsidies.

— Hat tip: JD

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Task Force Searches for North Tulsa ‘Random Shooter’

TULSA, Oklahoma — Tulsa Chief of Police Chuck Jordan and other city leaders spoke at a news conference Saturday afternoon to discuss the fatal shootings that took place in Tulsa overnight Friday.

Standing at a podium at the police station, Jordan said to the shooter, who is still at-large, “We’re coming for you.”

Jordan said the Oklahoma State Bureau of Investigation, U.S. Marshals Office and Federal Bureau of Investigation as well as the Tulsa County Sheriff’s Office will combine to form “Operation Random Shooter.”

Thirty investigators will be a part of the task force dedicated solely to tracking down the shooter, Jordan said.

He stressed the task force needs help from the community, because tracking down a “lone wolf suspect” who acted alone can be a challenge.

“But we are up to that challenge,” he said.

“We are all of one mindset, to find this person, arrest them and put them behind bars, and anyone that’s associated with them,” Mayor Dewey Bartlett said at the briefing.

Police call the string of mysterious shootings unprecedented and are urging caution. The random attacks left three people dead and two injured, all within a 5-mile radius. The victims range in age from 31 to 54.

There’s little information known about the suspect. Chief Jordan said one of the surviving victims was able to tell them that a white man in an older model white truck approached him then shot him.

All of the victims are black, and since the only suspect description is a white man, many are left wondering if this is a hate crime.

Related Story: Tulsa Police Identify Victims In ‘Unprecedented’ Shooting Spree

“It’s a very logical theory, but there’s no evidence at the time to support it,” Jordan said.

“There’s been no racial slurs. We haven’t arrested anybody yet. It’s just not time for us to say that. Right now, I’m more worried about three of my citizens being murdered.”

Jordan said there are substantial commonalities in the shootings, which led police to believe they are related. He cited the time frame, the geographic area and other ballistic evidence, which lead to one person.

The gun appears to be a small caliber, Jordan said, but the OSBI will conduct further testing next week.

“We’ll do whatever it takes to bring the shooter to justice,” Jordan said.

— Hat tip: Lurker from Tulsa

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Brussels Public Transport Halted After Fatal Staff Attack

The public transport authority in Brussels halted all buses, trams and metro trains in the Belgian capital Saturday after a controller was “beaten to death” following a traffic accident.

Spokeswoman Francoise Ledune said the controller, aged 56, was taken to hospital, where he later died.

Ledune said the controller was attacked after he was called to the scene of an accident between a bus and a private car early Saturday.

She said he was hit on the head by a friend of the car driver.

Brussels prosecutor Bruno Bulthe, deploring the “gratuitous violence”, said later the suspected assailant had been arrested.

Prime Minister Elio Di Rupo called in a statement for a swift trial and “the severest punishment” for whoever was responsible.

“Violence has no place in our society, one of whose fundamental principles is mutual respect,” he said.

Interior Minister Joelle Milquet said he would propose measures to improve security on public transport at a cabinet meeting later this month.

— Hat tip: Steen

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France: Conference for Muslims Underway Amid French Security

Hundreds of Muslims began a four day Islamic congress in Paris on Friday, as fears grew of a religious backlash following the Toulouse killings. More than 200 organisations from all over France are taking part in the four-day event which comes just weeks after Al Qaeda-inspired gunman Mohamed Merah shot dead seven people.

[…]

— Hat tip: JP

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France: Toulouse Killer Was No Lone Wolf

by Jason Burke

As ever, as the dust settles, the facts become clearer. In the case of Mohamed Merah, the killer of three Jewish children, a rabbi and three soldiers in France earlier this month, the questions have become sharper too. Though local authorities have been praised for their handling of the bloody dénoument of Merah’s short-lived terrorist career, many doubts remain. How many other Merahs might there be? Is this a French problem or a Europe-wide threat? What can security agencies do to make communities safer? The first point to make is that France has no particular vulnerability to extremist violence, despite the often noisy debate in the country over issues such as overt displays of religious faith in public institutions and the large Muslim population. Indeed, not only has France avoided any significant mass-casualty attacks of the types seen in Spain and Britain in 2004 and 2005 respectively, but it has produced proportionately fewer of the militant volunteers than other European countries in the late 1990s and the decade following the 9/11 attacks.

That there is now a structurally high level of antisemitism, which often translates into violence, is undeniable. That conservative strands of Islam have made significant inroads in recent years is also without doubt. Yet France’s numerous and varied Muslim communities have not shown the levels of radicalisation seen elsewhere. When they look at the Continent, British secret services are currently most concerned about Germany. But this is cold comfort. Mohammed Merah, juvenile delinquent and mechanic, was, after all, from Toulouse. That he existed at all indicates how ubiquitous the threat is, particularly to Jews, from Lisbon to Tallinn.

Another apparently worrying element is that Merah was not a true “lone wolf”, an independent operator with no connections to anyone else. Though the extent of any training or radicalisation while in Pakistan or Afghanistan is unclear — and may simply be his own fantasy — it is clear that Merah was plugged into extremist networks in and around his home town. Terrorism is, at least in terms of its mechanics if not morals, a social activity like any other, and there has been no case yet of a militant being entirely divorced from some kind of group dynamic which has at the very least encouraged him to think he were doing something that someone would regard as praiseworthy. Merah’s brother has reportedly told the police that he was “proud” of his sibling’s actions. The reactions of the various other low-level activists with whom Merah was in contact are unknown but can easily be guessed.

But the “networked” nature of modern militancy holds out the best chance for stopping such attacks. A genuine “lone wolf” would be almost impossible to detect.

The French security services have done a decent job over the past 15 years of keeping the Jewish community safe. They will now be examining how Merah was allowed to amass a potent arsenal, escape detection and kill. In the UK in recent years, their counterparts have been able to identify many potential attackers through working closely with local police and local communities. This approach, long sniffed-at in France, where a more coercive model has been favoured, has been of critical importance in tracing out the crucial small networks. Coupled with enhanced powers and more resources, the threat has been mitigated, if not eradicated, in the UK. The British have learned much from the French over recent years. Now the cross-channel flow of expertise should be reversed.

Jason Burke is the author of ‘Al Qaeda: the true story of radical Islam’ and, most recently, ‘The 9/11 Wars’

— Hat tip: JP

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Malmö: Hatred of Jews in a Swedish City

By Paulina Neuding

Rabbi Shneur Kesselman is used to running. When I asked him about the most serious anti-Semitic attack he has been victim of in his Swedish home town of Malmö, he recalled an incident when a car began backing into him and his wife as they were crossing the street.

How close was he when he stopped? I asked.

“I don’t know, we ran,” he said.

Another incident: The rabbi was walking to morning service at Malmö’s Orthodox synagogue, when a car stopped and the driver asked him aggressively to come closer. It was early Saturday morning and the streets around them were empty. When Kesselman started to walk away, the car turned and began to pursue him.

Again Rabbi Kesselman found himself running through the streets of Malmö. “I have never been so frightened,” he told me.

Anti-Semitic hate crimes are on the rise in Sweden, and as in France and Great Britain, the violence and harassment is increasingly a consequence of immigration from the Muslim world. And just as in other parts of Western Europe, there is no reciprocity between the two groups: the war in Gaza caused a sharp rise in anti- Semitic hate crime, while there were no reports of Jewish attacks on Muslims.

In the capital of Stockholm, such imported anti-Semitism has not yet provoked any dramatic changes in Jewish life — mainly because of the segregated nature of the city. Immigrants dominate housing projects in the suburbs, while most Jewish activity is downtown. Stockholm’s only kosher store, its main synagogue and the Jewish cultural center are located in Stockholm’s business quarters.

In Malmö it is different. In 2004 the most common name for baby boys in the city was Mohammed, and among 15-year-olds, ethnic Swedes are now in minority.

Unlike in Stockholm, these demographic changes are immediately reflected in city life, and for Malmö’s 1,500 Jews, life has changed considerably. It is telling that the city’s Jews don’t use slogans or carry signs during their recurring demonstrations against anti-Semitism; they simply wear kippahs and Stars of David. It has become a manifestation in itself to walk through town as a Jew.

According to the Malmö police, hate crimes in the city range from anti-Semitic remarks (a crime according to Swedish penal law) to violent assault. In late 2008, a peaceful Jewish demonstration was run off the main square by an aggressive mob of immigrants of Arab origin…

— Hat tip: Steen

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The ‘Islamic Art’ Hoax

Talking about Islamic art is rather like talking about the art of the Khanates. The Imperial Kingdom of Genghis Khan was the largest contiguous empire on earth. But just because different lands and cultures were conquered by Genghis Khan doesn’t mean that there is a significance to grouping their art. The sphere of power of the Muslim Empire stretched from the borders of China and the Indian subcontinent across Central Asia, the Middle East, North Africa, Sicily, and the Iberian Peninsula, and on to the Pyrenees. There needs to be a further rationale for calling art collections from lands conquered or subdued by the forces of Islam “Islamic Art.”

Then why all the impetus, which started in earnest some almost a decade ago, for all the “Islamic Art” openings at prestigious museums, from the Metropolitan Museum of Art to the Victoria and Albert Museum in England? The creation of departments of Islamic art at prestigious universities and museums? The support of prestigious foundations like Doris Duke Foundation for Islamic Art? It is political correctness.

The idea is that the kinder, gentler artistic side of Islam needs to be promoted to disabuse the hopelessly bigoted perception, held by various troglodyte crypto-neo-cons, that Islam is an aggressive, imperialist, expansionist, and repressive “religion.” But even at the start of the “Islamic Art” movement there were, as we shall see, art critics who doubted that Islam provided the inspiration or the continuity for collections of art from lands under Muslim control. The push to credit Islam for so-called “Islamic Art” is beginning to look as feeble as the Obama administration’s mandate to the National Aeronautic and Space Administration to showcase the Arab contributions to space exploration.

[…]

— Hat tip: JP

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Turkey Will Not be Deterred From EU Bid: Minister

Turkey’s minister for European affairs insisted Thursday that Europeans would not deter his country from its decades-long bid to join the EU despite the obstacles on its path. “No country faces as many impediments, as many challenges and difficulties as my country” in its bid for EU membership, Egemen Bagis said in Bucharest, citing, among others, visa requirements and a slow negotiation process.

“Those politicians around Europe who think that by making these difficulties they can make Turkey go away are dead wrong,” Bagis said at a conference on Turkey and the EU in the Romanian capital. “We are here. Every country that has ever started its negotiations, at the end finished its negotiations, so will Turkey, we will not be the first exception,” he said in English.

Turks are “known to be very patient”, he said, recalling that Ankara first applied to join the European bloc in 1959 and had to wait until 2005 to begin formal accession negotiations.

The talks have stalled over problems relating to EU member Cyprus, whose northern third was invaded and occupied by Turkey in 1974 and countries such as Austria, France and Germany are reluctant to grant full membership.

Romania’s minister of European affairs Leonard Orban said he hoped this attitude would change. “It is absolutely evident from a strategic and security point of view that Turkey’s full accession to the EU represents a fundamental interest to us,” he said.

— Hat tip: Fjordman

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UK to Propose Laws Allowing the Monitoring of E-Mail and Visited Websites

We’ve seen in the past months a variety of laws aiming to monitor and censor the internet. The UK (aka Oceania to George Orwell readers) is taking a step further by proposing laws allowing the monitoring of emails, phone calls, text messages and even visited websites in real time. These laws are not a long-term project; they are to be brought in “as soon as parliamentary time allows”. As usual, these big-brotherish laws are justified with noble causes such as “fighting terrorists” but the reality is that the right to privacy of the entire population is being revoked. Furthermore, the definition of “terrorist” has been so distorted in recent years that it will probably end up meaning “someone with an opinion about something” in the near future.

— Hat tip: JD

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UK: “The Number One Driver of Not Voting Conservative is Not Being White”

by Tim Montgomerie

The title of this blog was an observation reportedly made by Andrew Cooper — the PM’s polling and strategy adviser — at a recent meeting of Tory MPs. A major survey by the TNS-BMRB polling organisation for the Runnymede Trust (PDF) found that just 16% of Britain’s ethnic minority population were Conservative voters at the last election. That compared to 37% among white Britons. Members of the Indian community were most likely to back the Tories (at about 25%). The least likely were black Britons. Under one-in-ten Caribbean and African Britons are Tory voters. The Lib Dems didn’t do much better than the Conservatives and worse among Indian voters. Labour is the dominant political party among Black and Minority Ethnic communities — winning 68% of all of its votes.

[…]

— Hat tip: JP

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UK: And After We’ve Left the EU …

by Daniel Hannan

I think I’ve decided what to do when I put myself out of a job as an MEP. The next big task, once we’re safely out of the EU, will be to repair the Anglosphere: the community of free English-speaking democracies. I have written a piece about it in that superb newspaper The Australian. I’ve recently visited a number of Anglosphere countries to plug the message: Ireland, the US, Australia, Canada. The past two centuries have been dominated by the English-speaking peoples and, though we’ve made our share of mistakes, we can also be proud of the way we have spread our values: personal liberty, parliamentary supremacy, the rule of law, free trade, property rights. It’s because of these things that Bermuda isn’t Haiti, that South Africa isn’t the Democratic Republic of Congo, that Hong Kong isn’t China. We surely shouldn’t be ending it all with an indifferent shrug. Rage, rage against the dying of the light!

[…]

— Hat tip: JP

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UK: Disgrace of PC in Drunken Race Rant: Scotland Yard’s Racism Crisis Deepens as Vile Abuse of Asian Shop Manager is Revealed

The racism crisis engulfing Scotland Yard took a dramatic turn last night as an officer was exposed for abusing an Asian takeaway manager.

In an appalling drunken outburst, PC Philip Juhasz, 31, told the Pakistani to ‘go back to your f****** country’. The disgraced officer faces the sack for gross misconduct after being convicted of a racially aggravated public order offence.

But the case raises serious questions about the determination of police to stamp out all traces of racism among their ranks.

Senior black officers in the Metropolitan police said warnings about growing prejudice have been falling on deaf ears for almost a decade.

— Hat tip: JD

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UK: It’s Time to End the Tory War on Multiculturalism (Reprise)

by Paul Goodman

Gavin Barwell wrote on this site last year that Lord Tebbit’s cricket test should be torn up:

“I would love our Prime Minister, who has done so much to transform perceptions of the Conservative Party for the better, to give a speech doing to Norman Tebbit’s cricket test what he did to the Margaret Thatcher’s “There’s no such thing as society” quote. Yes, it is important to have loyalty to this country but your roots are important too.”

I have put it a different way: it’s time to end the Tory war on multiculturalism:

“First, because the word…means so many things to so many people, as now to be almost meaningless. Second, because it isn’t helping the Party win votes…Third, because the M-word has become a dissipation of energies better focused “like a laser beam” on the struggle against extremism and the ideology that underpins it.”

And set out some key facts separately:

“Migrants and their descendants are on the whole less likely to vote Conservative than the rest of the population. In 2010, the Tories…won only 16 per cent of the ethnic minority vote. The proportion of such voters was under one in ten in 2001. By 2050 ethnic minorities will make up a fifth of the population.”

[…]

— Hat tip: JP

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UK: Ken Livingstone, George Galloway and Britian’s Drift to the Politics of Race

by Damian Thompson

I’m loving this Ken Livingstone tax malarkey. The panic in his campaign team is funny enough, but for true comedy you have to read the tweets of his admirers. There’s a high-profile Leftie blogger called Sunny Hundal, normally puritanical on questions of tax, who is performing spectacular contortions on Twitter to defend his hero’s fiscal ingenuity. Do take a look.

Anyway, I was wondering whether there was anything Ken could do to swing the mayoral election his way if it were held tomorrow. And I could only come up with one idea: go cap in hand to Lutfur Rahman to make sure he gets out the Tower Hamlets vote.

Rahman was elected mayor of that borough in 2010 and is a mighty voice in the local Bangladeshi Muslim community. He’s an independent, having been ditched by Labour, which accused him of supporting Islamic extremists. George Galloway’s Respect Party backed him, though. And so did Ken Livingstone. Were Rahman to return the favour and deliver a bloc vote for Labour, that might just enable the old boy to fulfil his promise to turn London into a “beacon of Islam”. And, talking of beacons of Islam, I don’t see George Galloway being dislodged at the next election. He beat Labour in Bradford West by 10,000 votes. Never before has a by-election been won on the back of a manifesto attuned to radical Islamic sensibilities. But let’s not get too hung up on “Islamification”. It’s an illustration rather than the cause of changes in electoral demography — changes that have wrong-footed both Labour and the Tories.

Telegraph blogger Ed West, a specialist in the politics of immigration, reckons we should look at the way the American electorate has realigned itself. There’s no major Islamic presence in the US — but parts of the country have been profoundly changed by immigration. The increasingly solid Democrat vote in urban America isn’t produced by hopey-changey cosmopolitans: as New York Times columnist Ross Douthat points out, at its core lie Hispanics who have been bought off with “very explicit and specific promises of special legal treatment (in hiring, government contracting, college admissions, immigration policy, etc) based on their ethno-racial background”. The problem for the Democrats is that white males have abandoned the party — not because they’re racist, but because they feel excluded from what Douthat calls the “race-based spoils system” operated by the progressive elite.

Does that sound familiar? Ken Livingstone was the first British politician to set up such a system. Thirty years on, nearly all ethnic minorities in London back Labour. That’s a mixed blessing for the party, though. Labour now faces the same dilemma as the Democrats: the more it subsidises its emerging ethnic vote, the more it drives traditional supporters towards the opposition. Multicultural special pleading persuaded working-class voters to back Boris in 2008. You might think that’s good news for the Tories. David Cameron doesn’t. He hates the (very real) prospect of the Conservatives becoming the “white” party. Everything he says sounds as if it’s designed to alienate the working classes. Instead, he sucks up to progressive opinion-formers who will never vote Conservative. Nor will the ethnic groups he patronises. So he’s stuffed, too. I can’t feel sympathy for either party. Neither had the courage or the common sense to oppose mass immigration. As a result, Britain will soon — for the first time — suffer the fate of countless foreign countries and have to build its policies around religious and ethnic enclaves.

— Hat tip: JP

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UK: Leicestershire Councillor Facing Probe Over Message Criticising Muslims

A Leicestershire county councillor is being investigated after distributing a leaflet which criticised Muslims. Earlier this year, Graham Partner — who quit the BNP to sit as an independent — sent out a New Year message to voters in his Coalville division. It featured part of an article from a national newspaper which said victimhood “comes easily” to followers of Islam. The article added: “Every terrorist atrocity, every blood- soaked massacre is justified by reference to imagined grievances. But the greatest persecutors of other faiths are Muslim, themselves. The response from the Western church leaders is deafening silence, afraid to accept that their ideological paradise of multi-cultural, multi-faith, left-wing society is nothing more than a fantasy.”

Two county councillors and two parish councillors lodged a complaint, and the county council’s standards board is now investigating. Conservative Peter Lewis, said: “The leaflet certainly cocked a snook at the county’s equality and human rights policies, and as it was issued in his role as a county councillor, it reflected badly, in my view, on the council.

“It certainly seemed to me designed not to build bridges or foster tolerance but to stir up and fire division and hatred around the same period as the EDL march (which took place in Leicester in February). Mr Partner has resigned from the BNP but has clearly retained its combative posture.” Coun Partner said the complaints were politically motivated, and insisted the leaflet was well-received by people living in his ward. He also said the message was not penned by him, but copied from and attributed to Daily Express columnist Leo McKinstry.

[…]

— Hat tip: JP

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UK: MPs: We Speak Up for Israel — and Get Death Threats

MPs who have spoken in support of Israel have been forced to limit the information they make available to constituents and take other security precautions after being sent death threats or abusive messages by post, by phone or online, a JC investigation has revealed. Two years after Labour’s Stephen Timms was stabbed by a radicalised student, security remains a key concern, especially for MPs who are vocal about controversial topics such as Israel — and suffer threats as a consequence. Two weeks ago Conservative MP John Howell was forced to seek police protection after becoming the target of a campaign by pro-Palestinians. Louise Ellman, Labour MP for Liverpool Riverside, has been dealing with death threats for a decade. The problem has worsened in recent years and she now receives emails as well as letters.

[…]

— Hat tip: JP

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UK: Playing the Faith Card is a Risky Game

This is something I’ve never said before, but I so agree with George Galloway. His stunning by-election victory last week was the Bradford Spring.

And that’s what worries me and I know for sure it concerns people on all sides of the political divide.

A Labour MP confided in me this week that she was concerned at the possibility of ‘white v brown’ or ‘white v black’ election tensions becoming the norm in Britain.

With Mr Galloway’s victory — made more astonishing by his words of praise for Saddam Hussein and Syria’s President Assad, who must have killed hundreds of thousands of Muslims between them — another problem is looming.

— Hat tip: JD

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UK: Sentenced to Death for Being Old: The NHS Denies Life-Saving Treatment to the Elderly, As One Man’s Chilling Story Reveals

When Kenneth Warden was diagnosed with terminal bladder cancer, his hospital consultant sent him home to die, ruling that at 78 he was too old to treat.

Even the palliative surgery or chemotherapy that could have eased his distressing symptoms were declared off-limits because of his age.

His distraught daughter Michele Halligan accepted the sad prognosis but was determined her father would spend his last months in comfort. So she paid for him to seen privately by a second doctor to discover what could be done to ease his symptoms.

Thanks to her tenacity, Kenneth got the drugs and surgery he needed — and as a result his cancer was actually cured. Four years on, he is a sprightly 82-year-old who works out at the gym, drives a sports car and competes in a rowing team.

‘You could call his recovery amazing,’ says Michele, 51. ‘It is certainly a gift. But the fact is that he was written off because of his age. He was left to suffer so much, and so unnecessarily.’

Sadly, Kenneth’s story is symptomatic of a dreadful truth. According to shocking new research by Macmillan Cancer Support, every year many thousands of older people are routinely denied life-saving NHS treatments because their doctors write them off as too old to treat.

It is often left to close family members to fight for their rights. But although it is now British law that patients must never be discriminated against on the basis of age, such battles often prove futile.

— Hat tip: JD

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UK: Tory Cabinet Ministers Ordered to Attend Eid and Diwali Festivals to Appeal to Asian Voters

Tory Cabinet ministers have been ordered to attend Diwali and Eid festivals with Hindu and Muslim voters after being warned they can’t win the next election without increasing the number of Asian voters they attract. George Galloway’s victory in the Bradford West by-election has convinced Conservative high command that they need to do more to reach ethnic minority voters. Ministers and MPs are being quietly told that they need to ‘show their faces’ regularly at ethnic minority and religious festivals over the next three years, rather than simply turning up at election time. The Tories are set to copy a strategy, pioneered by the Conservative Party in Canada, where ministers are expected to report which ethnic minority events they have attended each month. David Cameron’s polling guru Andrew Cooper has identified more than 30 urban seats, with big black and ethnic minority populations, that need to be won to secure a Tory majority in 2015. Mr Cooper has told ministers that polling data shows that while ethnic minority voters most closely associated themselves with Conservative values like the importance of family and law order, they still vote Labour by a majority of 70 to 30.

[…]

— Hat tip: JP

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Tunisia: Should the World Trust Islamists?

by David Rohde

Newly powerful groups in Egypt and Tunisia cannot afford to become Hamas-like international pariahs, but they should be watched closely.

TUNIS — Like it or not, this is the year of the Islamist. Fourteen months after popular uprisings toppled dictators in Tunisia and Egypt, Islamist political parties — religiously conservative groups that oppose the use of violence — have swept interim elections, started rewriting constitutions and become the odds-on favorites to win general elections. Western hopes that more liberal parties would fare well have been dashed. Secular Arab groups are divided, perceived as elitist or enjoy tepid popular support.

But instead of the political process moving forward, a toxic political dynamic is emerging. Aggressive tactics by hardline Muslims generally known as Salafists are sowing division. Moderate Islamists are moving cautiously, speaking vaguely and trying to hold their diverse political parties together. And some Arab liberals are painting dark conspiracy theories.

Ahmed Ounaies, a pro-Western Tunisian politician who briefly served as foreign minister in the country’s post-revolutionary government, said that he no long trusted Rachid Ghannouchi, the leader of Tunisia’s moderate Islamist party. Echoing other secular Tunisians, he said some purportedly moderate Muslim leaders are, in fact, aligned with hardliners.

“We believe that Mr. Ghannouchi is a Salafist,” Ouanies said in an interview. “He is a real supporter of those groups.”

Months after gaining power, moderate Islamists find themselves walking a political tightrope. They are trying to show their supporters that they are different from the corrupt, pro-Western regimes they replaced. They are trying to persuade Western investors and tourists to trust them, return and help revive flagging economies. And they are trying to counter hardline Salafists who threaten to steal some of their conservative support.

[…]

— Hat tip: JP

[Return to headlines]

Airborne Prayers Problem Solved for Tech-Savvy Muslims

SINGAPORE — As a frequent flier and devout Muslim, businessman Abdalhamid Evans always comes up against the same challenge in the air: when to say his prayers. Muslims are required to pray five times a day at certain hours, but this schedule becomes complicated when crossing various time zones at thousands of metres above sea level. “I usually don’t pray when I am in a plane,” said Evans, the London-based founder of a website that provides information on the global halal, or Islam-compliant, industry. But lately I have been thinking that it is probably better to do them in the air than make them up on arrival,” he told AFP. The problem may be solved for travellers such as Evans thanks to an innovation called the Air Travel Prayer Time Calculator, developed by Singapore-based Crescentrating, a firm that gives halal ratings to hotels and other travel-related establishments. Launched earlier this month, the online tool takes data such as prayer times in the country of origin, the destination city and in countries on the flight path and uses an algorithm to plot exact prayer hours during a flight.

[…]

— Hat tip: JP

[Return to headlines]

Avalanche Buries 130 Pakistani Soldiers in Kashmir on ‘World’s Highest Battlefield’ Near Indian Border

A race against time is under way to save to save 130 Pakistani soldiers buried today in an avalanche on the ‘world’s highest battlefield’.

The incident happened early this morning on the Siachen Glacier, a Himalayan region close to India where thousands of Pakistani and Indian troops are based.

A security official said snow engulfed a battalion headquarters in the Gayari district.

— Hat tip: JD

[Return to headlines]

Fukushima Reactor 4: Life on Planet Earth in the Balance

Diplomat Akio Matsumura is warning that the disaster at the Fukushima nuclear plant in Japan may ultimately turn into an event capable of extinguishing all life on Earth.

Matsumura posted a startling entry on his blog following a statement made by Japan’s former ambassador to Switzerland, Mitsuhei Murata, on the situation at Fukushima.

[…]

He then said the 11,138 spent fuel assemblies stored at the Fukushima plant contain “134 million curies is Cesium-137 — roughly 85 times the amount of Cs-137 released at the Chernobyl accident as estimated by the U.S. National Council on Radiation Protection.”

— Hat tip: JD

[Return to headlines]

British Embassy Staff Withdrawn From Mali as Islamic Insurgents Declare Independence

Staff were today being withdrawn from the British Embassy in troubled Mali in the wake of the military coup, as insurgent Islamic fundamentalists declared it an independent nation.

The Foreign Office said the temporary measure would limit the UK’s ability to help Britons who chose to remain in the Saharan state against official advice.

As British nationals fled the desert nation, Tuareg rebels, who seized control of the country’s north in the chaotic aftermath of the coup, today declared independence for what they called the Azawad nation.

— Hat tip: JD

[Return to headlines]

Nigeria: Sharia: Amputee Seeks N20,000 to Revive Chicken Trade

Gusau-The second and last person so far to be amputated for stealing under the Islamic legal system in Zamfara State, Mallam Lawali Isa, has said he needs N20,000 to start his chicken-selling business. Isa, who was amputated 11 years ago, on May 3, 2001, at Gumi General Hospital, Zamfara State, during the adminstration of Senator Sani Yerima, was spoted at a local market in Gumi where he spoke to Vanguard. He admitted that although he stole three sets of bicycles from a shop in the state, his amputation was political. He said: “At that time, the then governor, Alhaji Sani Yerima, introduced Sharia, and all of us agreed to its implementation. They preached that whoever stole would have his hand amputated. Unfortunately for me, I became a victim having stolen sets of brand new bicycles. I was arrested and arraigned at the Sharia Court after investigation. But, at the Gusau Prison, where I was kept in custody before the amputation, human rights groups were always visiting and fighting that I should not be amputated. ‘They told me they will stand by me and that I should resist the amputation. I was equally under pressure from the then Zamfara State Commissioner for Religious Affairs, Alhaji Ibrahim Wakala, now the state Deputy Governor and Malam Aliyu Sani Jangebe, the then head of the anti-corruption commission. They all preached to me when they visited, after the human rights group had left and told me I should accept the will of Allah if I know that I am a true Muslim. They quoted some verses from the Holy Koran and tried to convince me on why I had to be amputated and concluded by saying, however, I was free to follow whoever I liked if I would not listen to them. By that time, I had never set my eyes on the person called Governor Yerima. Yes, I broke into somebody’s shop and took some bicycles. It was nine units of bicycles packed three sets of three packets. I had successfully sold two sets; it was in the process of selling the last set that I was apprehended”

— Hat tip: JP

[Return to headlines]

Triumphant Tuareg Rebels Fall Out Over Al-Qaeda’s Jihad in Mali

The rebels, armed with weapons stolen from Muammar Gaddafi’s formidable arsenal, took over an area of the Sahara as big as France in an astonishing 72 hours, taking advantage of the chaotic aftermath of an army coup.

Few of the people they promised to free waited to find out what freedom would be like. Instead, an estimated 250,000 people left their homes, terrified families fleeing with their children and possessions. Many told tales of looting and rape by rebels who now control a vast area in the heart of Africa.

Foreign governments were left scrambling to find out exactly who the rebels were, amid fears that a base for al-Qaeda will now be set up in the Sahara similar to ones in lawless parts of Pakistan and Somalia.

— Hat tip: JD

[Return to headlines]

A Society That Persecutes Christ is Heading for Terrible Trouble

by Charles Moore

Politicians in the West — and atheists — ignore at their peril the benefits and power of organised religion.

This week before Easter, I chanced upon the following two quotations. The first says: “Not for 2,000 years has it been possible for society to exclude or eliminate Christ from its social or political life without a terrible social or political consequence.” The second says: “Religion taught by a prophet or by a preacher of the truth is the only foundation on which to build a great and powerful empire.” The first is by Margaret Thatcher, opening her foreword to a book called Christianity and Conservatism, which appeared in 1990. The second appears in Tom Holland’s outstanding new book In the Shadow of the Sword (Little, Brown), which traces the rise of Islam from the ruins of the Roman and Persian empires. It comes from Ibn Khaldun, the great Muslim historian and political counsellor of the 14th century.

The grocer’s daughter from Grantham and the sage from Tunis seem, despite their differences of faith and time, to be saying something comparable. I found myself asking a simple question about both statements: are they, factually, right? Note that neither is insisting — though they probably believe that it is — that what the religious leader preaches is necessarily true. Note, too, that neither is saying that a religion, let alone a religious organisation such as a church, should hold political power. But what they are saying is something like the message of the parable of the house built on rock and the house built on sand. They have seen a good bit of how the world works: they recommend building on rock.

Both remarks would probably not be made by secular public figures in the West today. Mrs Thatcher’s words were written only 22 years ago, when she was still prime minister, but her successors — though all four of them have been highly favourable to Christianity — would shy away from the toughness of her claim. They prefer to confine themselves to saying nice things about Jesus (He had “incomparable compassion, generosity, grace, humility and love”, said David Cameron this week), rather than to suggest that anything bad might happen if His teaching is ignored. As for old Mr Khaldun, well, we’re not supposed to be in favour of great and powerful empires anyway, so let’s not go there.

[…]

— Hat tip: JP

[Return to headlines]

Melinda Gates: Worrying About Population Control “Has Led to Much Suffering and Death”

In a twisted exercise in deceiving semantics Co-chair and trustee of the Melinda and Bill Gates Foundation Melinda Gates attempted to counter the growing criticism in regards to the Foundation’s efforts in the Third World. During a speech she gave at the TEDx Change in Berlin yesterday, the wife of Microsoft founder and “philanthropist” Bill Gates characterised all criticism of the Foundation’s adventures in the third world as dangerous, especially the charge that the foundation is actively but covertly involved in population control. Gates described the charge as so dangerous in fact, that the criticism”has led to much suffering and death.”

[…]

Speaking of “code” at a 2006 gathering of top globalists devoted to the “family planning agenda” under the umbrella-name “Demographic Dynamics and Socio-Economic Development”, professor of Medical Demography at the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, John Cleland, admitted to the fact that they should cease using coded language when communicating to the general public. The gathering was attended by the usual suspects. Representatives were present of the United Nations Population Fund, the International Planned Parenthood Foundation, the European Commission, the World Bank and, last but not least, the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation.

“No more shrouding our statements in code.”, the professor said. “Because code just confuses people.”, the professor said (page 33 in the document).

Cleland went on to say: “It does this cause no service at all to continue to shroud family planning in the obfuscating phrase “sexual and reproductive health”. People don’t really know what it means. If we mean family planning or contraception, we must say it. If we are worried about population growth, we must say it. We must use proper, straightforward language. I am fed up with the political correctness that daren’t say the name population stabilization, hardly dares to mention family planning or contraception out of fear that somebody is going to get offended. It is pathetic!”

— Hat tip: JD

[Return to headlines]

UK: Baa Baa Little Sheep: How Private School Abandoned Nursery Rhyme’s Lyrics for Easter Show Sparking Political Correctness Accusations

Quite what the little boy who lives down the lane would make of it is open to conjecture.

But parents at one school made their feelings plain when they heard their children reciting ‘Baa Baa Little Sheep’.

They accused the £2,700-a-term Park Hill primary school of changing the words from ‘Baa Baa Black Sheep’ for the sake of political correctness.

[…]

Andrea Craig, a councillor whose son sang in the show, tweeted: ‘At my son’s Easter concert I saw a song called Baa Baa Little Sheep which I assumed was new. Not so — not allowed black. Really?’

— Hat tip: JD

[Return to headlines]

How Muslims View Easter

by Rollo Romig

Jesus didn’t die on the cross. He was born of a virgin, but he isn’t the son of God. He did not redeem the sins of humankind. He healed the sick, gave sight to the blind, and raised the dead. He spoke complete sentences even as an infant in the cradle, announcing to his mother, Mary, that God had granted him the scripture and made him a prophet. Jesus is neither almighty nor eternal. Jesus is the Messiah. Jesus is a Muslim. This is the Jesus of the Koran. Ninety-three of its verses refer to him-more than any other prophet save Muhammad-and the Koranic account of Jesus’ life harmonizes with the Gospels in more particulars than even many Muslims realize. My wife is a Muslim with years of madrassa education behind her, but when I mentioned Jesus’ virgin birth to her she was skeptical. “Does the Koran really say that?” she asked. I started to look it up, but five seconds later she waved me off. “Don’t bother,” she said, “I found it on Wikipedia.” And so it was written.

[…]

— Hat tip: JP

[Return to headlines]

In the Shadow of the Sword by Tom Holland — Review

by Anthony Sattin

The life of Muhammad and the rise of Islam are boldly re-examined in this brilliantly provocative history

In 706AD the caliph al-Walid decided to commission a building as a centrepiece for his new capital, Damascus. Only 74 years had passed since the death of the prophet Muhammad; the Arabs’ new empire was still in the making, and there was no such thing as imperial Islamic architecture. The caliph found inspiration for his mosque in both Christian and pagan temple architecture. And while he built it on the site of one of the greatest of all Roman temples, demolishing the Christian church that stood inside the precincts, he incorporated many of the Roman stones, as well as the tomb of John the Baptist. For decoration, he brought Byzantine craftsmen over to piece together the vast gold mosaics.

The idea of borrowing is untroubling in architecture — we expect to see continuity and evolution in buildings. But the idea that religions evolve out of one another is more disturbing. Christians have choked on the notion that many of their rituals were borrowed from pagan rites. And heaven help the historian who dares to suggest that Islam might be a product of earlier religions and not, as the faithful insist, a revelation direct from God. Tom Holland has done exactly this in his brilliantly provocative new book — and we must hope that heaven is smiling on him now.

[…]

The Qur’an anticipated the day of Holland’s coming (or someone very like him). Sura 25 instructs Muslims to counter the claim that “these are fables of the ancients which he has got someone to write down for him” with the insistence that it was “revealed by Him Who knows every secret”. For believers, these words are proof enough of the veracity of the Qur’an. Some have gone further and used them as justification for intellectual, legal and physical attacks on people who claim otherwise. The lives of some people who have dared to question the historicity of the prophet Muhammad and the Qur’an have been ruined, even ended. We must hope that Holland is spared their wrath and that his excellent book will be lauded, as it should be, for doing what the best sort of books can do — examining holy cows.

Anthony Sattin’s A Winter on the Nile and Lifting the Veil are both out in paperback

— Hat tip: JP

[Return to headlines]

Interview: Tom Holland on the Origins of Islam

by Daisy Dunn

In the fifth century BC Herodotus of Halicarnassus set out a history of hostilities between the Greeks and the Persians. For all his quirky non-sequiturs (Ethiopians’ skin is black, so must be their semen…) he fulfilled his not-so-modest objective to immortalize the deeds of Greeks and non-Greeks alike, in particular, the reason they warred against one another. Tom Holland (who is, incidentally, in the process of translating Herodotus’ Histories) evokes more than a little of this spirit in his new book, In the Shadow of the Sword, an intrepid history of the evolution of the Arab Empire.

From Rubicon to Persian Fire and Millennium Holland has hurtled through ancient history like a runaway horse on a hippodrome. The new book, which has taken five years to complete, was apparently just the next, inevitable hurdle, ‘There was an obvious gap, having written about the Persian Empire and about the transformation from the Roman world to the Medieval world in Europe, to look at what had happened in the East — the collapse of the Persian Empire there, the truncation of the Roman Empire, and to treat the coming of Islam as the falling of the Roman Empire in the East, I thought, would be an interesting take.’ He suggests in his book that Islam’s evolution and final construction as an orthodoxy was part of a long process; that, far from springing up in isolation, it developed out of a melting pot of cultures — the kind of pot that subsequently shattered into a pile of glue-repellent shards, ‘It’s become very fashionable to speak about Abrahamic faiths, and historically it’s tended to be Muslims who’ve been keen on that idea because it gets them into the Judeo-Christian private members’ club, but I think that if you try to look at where Islam might have come from as part of an evolutionary process, and you set aside the notion that it somehow evolved spontaneously in the middle of the desert, it’s actually clear that it’s very much part of the Judeo-Christian tradition, and that all these religions are really products of the same cultural milieu.

[…]

— Hat tip: JP

[Return to headlines]

	Financial Crisis
»	Austerity Tax Could ‘Kill Off’ French Bookstores
»	Euro Drops Below 1.20 Swiss Franc Floor
»	French Trade Gap Widens
»	U.S. Added Only 120,000 Jobs in March, Report Shows
	USA
»	Burger King’s New Menu
»	Dismissal Recommended for Marine Who Criticized Obama on Facebook
»	Government Surveillance Crackdown on Internet Goes Into Overdrive
»	Judge Upset by Obama’s Comments on Health Care Law
»	Maryland Puts Gift Card Bounty on ‘Fish From Hell’
»	North American Union Plan to Disarm the People of the United States
»	Obama Should Know Better on Supreme Court’s Role
»	Obama Gives Coal Miners the Shaft
»	Old Man Attacked by Youths: “This is for Trayvon”
»	Poll Shows Big Racial Divide in Opinion on Trayvon Martin Case
»	Proposed Satellite Would Beam Solar Power to Earth
»	School Children Forced to Participate in Kony 2012 Activism
»	Secret Plan Underway to Revive Internet Censorship Bill SOPA
»	The NSA is Building the Country’s Biggest Spy Center (Watch What You Say)
»	Trayvon Martin Killing: UN Human Rights Chief Calls for Investigation
»	Two Airmen Ejected Before Navy Jet Crashed in Virginia Beach
»	Two Navy Pilots Eject From Jet and Send Fighter Careening Into Apartments, Destroying Buildings
»	Van Jones Group Plans America’s “Arab Spring” Revolt
»	You Tube Now Banning Videos Critical of Global Warming Alarmism
»	Your Cell Phone Makes You a Prisoner of a Digital World Where Virtually Anyone Can Hack You
	Europe and the EU
»	Austria: Designer of Iconic Porsche 911 Dies
»	Britain’s Royal Air Force Considering Purchase of Israeli Unmanned Aerial Vehicle
»	France: Eiffel Tower Lift Falls Down During Test
»	French Fear New Serial Killer After Murders
»	‘I Played Warcraft With Norway Killer’: Survivor
»	Romania’s Hospital Scandal: Babies Left to Die as Doctors Refuse to Work Without Bribes
»	Sweden: Social Democrats Sprint Into Poll Lead
»	UK: School Standards at Risk From Attempts to ‘Cure Social Ills’
	Balkans
»	Bosnia Marks 20 Years Since Start of War
	North Africa
»	Jihad and ‘Martyrdom’ In the Voting Booth?
»	Tunisia: Muslims Threaten Church, Cover Its Cross With Garbage Bags
	Israel and the Palestinians
»	A View on Günter Grass: Why We Need an Open Debate on Israel
»	Caroline Glick: The Eternal Liberation Movement
»	Israel’s U.S. Envoy: Award to Helen Thomas Shows Palestinians Aren’t Ready for Peace
»	Israel Wary of Changes in the Arab World
	Middle East
»	Iraq: Camp Ashraf Massacre: ‘Hypocrisy Runs Deep’
»	Record Number of Refugees Flee Syria for Turkey
»	The Price of Oil: Saudi Agenda: Our Gullibility
	South Asia
»	India: The “Massive Con” Causing a Suicide Every 30 Minutes
	Culture Wars
»	Video: Abortion Conditioning: The UN’s Sick Social Engineering Agenda
	General
»	Interview With Director James Cameron: ‘The ‘Titanic’ Shows That the Unthinkable Can Happen’
»	Microsoft’s Kinect Spy System

Austerity Tax Could ‘Kill Off’ French Bookstores

France’s small bookstores have survived the rise of big chains, Amazon and digital books, but many fear a sales tax rise, part of the debt-saddled government’s austerity plans, could push them out of business. Until now the thousands of independent booksellers that dot France’s town centres offered the best of both worlds — a quaint setting, one-on-one tips and advice, and guaranteed prices as low as at a chain store.

Since 1981, the French state has set the price of books, largely to support independent bookstores which are seen as vital assets to local communities. But President Nicolas Sarkozy’s right-wing government, fighting to get public finances under control, has hiked the sales tax on books from 5.5 percent to seven percent, under measures that took effect on April 1st.

With the French presidential campaign in full swing ahead of the April 22nd first round, the question has turned political with Sarkozy’s Socialist rival Francois Hollande vowing to repeal the rise.

Booksellers see the tax hike, part of measures aimed at saving a total of €72 billion ($95 billion), as a stab in the back. The government has “loaded the bullet designed to kill off independent booksellers,” charged Vincent Monade, a former bookseller and head of the Paris region’s Observatory for Books and Writing (MOTif).

Unlike the United States for instance, where bookselling has become the preserve of big business, France has one of the densest networks of small bookstores in the world.

— Hat tip: Fjordman

[Return to headlines]

Euro Drops Below 1.20 Swiss Franc Floor

The euro on Thursday dipped briefly below the 1.20 Swiss franc floor imposed by Switzerland’s central bank to curb the soaring local currency. The euro fell to 1.1997 francs at around 11.45am before shortly recovering to trade back above the threshold again at 1.2019 francs. A spokesman for the Swiss National Bank declined to comment to AFP whether the bank had intervened.

Since imposing the limit last year, the central bank has consistently said it would defend the level with the “utmost determination,” and pledged to buy unlimited amounts of euros to keep the 1.20 francs minimum.

Investors unsettled by the eurozone debt crisis and uncertain US economic prospects have flocked to a perceived safe haven in Switzerland, driving up the value of the franc to the detriment of Swiss exporters.

The Swiss currency gained 11 percent against the euro and 15 percent against the dollar between January and September 5, 2011, when the SNB intervened decisively on foreign exchange markets to stem its rise.

— Hat tip: Fjordman

[Return to headlines]

French Trade Gap Widens

An increase in energy imports due to a cold snap in February sent France’s trade deficit jumping by nearly 15 percent in February to hit €6.4 billion ($8.4 billion), customs data showed on Friday. “In February, the increase in imports is in part due to energy purchases connected to the cold snap, which caused the deficit to widen to €6.398 billions from €5.593 billion in January,” said the French customs service in a statement.

In addition to the cold weather, three oil refineries were shut for maintenance, also causing a spurt in imports, the customs service noted. Imports rose to €43.6 billion in February and exports to €37.2 billion. Exports were helped by good sales of manufactured items, as well as agricultural commodities and military equipment, noted the customs service. Major deliveries of satellites and a rebound in vehicle exports also helped the monthly figures.

The 12-month trade deficit came in at €70.051 billion. France posted a record trade deficit in 2011 of €70.104 billion. France has a big structural trade deficit which is a central concern to policymakers, and contrasts with a big surplus by the leading eurozone economy, Germany.

— Hat tip: Fjordman

[Return to headlines]

U.S. Added Only 120,000 Jobs in March, Report Shows

The United States economy added a relatively weak 120,000 jobs in March, and the unemployment rate dipped to 8.2 percent from 8.3 percent, the Labor Department said on Friday.

Many economists had expected March to be the fourth consecutive month of solid employment growth, with the addition of more than 200,000 jobs. In the week leading up to the government report, statistics suggested that hiring was picking up pace.

[Return to headlines]

Burger King’s New Menu

Burger King is trying to revive its ailing empire with a rival’s recipe for success. After years of lackluster sales of its Whoppers and fries, the struggling fast-food giant on Monday launched 10 food items in its biggest menu expansion since the chain was started in 1954.

But there are unmistakable similarities between Burger King’s new lineup and the offerings its much-bigger rival McDonald’s has rolled out in recent years. The Golden Arches already rolled out specialty salads in 2003, snack wraps in 2006, premium coffee drinks in 2009, and fruit smoothies in 2010.

Burger King doesn’t deny that its new chicken strips, caramel frappe coffees, Caesar salads and strawberry-banana smoothies sound pretty close to those on McDonald’s popular menu. But executives say the company came up with them through its research.

“Consumers wanted more choices,” said Steve Wiborg, president of Burger King’s North America operations. “Not just healthy choices, but choices they could get at the competition.”

The menu additions are part of Burger King’s plan to abandon its nearly single-minded courtship of young men, who were once the lifeblood of the industry but were hard hit by the economic downturn. Competitors went after new customers with breakfast items and healthier fare, but Burger King let its menu get stale. As a result, Burger King for the first time was edged out by Wendy’s last year as the nation’s No. 2 burger chain. McDonald’s solidified its hold on No. 1.

— Hat tip: Fjordman

[Return to headlines]

Dismissal Recommended for Marine Who Criticized Obama on Facebook

CAMP PENDLETON, Calif. — A military board has recommended dismissal for a Marine sergeant who criticized President Barack Obama on his Facebook page, including allegedly putting the president’s face on a “Jackass” movie poster.

The Marine Corps administrative board said after a daylong hearing late Thursday at Camp Pendleton that Sgt. Gary Stein has committed misconduct and should be dismissed.

The board also recommended that Stein be given an other-then-honorable discharge. That would mean Stein would lose his benefits and would not be allowed on any military base.

… Stein’s lawyers argued that the 9-year Marine, whose service was to end in four months, was expressing his personal views and exercising his First Amendment rights.

— Hat tip: JD

[Return to headlines]

Government Surveillance Crackdown on Internet Goes Into Overdrive

In a New York Times editorial, former government cybersecurity czar Richard A. Clarke has called for the creation of customs checks on all data leaving and entering US cyberspace.

Clarke makes the call in relation to Chinese hackers stealing information and intellectual property from US firms.

“If given the proper authorization, the United States government could stop files in the process of being stolen from getting to the Chinese hackers.” Clarke writes.

“If government agencies were authorized to create a major program to grab stolen data leaving the country, they could drastically reduce today’s wholesale theft of American corporate secrets.”

While Clarke may well be coming at this subject well intentioned, the fact that government has a long history of attempting to crackdown on internet freedom and control the web will mean his words are a cause of concern for many.

— Hat tip: JD

[Return to headlines]

Judge Upset by Obama’s Comments on Health Care Law

A federal appeals court judge on Tuesday seemed to take offense to comments President Barack Obama made earlier this week in which he warned that if the Supreme Court overturned his signature health care overhaul it would amount to overreach by an “unelected” court.

The Supreme Court is set to issue a ruling later this year on whether to strike down some or all of the historic health care law.

During oral arguments in Houston in a separate challenge to another aspect of the federal health care law, U.S. 5th Circuit Court of Appeals Judge Jerry Smith said Obama’s comments troubled a number of people who have read them as a challenge to the authority of federal courts.

“I’m referring to statements by the president in the past few days to the effect, I’m sure you’ve heard about them, that it is somehow inappropriate for what he termed unelected judges to strike acts of Congress that have enjoyed, he was referring of course to Obamacare, to what he termed a broad consensus and majorities in both houses of Congress,” Smith told Dana Kaersvang, an attorney with the Justice Department in Washington, D.C.

— Hat tip: Fjordman

[Return to headlines]

Maryland Puts Gift Card Bounty on ‘Fish From Hell’

Wildlife officials in Maryland have put a bounty on the snakehead, the so-called “fish from hell” that can migrate on land and devastates the eco-systems of lakes, ponds and streams.

The state will give out $200 gift cards for Bass Pro Shops as well as other prizes for catching and killing the fish, which is native to Africa and Asia but is believed to have made its way to America through Asian seafood merchants.

“We do not want snakeheads in our waters,” said Maryland Department of Natural Resources Inland Fisheries Director Don Cosden. “This initiative is a way to remind anglers that it is important to catch and remove this invasive species of fish.”

— Hat tip: Fjordman

[Return to headlines]

North American Union Plan to Disarm the People of the United States

The international insurgent President Barack Obama hosted Mexican President Felipe Calderon and Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper for talks on transnational trade and security Monday. This is a blatant display of an international socialist cabal, intent on further destroying the sovereignty of our republic and our individual states.

Mexican President Calderon proudly stated that his socialist government had confiscated 140,000 firearms in Mexico and then tried to imply that every one of them was bought in a gun store in the United States. He blamed the rash of violence in Mexico on the sunsetting of our unconstitutional assault weapons ban, suggesting new gun restrictions and confiscations in the United States as a necessity for Mexico’s security.

There was of course no mention of the fact that our southern border is being deliberately left wide open. And of course no mention of the fact that US Attorney General Eric Holder, acting as representative for the insurgent Obama and in correlation with the Mexican government, has been running guns to Mexico and drugs back into the United States for years now.

This communist parley was immediately followed by the announcement that the FBI had arrived in Florida to begin investigating the death of Trayvon Martin. It looks like what this whole thing is building into is an attempt at gun confiscation in the United States.

— Hat tip: JD

[Return to headlines]

Obama Should Know Better on Supreme Court’s Role

Stephen B. Presser is the Raoul Berger professor of legal history at Northwestern University School of Law and a professor of business law at Northwestern University’s Kellogg School of Management. He signed two of the amicus briefs submitted to the Supreme Court challenging the health care law.

In what must be the most extraordinary statement of his presidency, Barack Obama on Monday blasted the possibility that the United States Supreme Court might overturn the Affordable Care Act. Obama said the court would take an “unprecedented, extraordinary step” if it overturns the law, because it was passed by “a strong majority of a democratically elected Congress.”

Setting aside the point that the ACA did not pass with an overwhelming majority, but by a party-line vote in the Senate and seven votes in the House, and without the support of a single member of the Republican Party, the most astonishing thing about Obama’s diatribe was the fundamental misunderstanding of our constitutional tradition it revealed.

Since 1788, in the famous defense of the Constitution set forth by Alexander Hamilton in the Federalist Papers, it has been understood that it is the task of the Supreme Court to rein in majoritarian legislatures when they go beyond what the Constitution permits.

This is not, as Obama implies, judicial activism, or political activity on the part of the justices. This is simply, as Hamilton explained, fidelity to the Constitution itself, fidelity to the highest expression of “We the People of the United States,” the body whose representatives ratified that Constitution.

— Hat tip: Fjordman

[Return to headlines]

Obama Gives Coal Miners the Shaft

The notion that President Obama is trying to fire up his “base,” as he prepares for a re-election campaign, raises the question of what constitutes his base. It is becoming increasingly clear that the “workers” he is supposedly concerned about are going to be dismissed or ignored so that wealthy environmental groups can be accommodated.

Consider the words of Cecil Roberts, president of the powerful United Mine Workers, an affiliate of the AFL-CIO, after EPA administrator Lisa P. Jackson made a ruling against coal plants. “The Navy SEALs shot Osama Bin Laden in Pakistan and Lisa Jackson shot us in Washington,” Roberts said. Those who missed the news about Jackson shutting down coal plants through executive branch rules and regulations may have been unprepared for the Roberts assault. It was a big story for the media but framed in a way that played down the significance of what is taking place.

“For New Generation of Power Plants, a New Emission Rule From the E.P.A.” was the misleading headline over the story in The New York Times. Much more is at stake than just a “new emission rule” that is somehow supposed to affect global warming.

West Virginia Democratic Senator Joe Manchin, a member of the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee, put it another way, saying the EPA “is fully engaging in a war on coal…” Manchin went on, “this ill-advised proposal to prevent new coal-fueled generation will move this country away from using all our domestic resources, and I will fight it every step of the way.”

— Hat tip: JD

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Old Man Attacked by Youths: “This is for Trayvon”

An old man was assaulted by a gang in retaliation for the killing of Trayvon Martin:

While Mr. Watts was down the boys kicked him, over and over, shouting, “[Get] that white [man]. This is for Trayvon … Trayvon lives, white [man]. Kill that white [man],” according to a police report.

— Hat tip: JD

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Poll Shows Big Racial Divide in Opinion on Trayvon Martin Case

Americans are sharply divided by race in their opinion of the shooting of an unarmed black teenager in Florida by a Hispanic neighborhood watchman. A Gallup/USA Today poll finds that most black Americans (73 percent) think Trayvon Martin’s shooter, George Zimmerman, would have been arrested if Martin had been white. Only 33 percent of non-Hispanic white people said the same thing.

The racial divide on Zimmerman’s guilt was also big: 51 percent of black people said Zimmerman is “definitely guilty” based on the information available, compared to only 10 percent of whites. About 20 percent of both whites and blacks said Zimmerman was “probably guilty.”

Zimmerman told police that he was following Martin because he looked “suspicious” when the unarmed 17-year-old then attacked him. Zimmerman said he shot Martin in self-defense. He hasn’t been charged. Martin’s family says Zimmerman followed and then attacked and shot Martin in an act of vigilante policing.

An earlier Pew Research Center poll found that only 16 percent of black people said there had been too much media coverage of the shooting, compared to 43 percent of white people. The Gallup poll of more than 3,000 adults has a margin of error of plus or minus 2 percentage points.

— Hat tip: Fjordman

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Proposed Satellite Would Beam Solar Power to Earth

An energy-hungry Earth is in need of transformational and sustainable energy solutions, experts say.

For decades, researchers have been appraising the use of power-beaming solar-power satellites. But the projected cost, complexity and energy economics of the notion seemingly short-circuited the idea.

Now, a unique new approach has entered the scene, dubbed SPS-ALPHA, short for Solar Power Satellite via Arbitrarily Large PHased Array. Leader of the concept is John Mankins of Artemis Innovation Management Solutions of Santa Maria, Calif.

Mankins provided a detailed overview of the power-beaming concept here during the 2012 NASA Innovative Advanced Concepts meeting March 27-29.

— Hat tip: Fjordman

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School Children Forced to Participate in Kony 2012 Activism

An Infowars.com reader from Colorado writes to tell us the Cherry Creek Public School district in western Arapahoe County is forcing students to watch Kony 2012. According to the father of a student attending school in the district, students were instructed to write “a letter to Senator Mark Udall in support of Invisible Children’s effort to capture Joseph Kony.”

“This is incredibly disturbing that this assignment’s goal was to force students into some level of political activism in support of a potentially violent conflict (war). Schools are not to be utilized for any activist purposes or those viewpoints forced upon the students outside of the will of the parents,” the father writes.

— Hat tip: JD

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Secret Plan Underway to Revive Internet Censorship Bill SOPA

Motion Picture Association of America CEO and former Senator Chris Dodd has revealed perhaps more than he intended to in an interview with the Hollywood Reporter with regards to the much maligned Stop Online Piracy Act (SOPA).

Despite the fact that the legislation was indefinitely shelved in January, Dodd said he was “confident” that there are conversations going on between Hollywood and Silicon Valley to help revive SOPA.

“Between now and sometime next year [after the presidential election], the two industries need to come to an understanding,” Dodd told the magazine.

When asked whether there are negotiations going on now, Dodd replied: “I’m confident that’s the case, but I’m not going to go into more detail because obviously if I do, it becomes counterproductive.”

Clearly Dodd does not want a repeat of the widespread publicity and large scale protests that aided the defeat of the legislation at the beginning of the year.

[…]

SOPA, and the Protecting IP Act (PIPA), the Senate version of the bill, caused a huge backlash when it became clear that they constituted part of a long running agenda to completely re-structure and centralize the internet under government control.

Had the bills become law, they would have provided the U.S. government, through the office of the Attorney General, the power to pursue court orders against any website believed to be engaging in or ‘facilitating’ extremely broadly defined ‘copyright infringement’.

The terminology in the legislation was so encompassing that entire web sites faced the threat of being effectively seized and shut down for merely displaying one ‘offending’ hyperlink.

— Hat tip: JD

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The NSA is Building the Country’s Biggest Spy Center (Watch What You Say)

The spring air in the small, sand-dusted town has a soft haze to it, and clumps of green-gray sagebrush rustle in the breeze. Bluffdale sits in a bowl-shaped valley in the shadow of Utah’s Wasatch Range to the east and the Oquirrh Mountains to the west. It’s the heart of Mormon country, where religious pioneers first arrived more than 160 years ago. They came to escape the rest of the world, to understand the mysterious words sent down from their god as revealed on buried golden plates, and to practice what has become known as “the principle,” marriage to multiple wives.

Today Bluffdale is home to one of the nation’s largest sects of polygamists, the Apostolic United Brethren, with upwards of 9,000 members. The brethren’s complex includes a chapel, a school, a sports field, and an archive. Membership has doubled since 1978-and the number of plural marriages has tripled-so the sect has recently been looking for ways to purchase more land and expand throughout the town.

But new pioneers have quietly begun moving into the area, secretive outsiders who say little and keep to themselves. Like the pious polygamists, they are focused on deciphering cryptic messages that only they have the power to understand. Just off Beef Hollow Road, less than a mile from brethren headquarters, thousands of hard-hatted construction workers in sweat-soaked T-shirts are laying the groundwork for the newcomers’ own temple and archive, a massive complex so large that it necessitated expanding the town’s boundaries. Once built, it will be more than five times the size of the US Capitol.

Rather than Bibles, prophets, and worshippers, this temple will be filled with servers, computer intelligence experts, and armed guards. And instead of listening for words flowing down from heaven, these newcomers will be secretly capturing, storing, and analyzing vast quantities of words and images hurtling through the world’s telecommunications networks.

— Hat tip: Fjordman

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Trayvon Martin Killing: UN Human Rights Chief Calls for Investigation

UN Human Rights chief Navi Pillay has called for an “immediate investigation” into the circumstances surrounding the death of Trayvon Martin, the unarmed black teen who was shot dead by a volunteer neighbourhood watchman in Florida.

Ms Pillay made the comments about the controversial case at a press conference in Barbados, as she wrapped up a three-day visit to the Caribbean island nation. “As High Commissioner for Human Rights, I call for an immediate investigation,” she said. “Justice must be done for the victim. It’s not just this individual case. It calls into question the delivery of justice in all situations like this.”

— Hat tip: Fjordman

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Two Airmen Ejected Before Navy Jet Crashed in Virginia Beach

VIRGINIA BEACH— Fire crews are now searching an apartment complex near Naval Air Station Oceana that was struck Friday by a Navy jet, according to emergency officials.

Four people including two pilots have been transported to the hospital, according to Marc Davis, a Virginia Beach spokesman. Their conditions are not known. The two airman were safely ejected before their plane crashed into the Mayfair Mews apartment complex on Birdneck Road.

A Navy spokesman has confirmed to the media that the plane that crashed was an F/A-18 Hornet — a two-seat jet belonging to VFA (Strike Fighter Squadron) 106.

Davis said 63 people have been displaced from the apartment complex and they are working to set up a shelter.

View Larger Map

Interstate 264 is closed to all eastbound traffic at First Colonial, and the exit ramp from I-264 onto Laskin Road has been closed. Wayne Shank, executive director of the Norfolk International Airport, said no flights or departures are being affected.

Sean Pepe, of Norfolk, and Kenny Carver, of Hampton were driving on Interstate 264 when they saw the jet seem to be “floating” in the air before it went down behind some trees.

“It was odd, but we didn’t think anything of it,” Pepe said. “We thought it was doing maneuvers. We were watching the plane but didn’t see the impact. We saw it go down and there was a ‘boom.’ Then there was black smoke everywhere.”

Kelli McQuaid, who lives near the site, was in her house and heard a crash that shook her home. The aircraft crashed into Mayfair Mews, a one-story apartment complex with several buildings of indivudaual units. It appeared to destroy two buildings, one immediately and the other was destroyed by fire.

McQuaid said it happened about 12:02. She was doing routine stuff in her house when it shook. Other jets were in the air, she said, and they continued to circle above the crash site.

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Two Navy Pilots Eject From Jet and Send Fighter Careening Into Apartments, Destroying Buildings

VIRGINIA BEACH, Va. — A fighter jet that malfunctioned just after takeoff hurtled into a Virginia Beach apartment complex on Friday in a spectacular crash that sent flames and black smoke billowing from the rubble.

The two pilots managed to eject just before impact, suffering minor injuries along with five others on the ground. Several residents described hearing a loud explosion and looking out their windows to see the red and orange blaze. In the confusion that followed, two men helped one of the bloodied pilots from the two-seat F18 Hornet move to safety.

“Oh, my God, I heard three really loud explosions, then the black smoke went up high in the sky,” said 71-year-old Felissa Ezell, who lives in a townhouse near the crash site.

By evening, emergency crews were searching through the charred remains of the complex, where some 40 apartment units were damaged or destroyed. No fatalities had been reported.

Seven people, including the pilots from nearby Naval Air Station Oceana, were taken to a hospital. All except one of the pilots were released by late afternoon.

Virginia Beach Fire Department Capt. Tim Riley said three residents remained unaccounted for late Friday.

“We don’t know if we have working cell numbers, if they’ve traveled,” Riley said. “We don’t know if people are staying with other people.”

He said crews had done an exhaustive search of about 95 percent of the apartment complex and would continue searching throughout the night.

“We consider ourselves very fortunate,” he said.

The plane had dumped loads of fuel before crashing, though it wasn’t clear if that was because of a malfunction or an intentional maneuver by the pilots, said Capt. Mark Weisgerber with U.S. Fleet Forces Command. He said investigators will try to determine what happened. The jet went down less than 10 miles from Oceana.

Bruce Nedelka, the Virginia Beach EMS division chief, said witnesses saw fuel being dumped from the jet before it went down, and that fuel was found on buildings and vehicles in the area.

The plane not having as much fuel on board “mitigated what could have been an absolute massive, massive fireball and fire,” Nedelka said. “With all of that jet fuel dumped, it was much less than what it could have been.”

The crash happened in the Hampton Roads area, which has a large concentration of military bases, including Naval Station Norfolk, the largest naval base in the world. Naval Air Station Oceana, where the F/A-18D that crashed was assigned, is located in Virginia Beach. Both the pilots were from Virginia Beach, Weisgerber said.

The pilots included a student and an instructor. Weisgerber said he did not know how many times the student pilot had been in the air, but that the instructor was “extremely experienced.”

Dozens of police cars, fire trucks and other emergency vehicles filled the densely populated neighborhood where the plane crashed. Yellow fire hoses snaked through side streets as fire crews poured water on the charred rooftops of brick apartment houses. By late afternoon, the fire had been put out.

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Van Jones Group Plans America’s “Arab Spring” Revolt

An Egypt-styled “Arab Spring,” which has put radicals in charge of the government, will be launched in the United States this spring with a war on “corporate power, Wall Street greed and the political corruption of the 1 percent,” according to the group headed by former Obama green aide Van Jones.

“They’re really not going to like the 99 percent Spring,” said Rebuild the Dream in an organizing email Friday.

Comparing the collection of protests last year that are symbolized by the 99 percent campaign and Occupy movement, to those of Gandhi and Martin Luther King Jr., the group said that “we were all inspired by the protesters of the Arab Spring who stood up to totalitarian governments, and inspired the Occupy movement here in America.”

The plan for now is to hold protest training sessions around the nation next week. Over 900 are scheduled so far.

— Hat tip: JD

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You Tube Now Banning Videos Critical of Global Warming Alarmism

The video, which can be viewed above via Blip.tv, contains a clip from Infowars Nightly News in which Alex Jones gives Professor Norgaard the coveted ‘Skeksy Award’, which is reserved for only the most ardent promoters of tyranny and authoritarianism.

After Rush Limbaugh also directed scorn at Norgaard’s work, the University of Oregon had to back down and claim the inclusion of the word “treated” in the press release describing Norgaard’s paper was a mistake. Norgaard is now being framed at the victim of the whole piece, despite the fact that her dangerously authoritarian tendencies are shared by a raft of other prominent global warming alarmists.

Indeed, videos made by global warming alarmist groups showing children being blown up and having their guts splatted everywhere for not reducing their carbon footprint are apparently fine by You Tube, but suggesting Norgaard isn’t the most attractive woman on the planet is tantamount to hate speech.

— Hat tip: JD

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Your Cell Phone Makes You a Prisoner of a Digital World Where Virtually Anyone Can Hack You

If you own a cell phone, you might as well kiss your privacy goodbye. Cell phone companies know more about us than most of us would ever dare to imagine. Your cell phone company is tracking everywhere that you go and it is making a record of everything that you do with your phone.

Much worse, there is a good chance that your cell phone company has been selling this information to anyone that is willing to pay the price — including local law enforcement. In addition, it is an open secret that the federal government monitors and records all cell phone calls. The “private conversation” that you are having with a friend today will be kept in federal government databanks for many years to come. The truth is that by using a cell phone, you willingly make yourself a prisoner of a digital world where every move that you make and every conversation that you have is permanently recorded. But it is not just cell phone companies and government agencies that you have to worry about. As you will see at the end of this article, it is incredibly easy for any would-be stalker to hack you and track your every movement using your cell phone.

[…]

Christians in Iran have learned that they must take the batteries entirely out of their cell phones before they gather for home church meetings. If they don’t take the batteries out of their cell phones, there is a good chance that the secret police will show up and drag them off to prison.

— Hat tip: JD

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Austria: Designer of Iconic Porsche 911 Dies

The designer of Porsche’s classic 911 sportscar, Ferdinand Alexander Porsche, died Thursday at the age of 76 in the Austrian city of Salzburg, the German company said. The grandson of the luxury automaker’s founder, F.A. Porsche, as he was known, dreamed up in 1963 the sleek lines and alluring curves of the 911 that have sent car fans’ hearts a-flutter for half a century.

“As creator of the Porsche 911, he established a design culture in our company that still leaves its mark on our sports cars,” the head of Porsche’s supervisory board, Matthias Mueller, said in a statement. The 911 model is now in its seventh generation. “A design of the century for which Porsche is envied around the world,” the mass-market Bild newspaper said of the 911 in an obituary for Porsche. “True fans of the brand only permit slight changes to the design to this day.”

— Hat tip: Fjordman

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Britain’s Royal Air Force Considering Purchase of Israeli Unmanned Aerial Vehicle

U.K. looking at the Eitan system, also known as the Heron TP — the largest and most sophisticated drone Israel makes.

Get Haaretz on iPhone Get Haaretz on Android LONDON — Britain’s Royal Air Force has been considering the purchase of unmanned aerial vehicles from Israel.

The Eitan, also known as the Heron TP, is the largest and most sophisticated drone Israel makes. It is assembled by Israel Aerospace Industries and began operational service in the Israel Air Force two years ago, in a new squadron at the Tel Nof airbase.

The Eitan’s wingspan is as wide as a Boeing 737 airliner and it can stay in the air for up to forty hours, carrying out long-range missions at 40 thousand feet, hundreds of kilometers away from base, broadcasting back real-time footage of wide areas. According to foreign sources, the Eitan also carries out missions over Iran.

Israeli and British security sources have confirmed in recent days that the Royal Air Force has been considering buying a number of Eitan systems, since the Mantis, a joint British-French unmanned strategic project, has been delayed and will not be operational before 2020.

No official request has yet been made by the British Ministry of Defense and for now, the RAF is only making initial examinations and is also considering American UAVs and continuing its manned surveillance flights while waiting for the Mantis.

A purchase of an Israeli military system will surely cause protests by pro-Palestinian organizations. Today, Israel buys very little military products from Britain due to export limits placed in the past by the British foreign ministry.

If the RAF selects the Eitan, it will be the second Israeli UAV bought by the British, following the Hermes 450, which is developed in Israel by Elbit and is built in Britain in a joint venture with the Thales Company as part of a NIS 4.7 billion contract.

That deal also drew anti-Israel protest and the British demanded that Elbit cease test-flights over the Golan Heights and move them to within the Green Line. The Hermes 450 is to carry out tactical surveillance missions over Afghanistan.

An official at Israel Aerospace Industries said that, “Following the decision of the French ministry of defense to purchase the Eitan, we certainly expect other European armies to buy it.”

A British Ministry of Defense spokesperson said that, “In order to provide our troops with the best equipment available, we continually look at how we can exploit a range of emerging and developing technologies to support our Armed Forces.”

— Hat tip: Nick

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France: Eiffel Tower Lift Falls Down During Test

A lift at the Eiffel Tower in Paris has fallen down its shaft as it was undergoing maintenance tests. Management says the incident is ‘serious’ and is investigating its cause.

— Hat tip: Fjordman

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French Fear New Serial Killer After Murders

Police in France are investigating whether another serial killer is on the loose, after four people were killed in similar circumstances south of Paris.

The latest victim was a 48-year-old mother, named by French media as Nadjia Lahsene, who was shot dead outside her home in Grigny, a suburb in the southern outskirts of the capital.

She was killed by a gunman who fled on a motorbike — recalling the method used by Islamist extremist Mohammed Merah.

Merah was killed by offices in southern France last month after committing seven murders.

But police believe there may be a link between the murder of Ms Lahsene and several other homicides in the area over the past five months.

“That is a concern, but in any case, as in every criminal inquiry, we are putting every effort into finding out who is behind this,” France’s interior minister Claude Gueant said.

Authorities have added however that nothing yet suggests any political or religious motives are behind the shootings.

On Thursday, Ms Lahsene, a woman of Algerian origin, was killed in the foyer of the apartment block where she lived with her 18-year-old son.

“Everyone is in shock,” said one of her neighbours, who asked not to be named. “She didn’t feel threatened. She’s a normal person, simple, no history.”…

— Hat tip: Nick

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‘I Played Warcraft With Norway Killer’: Survivor

A 17-year-old Norwegian boy who hid from Anders Behring Breivik during his island killing spree last summer has revealed that he once played World of Warcraft with the confessed mass killer. “It was a sickening feeling when I realized I had played for two or three hours with the man who tried to kill me,” Fred Ove Løtuft told local newspaper Bergens Tidende.

Løtuft took shelter behind the branches of a large tree for an hour and a half as Breivik gunned down 69 mostly young people at a summer camp for members of the Labour Party’s youth wing on the island of Utøya on July 22nd last year. As Breivik launched an attack on the island’s café, Løtuft said he instinctively began to hunt for a secure hiding place. “I’ve played a lot of shooting games where you have to get away and hide,” he said.

Passing himself off as a Finn, Breivik led a clan in World of Warcraft called the Knights Templar, Løtuft said. In his manifesto, Breivik claimed he belonged to an “anti-Jihad” terrorist organization of the same name.

— Hat tip: Fjordman

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Romania’s Hospital Scandal: Babies Left to Die as Doctors Refuse to Work Without Bribes

A quarter of a century after the West learned about Ceausescu’s orphanages, children are again the victims, this time of endemic corruption

Dr Catalin Cirstoveanu runs a cardio unit with state-of-the-art equipment at a Bucharest children’s hospital. But not a single child has been treated in the year and a half since it opened. The reason? Medical staff he needs to bring in to run the machinery would have expected bribes.

So Dr Cirstoveanu has launched a lonely crusade to save babies who come to him for care. He flies them to Western Europe on budget flights so they can be treated by doctors who don’t demand kickbacks. That’s what he did last week for 13-day-old Catalin, who needed heart surgery. Dr Cirstoveanu packed a small bag, slipped emergency breathing equipment into the baby carrier and caught a cheap flight to Italy, where doctors were waiting to perform the surgery.

The operation was successful. Two days later, though, a three-week-old baby that Dr Cirstoveanu whisked away to the same clinic in Italy — with tubes piercing her tiny frame — died before she was able to have lymph gland surgery. “I was very worried it wouldn’t work,” he said. “But in Romania, she would have died anyway.”

The soft-spoken doctor is fighting an exhausting and largely solitary battle against a culture of corruption that is so embedded in Romania that surgeons demand bribes to save infants’ lives, and it’s even necessary to slip cash to a nurse to get your sheets changed. It’s one of the reasons why the country’s infant mortality rate is more than double the European Union average, with one in 100 children not reaching their first birthday. “To be honest, it’s so deeply rooted into our system that it’s really difficult to eliminate,” the health minister Ladislau Ritli said.

Patients in Romania — a member of the European Union — routinely discuss the “stock market” rate for bribes.

— Hat tip: Fjordman

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Sweden: Social Democrats Sprint Into Poll Lead

Spearheaded by an increasingly popular new leader, the Social Democrats have come out on top of a party preference survey for the first time since the 2010 general election. Asked which party they would vote for were an election to be held today, 34.1 percent plumped for the Social Democrats in Demoskop’s April poll.

The result put Stefan Löfven’s party ahead of the Moderates, with Prime Minister Fredrik Reinfeldt’s party dropping back three percentage points to 29.9 percent. “This shows that we’ve managed to get our policy message out there in recent months,” party secretary Carin Jämtin told newspaper Expressen.

Stefan’s Löfven’s rising support has already made him the most popular Social Democratic leader since former Prime Minister Göran Persson hit his popularity peak in the early 2000s, according to the results of a separate poll.

— Hat tip: Fjordman

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UK: School Standards at Risk From Attempts to ‘Cure Social Ills’

Education standards are being put at risk by repeated attempts to force schools to cure the country’s biggest social problems, a minister warned today.

Nick Gibb, the Schools Minister, said the “first answer” to almost any challenge facing society — such as obesity, teenage pregnancy and knife crime — was to give schools a new duty to tackle the issue.

He said he was regularly presented with proposals “from one well-meaning group or another” to add “something socially desirable” to the curriculum.

But Mr Gibb warned that the move risked cutting the amount of time available for teaching traditional subjects — the “best way out of poverty” for young people.

The comments come just a week after a major report into last year’s riots in England suggested that schools should be required to “develop and publish their policies on building character”.

It suggested that primary and secondary schools should undertake regular assessments of pupils’ character, in a move likely to cover issues such as self-confidence, honesty and sense of right and wrong.

But addressing the Association of Teachers and Lecturers annual conference in Manchester, Mr Gibb said: “Today it seems that the first answer of many to almost any problem in society is to give a duty to schools to tackle it — be it obesity, teenage pregnancy, or knife crime.

“It feels like every other week I am presented with proposals from one well-meaning group or another to add something socially desirable to the curriculum.

“I see my role as resisting those pressures so that schools can concentrate on educating young people and teachers can focus on teaching.”

The last Government was repeatedly criticised for introducing a series of new duties for English state schools.

This included compulsory lessons in citizenship, a new onus on schools to promote community cohesion, nutritional standards for food and an overhaul of the curriculum covering personal, social, health and economic education (PSHE) lessons.

Speaking after his conference address, Mr Gibb told how he had been recently asked to place chess on the National Curriculum and introduce lessons on Pilates, the body conditioning routine that helps build flexibility and muscle strength.

— Hat tip: Nick

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Bosnia Marks 20 Years Since Start of War

Bosnia is commemorating 20 years since the start of its 1992-1995 war. While the fighting is over, the ethnically divided country is not exactly at peace.

Bosnia and Herzegovina on Friday marked the 20th anniversary of the start of the civil war that claimed 100,000 lives and left the country still divided along ethnic and religious lines.

On Sarajevo’s main street, exactly 11,541 red chairs were lines up in rows representing the men, women and children killed in the 44-month assault on the city. It became the longest siege of a city in modern history, with some 330 shells hitting every day.

“This city needs to stop for a moment and pay tribute to its killed citizens,” said Haris Pasovic, organizer of the exhibition titled the “Sarajevo Red Line.” Concerts, performances and other exhibitions were also planned to mark the occasion.

Bosnia had declared independence from Yugoslavia in 1991, supported by a referendum in February and March the following year. The vote was boycotted by a majority of Bosnian Serbs, who largely wanted to stay part of the Serb-dominated Yugoslavia.

— Hat tip: Fjordman

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Jihad and ‘Martyrdom’ In the Voting Booth?

by Raymond Ibrahim

Over and over, evidence emerges from Islamic nations that democracy and voting are instrumental means to an intrinsic end: the establishment of a decidedly undemocratic but draconian form of law-Islamic law, or Sharia.

Earlier, for instance, there was Dr. Talat Zahran, an Egyptian cleric who proclaimed that it is “obligatory to cheat at elections-a beautiful thing.” His logic was simple: voting is a tool, an instrument, the only value of which is to empower Sharia.

Now an Egyptian cleric has thoroughly Islamized the concept of voting.

Context: the presidential campaign of Abu Ismail-the Salafi candidate who openly declared that there is no freedom in Islam, the candidate most likely to try to implement the totality of Sharia if elected-has been compromised due to recent allegations that his mother was an American citizen.

In response, Hazim Shuman, a cleric that appears on satellite, just issued a fatwa saying, “Voting for Abu Ismail is jihad in the path of Allah (jihad fi sabil Allah), and paradise awaits whoever is martyred during Abu Ismail’s political campaign.”

Anyone familiar with Islam’s language knows that jihad fi sabil Allah is synonymous with violence or, from a non-Muslim perspective, terror. For example, the standard Islamic legal text, Umdat al-Salik (“Reliance of the Traveler”) translates fi sabil Allah as “those fighting for Allah”; next to the index entry for fi sabil Allah it simply says “see jihad.”

Incidentally, “jihad in the path of Allah” is what conquered most of what is now called the “Muslim world.”

The logic of this fatwa is as follows: one of the primary purposes of violent jihad is to establish Islamic law; because Abu Ismail is the most likely candidate to institutionalize Sharia if elected, supporting him any which way-including, apparently, through violence and death-is a form of jihad with the highest paradisiacal rewards for those who die trying.

In short, democracy, voting-even the individual candidates, including Abu Ismail-are all means to one end: the establishment of Islamic law.

— Hat tip: Fjordman

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Tunisia: Muslims Threaten Church, Cover Its Cross With Garbage Bags

by Raymond Ibrahim

According to Al Quds, last Tuesday it was revealed that the Christian Orthodox Church in Tunis, one of very few churches in the country of Tunisia, is being “abused” and receiving “threatening messages” from “Salafis.” Church members are described as “living in a state of terror,” so much so that the Russian ambassador in Tunis specifically requested the nation’s Ministry of Interior to “protect the church.”

The abuse has gotten to the point where “Salafis covered the cross of the church with garbage bags, telling the church members that they do not wish to see the vision of the Cross anywhere in the Islamic state of Tunisia.”

Among all the Arabic-speaking nations, Tunisia has long been described as one of the most “secular” and “liberal”; it was also the first nation where the much ballyhooed “Arab Spring” began. Now its very few churches are not tolerated, and their crucifixes abhorred. If this is “tolerant” Tunisia, what should one expect from the more “radical” nations? More evidence of the true nature of the “Arab Spring.”

— Hat tip: Fjordman

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A View on Günter Grass: Why We Need an Open Debate on Israel

A Commentary by Jakob Augstein

Is Israel a threat to world peace? German writer Günter Grass has been blasted as an anti-Semite this week for making just such a claim in a new poem. But while the verse may not win any awards, Grass has kicked off an important — and long overdue — debate. And, he’s right.

— Hat tip: Fjordman

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Caroline Glick: The Eternal Liberation Movement

Hamas terror boss Fathi Hamad is a notable figure. Hamad is both the director of Hamas’s al-Aksa television station and the terror group’s “minister” of the interior and national security. His double portfolio is a clear expression of the much ignored fact that for terrorists, propaganda is inseparable from violence.

Hamad’s key posts make him a man worth listening to. His statements necessarily indicate Hamas’s general direction.

On March 23, Hamad was interviewed by Egypt’s Al Hekma television station. The interview was translated by MEMRI.

Hamad made two central points. First, he claimed that the Palestinian war against Israel is the keystone of the global jihad. Second, he said the Palestinians are not a distinct people, but transplanted Egyptians and Saudis.

In his words, “At al-Aksa and on the land of Palestine, all the conspiracies, throughout history, have been shattered — the conspiracies of the Crusaders, and the conspiracies of the Tatars. At al- Aksa and on the land of Palestine, the Battle of Hattin was waged. The [West] does not want this noble history to repeat itself, because the Jews and their allies would be annihilated — the Zionists, the Americans and the imperialists.

— Hat tip: Caroline Glick

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Israel’s U.S. Envoy: Award to Helen Thomas Shows Palestinians Aren’t Ready for Peace

Long-time reporter, criticized for her 2010 anti-Israel comments, honored by the PLO’s U.S. mission for her defense of the ‘Palestinian position every step of the way.’

Get Haaretz on iPhone Get Haaretz on Android A decision by the Palestinian mission to the United States to honor journalist Helen Thomas proves the Palestinians inability to meet the “basic requisites of peace,” Israel’s ambassador to the U.S. Michael Oren said on Tuesday.

Oren, responding to a Sunday ceremony in which Thomas was marked for her support of the “Palestinian position, said he “was appalled by the award ceremony given by the PLO delegation in Washington to Helen Thomas, who has been completely shunned by all decent Americans after making anti-Semitic remarks, along with teaching Palestinian children to hate the Jewish State and to glorify suicide bombers.”

“This atrocious act is an indication of the Palestinian Authority’s failure to meet the basic requisites of peace,” he added.

Thomas, a senior White House reporter, drew fire in 2010 when, when asked of her opinion on Israel, she said: “Tell them that they need to get out of Palestine, and return home to Germany, Poland, and America.”

As a result of her remark, an onslaught of public criticism forced Thomas to apologize and retire. Shortly after her retirement, however, Thomas claimed she said “eactly what she thought.” Following those comments, the Society of Professional Journalists decided to discontinue the yearly lifetime achievement award bearing Thomas’ name.

On Sunday, however, the head of the Palestine Liberation Organization General Mission to the U.S., Maen Areikat, led a Washington ceremony honoring Thomas, recognizing what he said was her “long career in the field of journalism, during which she defended the Palestinian position every step of the way.”

The event was also attended by PLO Executive Committee member Hanan Ashrawi, who presented the prize to Thomas, and indicated that the honor came directly from Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas.

According to the Washington PLO office’s statement, Ashrawi “presented Thomas with the appreciation and blessing of the president and the Palestinian people, for all of her actions supporting Palestine in the West.”

— Hat tip: Nick

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Israel Wary of Changes in the Arab World

For decades, Israel had been hoping for change in the Arab world. Yet now that the region is in upheaval, its not just Israeli citizens who are concerned. The government has shown a preference for walling itself in rather than exploring new opportunities.

— Hat tip: Fjordman

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Iraq: Camp Ashraf Massacre: ‘Hypocrisy Runs Deep’

About a year ago, members of the Iraqi army killed 34 members of the People’s Mujahedin of Iran at Camp Ashraf. The story drew little coverage but serves as a symbol of countless mistakes from both the Bush and Obama administrations in Iraq.

That’s the opinion of retired U.S. Army Col. Wesley Martin, who was commander of Camp Ashraf at the time of the massacre. Martin explains why he’s outraged that the Iranian group was considered a terrorist group by our own government at the time and still is today.

“The hypocrisy runs deep. Iraq is going to pull further away from the U.S. The only reason they’re holding on to us now is because of the financial help going over there,” Martin told WND.

— Hat tip: JD

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Record Number of Refugees Flee Syria for Turkey

Violence in Syria has increased just days before an April 10 deadline for the start of a cease-fire between government troops and rebels, as the number of Syrians seeking refuge in Turkey hits a new high. A record number of refugees have fled the violence in Syria into Turkey as a deadline for a cease-fire promised by the government quickly approaches.

Turkish officials said more than 2,800 Syrians arrived on Thursday and Friday — more than double the previously highest number entering on a single day. That puts the total number of Syrian refugees in Turkey at nearly 24,000.

— Hat tip: Fjordman

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The Price of Oil: Saudi Agenda: Our Gullibility

by Raymond J. Learsy

One is compelled to pull out that old chestnut, “There he goes again.” The face of Saudi oil, and de facto senior voice of the OPEC cartel, Saudi Oil Minister Ali Naimi entertained us to one of his seminal dissertations, expounding on Saudi Arabia’s concerns for the well being of all mankind.

Stating the case clearly, that Saudi Arabia “… remains the world’s largest producer and the country with the largest proven reserves, so it has a responsibility to do what it can to mitigate prices.” No argument here.

Yet that bit of wisdom is prefaced by the oldest of canards, “Needless to say Saudi Arabia does not control the price: it sells its crude according to international prices.” A truly bizarre declaration coming from the leading protagonist of the cartel, OPEC, whose primary function is to limit the supply of oil to world markets to control, and within the limits of the world’s tolerance, to maximize the price of crude oil in the market place. Clearly their efforts have been so successful that the limits of tolerance have now been reached and letting off a little steam has become part of the ritual.

The ritual is encapsulated in the mantra repeated in Mr. Ali Naimi’s pronouncement: “The bottom line is that Saudi Arabia would like to see a lower price . It would like to see a fair and reasonable price, that will not hurt the economic recovery, especially in emerging and developing countries…”. A statement that automatically elicits our well inculcated and programmed hosannas whenever such mumblings come out of Riyadh.

The trouble is we have heard this babble before and now again. In December of 2008, with oil prices teetering below $40 a barrel and gasoline prices accordingly restrained, our now benevolent Saudi Oil Minister Al Naimi would pontificate, after King Abdullah himself had ventured that $75/bbl was a fair and reasonable price, enlightening us, “You must understand that the purpose of the $75 price is for a much more noble cause. You need every producer to produce, and marginal producers cannot produce at $40 a barrel.” This coming from a producer whose “all inclusive” production costs veer toward “$1.50/bbl” or possibly less according to a pronouncement made by none other than Mr. Ali Naimi at the Houston Oil Forum in November 1999.

Well, several months after the December 2008 statement giving us the parameters of oil price ‘nobility’ the price touched and quickly breached Mr. Al Naimi’s $75/bbl. As it went shooting on to $100/bbl and well beyond with barely a word of discomfiture coming from OPEC’s or the Saudi Oil Ministry’s headquarters.

As the price veered to $100 and higher the International Energy Agency had the presumption to criticize OPEC for holding back production only to be roundly reprimanded by OPEC’s the Secretary General El-Badri blaming high prices on speculation and “technical means”, whatever that means.

Speaking of speculation — or worse, manipulation — and given the lack of transparency in the trading of oil futures in the world’s commodity markets, it would be interesting to hear from Mr. Ali Naimi whether the Saudi Oil Ministry, Aramco, the Saudi Sovereign Wealth Fund or whatever Saudi or OPEC designees are currently holding oil futures contracts and to what purpose. Certainly not to lower the price of oil?

Anyway, thank you Mr. Ali Naimi. Your sincerity and good deeds are appreciated.

— Hat tip: Gort

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India: The “Massive Con” Causing a Suicide Every 30 Minutes

The introduction of genetically engineered seeds, and the coercion of Indian farmers to use them, has led to the largest wave of recorded suicides in human history.

Indian farmers have been robbed of their livelihoods, causing them to take their own lives in despair.

Over the past 16 years, it is estimated that more than a quarter of a million Indian farmers have committed suicide.

Who is responsible for this tragedy?

The most obvious culprits are global corporations like Monsanto, Cargill and Syngenta and the genetically engineered seed they have forced upon farmers worldwide.

None are hit harder than those in India, where socioeconomic and environmental factors have magnified the impact, making it almost impossible for these farmers to survive.

In fact, genetically engineered seeds are so fundamental to the problem that it’s been termed “GM Genocide.”ii

The rate of Indian farmer suicides has greatly increased since the introduction of Bt cotton in 2002iii.

This is not a pleasant subject to read about, but it is a necessary one… one that can help you understand why it’s so important to continue fighting seed monopolies with ever-increased resolve.

I experienced the Indian farmers’ plight firsthand while spending two weeks in India, where I saw for myself the devastating effects of GM seed upon the lives and livelihoods of these rural farmers.

Genetically Engineered Seeds Spell Global Disaster

There are four primary factors directly related to the use of genetically engineered seed that contribute heavily to this grim situation:

1.		Compared to traditional seed, genetically engineered seeds are very expensive and have to be repurchased every planting season.
2.		Genetically engineered crops require much more water to grow, have much higher requirements for fertilizer and pesticide, in spite of Monsanto’s claims to the contrary and, in spite of their cost to farmers, provide NO increased yield.

While companies like Monsanto have plenty of blood on their hands, additional social, economic and environmental factors make matters worse for these small rural farms:

[…]

But this genetically engineered cotton actually required far MORE water and far MORE pesticides than hybrid or traditional cotton!

These seeds were heavily marketed in India, using film stars and even religious deities to lure farmers in. And they came with a steep price tag— they are four to 10 times more expensive than hybrid seeds. Prior to hybrids, farmers were able to harvest their own seeds from each crop, to be planted next season. However, many genetically engineered seeds contain “terminator technology,” meaning they have been genetically modified so that the resulting crops don’t produce viable seeds of their own. Therefore, new seeds must be purchased every year from big seed companies, at the same punitive prices.

Bt cotton requires more pesticide sprayings than indigenous cotton—MANY times more. Bt cotton has created new resistant pestsviii, and to control these, farmers must use 13 times more pesticidesix than they were using prior to its introduction. Rates of infestation by aphids, thrips, jassids, and other pests have risen since Bt cotton’s introductionx.

— Hat tip: JD

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Video: Abortion Conditioning: The UN’s Sick Social Engineering Agenda

The UN is producing training videos and holding seminars to teach children as young as ten about the virtues of abortion.

— Hat tip: JD

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Interview With Director James Cameron: ‘The ‘Titanic’ Shows That the Unthinkable Can Happen’

SPIEGEL: But there have been plenty of catastrophes throughout history with far more casualties.

Cameron: It’s not about numbers. It’s about the hubris of the shipowners, for example; it’s about society at that time. It was a very optimistic time: Technology was advancing; people built aircrafts; they enjoyed electric light; everything looked like there would be a great future. And the Titanic stood for that. And then, suddenly, the unthinkable happened, as if all of this went down with the Titanic. This was a huge blow. And, today, there are unthinkable topics as well, such as a nuclear war. And the Titanic shows that the unthinkable can happen.

— Hat tip: Fjordman

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Microsoft’s Kinect Spy System

Microsoft X-Box Kinect games device has a video camera and a microphone that records speech. Microsoft has stated that users “should not expect any level of privacy concerning your use of the live communication features,” and the company “may access or disclose information about you, including the content of your communications.”

— Hat tip: JD

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	Financial Crisis
»	Italy: Household Savings Drop to 17-Year Low
»	Pensioner Suicide Shocks Greece
»	Rajoy Says Spain in ‘Extreme Difficulty’ As Bond Demand Drops
»	Spain: Madrid’s Mayor Chips Away at Debt and Tradition
»	Turkey: PM Erdogan Unveils Economic Stimulus Package
»	World’s Largest Solar Plant, With Second Largest Ever Department of Energy Loan Guarantee, Files for Bankruptcy
	USA
»	Confirmed: Muslim Brotherhood Group Meets With U.S. Chamber of Commerce
»	Exposing the Obama-Soetoro Deception
»	Hutaree Militiamen Cleared in Court
»	Lies and Doublespeak of American Planning Association
»	Murder of Iraqi-American Woman May Not Have Been a Hate Crime
»	Muslim Brotherhood Officials Aim to Promote Moderate Image in Washington Visit
»	Storm Chaser Catches Terrifying Dallas Tornadoes
»	The Democratic Party and Jewish Anti-Semitism
»	When is Global Warming Enough?
	Europe and the EU
»	British Government Moves to Tackle Islamophobia
»	Greece: Pensioner’s Death Sparks Clashes in Athens
»	Greece: Almost a Fifth of Fuel Adulterated, Survey
»	Mother Earth and the Fatherland: Germany’s Far-Right Turns to Environmentalism
»	Nobel Laureate Under Fire: Grass Says Campaign Against Him ‘Injurious’
»	Norway: Romanian Gang Targeting Elderly Women: Police
»	Norway: Breivik: Mental Ward a Fate ‘Worse Than Death’
»	Norway: Man Beaten and Shoved Into Car Boot in Oslo
	Balkans
»	Kosovars Hurl Stones at Serbian Delegation
	North Africa
»	From a Prison Cell to the Egyptian Presidency
»	Presidential Candidate Cheered as He Registers for Election
»	Two Tunisians Sentenced to 7 Years in Prison for Posting Caricatures of the Prophet Muhammed Online
	Israel and the Palestinians
»	Israel Has Few Options for Rocket Fire From Egypt
»	Rocket Fired From Egypt Hits Israeli City of Eilat
	Middle East
»	Germany: Günter Grass Specializes in ‘Self-Righteousness’
»	Gulf: Efforts for Artistic Freedom, Islamists on the Attack
»	Qatar: 41 Bln Dollar Contract for Underground Lines Ready
	South Asia
»	Afghanistan Sees Rise in ‘Dancing Boys’ Exploitation
»	NATO Withdrawal From Afghanistan Continues to Raise Doubts
	Far East
»	Japan: Fukushima Daiichi Site: Cesium-137 is 85 Times Greater Than at Chernobyl Accident
»	Turkey’s Erdogan Makes Landmark Visit to China
	Immigration
»	Book: Civilization: The Six Ways the West Beat the Rest, By Niall Ferguson
»	Massive Illegal Alien Election Fraud Detected in Florida
»	Sarkozy: EU Needs to Protect Itself
	Culture Wars
»	What’s Missing From This Easter Message?
	General
»	Life on Jupiter Moon Europa May Hide in Depths to Survive
»	Scientists Closing in on Black Hole at Center of Our Galaxy

Italy: Household Savings Drop to 17-Year Low

National Statistics agency Istat says

(ANSAmed) — ROME — Household saving in Italy has dropped to its lowest level since 1995, national statistics agency Istat said Thursday. In 2011 families set aside 12% of household income, down 0.7% on the year. Domestic buying power dropped in the same period by 0.5%.

— Hat tip: Fjordman

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Pensioner Suicide Shocks Greece

BRUSSELS — A pensioner committed suicide in the centre of Athens Wednesday (4 April) giving a public face to the hardship endured by many Greeks as the country slashes spending to satisfy international creditors.

The man, a 77-year-old pharmacist, shot himself in Syntagma Square with some reports saying that he had shouted that he did not want to leave debts to his children.

It later emerged that he had left a suicide note.

“I can’t find another way to react apart from putting a dignified end to things before I start looking through garbage in order to survive and before I become a burden for my child,” said the note according to Greek paper Ekathimerini.

His exact financial situation remains unclear but reports say he was seriously ill and was struggling to pay for medicine. His suicide prompted a spontaneous gathering of around 2000 people in Syntagma Square later on Wednesday.

Peaceful at first, demonstrations turned during violent during the evening, as activists threw rocks and petrol bombs at police, who responded with tear gas and flash grenades.

— Hat tip: Fjordman

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Rajoy Says Spain in ‘Extreme Difficulty’ As Bond Demand Drops

Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy said Spain’s situation is one of “extreme difficulty” and signaled that his budget cuts are less painful than a bailout would be, as demand for the nation’s debt slumped at an auction. “Spain is facing an economic situation of extreme difficulty, I repeat, of extreme difficulty, and anyone who doesn’t understand that is fooling themselves,” Rajoy told a meeting of his People’s Party today in the southern coastal city of Malaga.

Rajoy raised the threat of an international bailout for the second time this week as he sought to defend the deepest austerity moves in at least three decades. While “no one likes” the budget presented last week, he said “the alternative is infinitely worse.”

— Hat tip: Fjordman

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Spain: Madrid’s Mayor Chips Away at Debt and Tradition

Spain is frantically trying to reduce its debts. While conservative Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy is doing so at the national level, Ana Botella is slashing away at spending in Madrid, Spain’s most heavily indebted city. In the process, the mayor is blazing her own path.

When Ana Botella looks up from the files in her office on the fifth floor of Madrid’s city hall, she sees the crown of a fertility goddess. The marble statue of Cibeles standing in a chariot being pulled by lions is the centerpiece of a busy plaza in the Spanish capital. On good days, the players and fans of Real Madrid, the city’s league-leading soccer club, celebrate their victories in the square in front of the Cibeles Fountain.

Last Thursday wasn’t one of those days. Instead of jubilant soccer fans, there were tens of thousands of protestors waving red flags in front of the fountain just below the balcony of Botella’s office. They were protesting against the fact that over 5 million of their fellow citizens are unemployed and against the austerity measures imposed by the conservative federal government, which are plunging many families into poverty.

That morning, inside city hall, Botella and the city council had decided to free up about €1 million ($1.3 million) in funds so that rents could be reduced for the city’s poorest residents living in subsidized housing.

Indeed, these are hard times on Cibeles Square. Madrid’s mayor still has to pay over €1 billion for 16,712 outstanding bills from 2011 as well as try to get the finances of Spain’s most heavily indebted city under control. And she needs to do so as quickly as possible.

— Hat tip: Fjordman

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Turkey: PM Erdogan Unveils Economic Stimulus Package

(ANSAmed) — ANKARA, APRIL 5 — Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Thursday announced a fresh set of measures to encourage new investments in the country which he said was aimed at reducing dependency on imported intermediate goods and country’s current deficit as well as at contributing to the structural reformation of the country industrial sector and balancing regional differences. Erdogan, as Anatolia news agency reports, said the package would include stimulus programs on general, regional, large-scale and strategic bases, adding that the package also included measures to encourage investments that involved high and medium-high technology use. Erdogan said the package divided Turkey into in six regions where each region will receive varying amounts of incentives in line with their level of development to cancel out regional socio-economic differences.

Erdogan said the program placed special importance on strategic investments in defense, aviation and aerospace industries as well as in biochemical industry, which he said would receive a standard stimuli program designed for the fifth least developed region in the country. The Turkish premier said the package was also aimed at drawing foreign investors. Erdogan said the new stimulus package would be effective as on January 1, 2012.

— Hat tip: Fjordman

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World’s Largest Solar Plant, With Second Largest Ever Department of Energy Loan Guarantee, Files for Bankruptcy

Solyndra was just the appetizer. Earlier today, in what will come as a surprise only to members of the administration, the company which proudly held the rights to the world’s largest solar power project, the hilariously named Solar Trust of America (“STA”), filed for bankruptcy. And while one could say that the company’s epic collapse is more a function of alternative energy politics in Germany, where its 70% parent Solar Millennium AG filed for bankruptcy last December, what is relevant is that last April STA was the proud recipient of a $2.1 billion conditional loan from the Department of Energy, incidentally the second largest loan ever handed out by the DOE’s Stephen Chu.

[…]

And while we do not know just how much the government will have to pay out of pocket, we do know that STA had at least $50 million in debt at filing.

What we do know for sure is that at least the firm’s financial advisors made money on the deal. From the company’s Investors page:

— Hat tip: JD

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Confirmed: Muslim Brotherhood Group Meets With U.S. Chamber of Commerce

Reports of a meeting between representatives of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce and members of the Freedom and Justice Party of Egypt, the political wing of the Muslim Brotherhood, were confirmed today. According to information provided by Bobby Maldonado, Manager of Media Relations for the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, the U.S.-Egypt Business Council hosted members of the Freedom and Justice Party of Egypt including Dr. Abdul Mawgoud Dardery, FJP’s Member of Parliament serving on their Foreign Relations Committee. The meeting was held at the Chamber offices in Washington, DC.

Origins of the Freedom and Justice Party (FJP)

The Freedom and Justice Party (FJP) was founded in Egypt on 30 April 2011 by the Muslim Brotherhood, which is the ideological forefather of al Qaeda and Hamas, supporter of Sharia law, and an advocate of terrorism against Israel and the West.

The Freedom and Justice Party (FJP) was created by the Muslim Brotherhood following the “Arab Spring” uprisings that toppled Hosni Mubarak. According to a February 2012 report in USA Today, “[t]he newly politically empowered Muslim Brotherhood, the Islamic organization that supports religious law and opposes Western influence, has supported a crackdown on those who disagree with them, including the very activists who helped bring about the free elections that the Brotherhood dominated.”

— Hat tip: JD

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Exposing the Obama-Soetoro Deception

Most people following this issue are aware of the irregularities surrounding Obama’s selective service registration. Yet few appear to be aware that detectives from the Arizona investigative team have been methodically securing affidavits documenting alleged criminal activity by the Obama campaign during the 2008 Democratic Party primary.

“Something” happened during the latter portion of the campaign that involved Hillary Rodham Clinton and Barack Hussein Obama. Recall that Obama and Clinton ditched the press and their respective staff members to meet in secret during the late night hours of Thursday, June 5, 2008, at the home of Senator Dianne Feinstein. The meeting lasted about an hour, and what was discussed was never publicly disclosed.

The expansion of the official investigation is being deliberately ignored by the mainstream media, including outlets often identified with the conservative agenda. Evidence suggests that this deliberate media “blackout” is being orchestrated and ordered at the highest levels of the American government.

[…]

If the issue of Obama’s legal identity seems trivial and a fringe issue in the scheme of things, consider the path this country has taken over the last three-and-a-half years. Even more frightening, consider the path not yet taken. A window into that path was opened by a “hot” microphone that captured Obama’s utterances to Russian President Dmitri Medvedev on March 26, 2012. The world heard Obama say that he would have more flexibility in his second term to adjust our missile defense program to the better liking of the Russians.

— Hat tip: JD

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Hutaree Militiamen Cleared in Court

Much to the chagrin of the Southern Poverty Law Center, a federal judge has cleared the members of a Michigan militia who were accused by federal law enforcement agents of conspiracy to commit sedition. Since you didn’t hear much about this ruling from the national press corps, here is one online version of the report:

“Seven members of a Michigan militia have been cleared of plotting to overthrow the U.S. government as a judge dismissed the most serious charges against them.

“In a shock defeat for federal authorities, District Judge Victoria Roberts said the group’s expressed hatred of law enforcement did not amount to a conspiracy.

“The FBI secretly planted an informant and an agent inside the Hutaree militia in 2008 to collect hours of anti-government audio and video that became the cornerstone of the case.

“Senior officials had insisted they had captured homegrown rural extremists poised for war.

“But the judge said: ‘The court is aware that protected speech and mere words can be sufficient to show a conspiracy. In this case, however, they do not rise to that level.”

— Hat tip: JD

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Lies and Doublespeak of American Planning Association

So, the exact words “Sustainable Development” come from UN documents and its exact policies are imposed at the local level — yet, we are told by its proponents, none of these development plans have anything to do with UN policy. It’s an amazing tap dance.

[…]

So, since they can’t beat us with strong arms, the Sustainablists are rushing to change the entire playing field, changing tactics, re-educating their storm troopers to employ non- confrontational new-speak, and rewriting the dictionary to “avoid polarizing jargon.” In an attempt to neutralize their opposition they seek to lull us all into believing the policies they continue to enforce aren’t Agenda 21/Sustainable Development. There is no hidden agenda, they now promise. It’s just local planning by local officials, so they claim with a straight face.

Hiding their agenda in “new speak”

The worst of the worst of the Sustainablists is the American Planning Association (APA). So panicked is this American Trojan Horse over growing opposition to its policies that APA has organized a “Boot Camp” to teach its operatives how to counter our opposition. Recently APA released a memo entitled “Glossary for the Public.” It is quite telling on how an organization that is supposed to be one of the most respected planning groups in the nation, operating in nearly every city, will teach its people to lie at all costs in order to maintain their power and influence in our communities.

[…]

In every one of those canned descriptions of the “planning process” you will find the tenets of Agenda 21. The use of the word we is the standard “Delphi technique” of the consensus process they are trying to hide. The reference to the future for the children is right out of the UN Agenda 21 definition: “Development that meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs.” Of course, as we have learned, that to accomplish such an innocent-sounding goal, means locked away lands and resources. Agenda 21.

— Hat tip: JD

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Murder of Iraqi-American Woman May Not Have Been a Hate Crime

Search warrants in the case of Iraqi-American woman who was beaten to death last month suggests that there may be more to the story than just a case of anti-Muslim violence. According to court records obtained by the San Diego Union Tribune, the victim, Shaima Alawadi, was looking to divorce her husband and move to another state, while her 17-year-old daughter, Fatima, was also distraught about being forced to marry her cousin. Fatima Alawadi also reportedly received a cryptic text message shortly after the attack saying, “The detective will find out tell them (can’t) talk.”

Investigators also learned of another incident that adds to the portrait of a family in trouble. Fatima was picked up by police last November after they responded to a report of two people having sex in a car and found the daughter in a car with a 21-year-old man. Her mother came to pick her up, but while driving home, Fatima threw herself out of the moving car at 35 m.p.h., breaking her arm. She reportedly told hospital staff that she was upset about the arranged marriage.

Finally, police have determined that the key piece of evidence — a threatening note found next to the body telling the family to go back where they came from — was a photocopy and not the handwritten original. (The family did say they previously found a similar note outside their home, but did not save it.)

While none of these details directly contradict the original theory that the killer was an outsider targeting the family because of bias against Muslims, they do suggest a wider range of other motives and the possibility that the note may have been a attempt to distract police from the real killer. Local police and the FBI have not commented on the ongoing investigation or these latest revelations, but have said that there are no suspects at the moment. They also wouldn’t change the fact that there is real anti-Muslim hatred in this country and particularly in El Cajon where the crime occurred. But this is yet another reminder that as with many crimes, particularly those that play out in the public eye, it may difficult to ever piece together what really happened — and the truth is rarely what it first appears to be.

— Hat tip: Qualis Rex

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Muslim Brotherhood Officials Aim to Promote Moderate Image in Washington Visit

Members of Egypt’s Muslim Brotherhood began a week-long charm offensive in Washington on Tuesday, meeting with White House officials, policy experts and others to counter persistent fears about the group’s emergence as the country’s most powerful political force. The revolution that ousted Hosni Mubarak has rapidly transformed the Brotherhood from an opposition group that had been formally banned into a political juggernaut controlling nearly half the seats in Egypt’s newly elected parliament.

— Hat tip: Fjordman

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Storm Chaser Catches Terrifying Dallas Tornadoes

An estimated 10 to 18 tornadoes plowed through the Dallas metropolitan area yesterday afternoon (April 3), tossing semi-trailers high in the air, destroying homes and pelting the region with hail the size of golf balls.

The storms sent thousands of people scurrying for cover. But Brandon Sullivan was hurrying in the opposite direction — straight toward the Dallas twisters. He’d been watching radar and weather reports all morning, and drove all the way from his home in Oklahoma City in search of the telltale rotating clouds.

His chase was rewarded. Just outside Forney, Texas, a town about 20 miles (32 kilometers) east of Dallas, Sullivan stopped his car along a tiny dirt road as a furious tornado churned in a field just about 200 yards (180 meters) away.

— Hat tip: Fjordman

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The Democratic Party and Jewish Anti-Semitism

There’s a thin line between Anti-Semitism and Anti-Zionism. That’s true of Muslims and the left, but it’s also true specifically of the Jewish left, whose hatred for Israel manifests itself in a general contempt for Jewish religion, culture and tradition.

[…]

Jewish Anti-Semitism is a very real phenomenon, but it’s not self-hatred, no more so than Bill Ayers’ desire to destroy America is self-hatred. The essence of the left is the rejection of the past in a perpetual war for a better future. The very nature of Jewish identity is built on a continuity of tradition and the nature of the left is to fly its progressive colors by showing contempt for tradition. There can be no balance between the two because to choose the one is to reject the other.

The more the Democratic Party moves in tune with the left, the more it mirrors the bigotry of European leftist parties toward Jews and Israel.

— Hat tip: JD

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When is Global Warming Enough?

It depends who you ask. Professor Kari Norgaard from Oregon University thinks, “If you don’t believe in climate change you must be sick.” If you are a skeptic of global warming, you are a racist. Overcoming this challenge, she continued in a paper presented at the Planet under Pressure Conference in London, March 24-29, 2012, is similar to overcoming “racism or slavery in the south.”

Yale University Professor Karen Seto, who also attended the conference, told MSNBC: “We certainly don’t want them [humans] strolling about the entire countryside. We want them to save land for nature by living closely [together.] In her view, humans are foreign to nature, we pollute it, we corrupt it, and eventually destroy it.

The scientists attending the Planet under Pressure conference in London “put out a statement calling for humans to be packed into denser cities so that the rest of the planet can be surrendered to Mother Nature.” (UK Daily Mail)

“Cultural resistance to accepting humans as being responsible for climate change must be recognized and treated as an aberrant sociological behavior.” (UK Daily Mail)

— Hat tip: JD

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British Government Moves to Tackle Islamophobia

LONDON: 12 months after Baroness Sayeeda Warsi, the Conservative Party chairman argued that Islamophobia has “passed the dinner-table test” and had become socially acceptable in Britain, the UK Government has established a cross-government working group to tackle anti-Muslim hatred.

The News/Jang has learnt exclusively that the group is modeled on the hugely influential cross-government working group on anti-Semitism, set up by the previous Labour government for the Jewish community.

The Group is chaired by the Department for Communities and Local Government (CLG) and will have representatives from across government including the Cabinet Office, the Department for Education, the Foreign and Commonwealth Office, the Home Office and the Ministry of Justice. This scribe understands that the group will include leading UK academics, Dr Chris Allen from Birmingham University and Dr Matthew Goodwin from Nottingham University.

Imam Qari Asim from Leeds Makkah Masjid, Akeela Ahmed from Muslim Youth Helpline and Fiyaz Mughal of Faith Matters has also been chosen as key members of the group.

In January 2011 Baroness Warsi, the UK’s first Muslim Cabinet Minister, used a speech at Leicester University to raise the alarm over the way in which prejudice against Muslims is now seen by many as normal. Warsi was criticized by many in the press for raising this issue in a forceful manner but the concerns she raised about the prejudice against Muslims on the basis of their faith became a talking point for many days and she won over the backing of many influential political and social figures, including Daily Telegraph’s Peter Oborne who has co-authored with James Jones a pamphlet called Muslims Under Siege, and produced and presented a Channel Four Film on Islamophobia. Baroness Warsi previously raised the issue of Islamophobia with Pope Benedict XVI during his visit to Britain in 2010, where she urged him to help “create a better understanding between Europe and its Muslim citizens”.

Islamic communities and other vulnerable groups have become targets of increased hostility since 11 September. Pakistanis in Britain have become the biggest victim of this bias and the areas where they live have been under attack from the racists and Islamophobes. Britain’s far in particular has switched from attacks on its traditional targets — blacks and Jews — to Muslims instead. They have organized large rallies against Muslims and have developed networks across Europe.

In February this year, Faith Matters, a non-profit group, developed and launched a system called MAMA (Measuring Anti-Muslim Attacks). The new service will produce statistical data on the nature of Islamophobia in Britain. Victims will be able to classify their experiences as one of six types: extreme violence, assault, damage of property, threats, abusive behavior, and propagation of anti-Muslim literature. Details will also emerge of where in the country Islamophobia is most prominent so authorities can concentrate their campaigns most effectively.

Fiyaz Mughal, founder director of Faith Matters, told The News/Jang: “The group which is meeting on Islamophobia and anti-Muslim attacks is looking at developing a work programme around further possible research that can be done in these areas. For far too long Muslim communities have said that they have been subject to these social issues and therefore the government wants to address these concerns. This is to be warmly welcome and this Government is making strides to counter hate crime in general and this is extremely positive.”

— Hat tip: Frontinus

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Greece: Pensioner’s Death Sparks Clashes in Athens

Violent protests have erupted in Athens following the public suicide of a 77-year-old retired man. A note he left behind accused the Greek government of impoverishing him with its debt crisis austerity measures, a message that resonated with demonstrators. Many are blaming the state for his death.

— Hat tip: Fjordman

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Greece: Almost a Fifth of Fuel Adulterated, Survey

(ANSAmed) — ATHENS, APRIL 5 — Almost a fifth of fuel on the Greek market is adulterated, according to checks carried out by a state body and reported by daily Kathimerini. The General Chemical State Laboratory, which operates under the auspices of the Finance Ministry, conducted almost 1,900 checks on fuel samples in 2010. According to a report published on Thursday, 17% of these samples were found to contain adulterated fuel. The most common way of tampering fuel was to mix heating oil, which is currently taxed less, with diesel. The state scientists found that a third of diesel samples had been adulterated. The Finance Ministry announced plans on Tuesday to raise the tax on heating fuel, mostly in an attempt to combat this practice and tax evasion. However, the move will raise heating fuel prices substantially as the ministry aims to tax diesel and heating oil equally. Currently the going rate for heating oil averages at 1.046 euros per liter, according to the Development Ministry’s price observatory, while the equivalent rate for diesel stands at 1.591 euros/l. Last October a liter of heating oil cost 90 cents, while a year ago it was around 65 cents.

— Hat tip: Fjordman

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Mother Earth and the Fatherland: Germany’s Far-Right Turns to Environmentalism

Environmentalists are often associated with the political left. But now neo-Nazis have discovered nature’s charms too. In addition to selling organic vegetables and publishing a magazine on the environment, Germany’s far-right NPD party has co-opted green campaign issues. Party members use it as a dubious means to make the NPD more socially acceptable.

— Hat tip: Fjordman

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Nobel Laureate Under Fire: Grass Says Campaign Against Him ‘Injurious’

German Nobel laureate Günter Grass has taken to the airwaves to address the raging controversy surrounding his new poem, which is sharply critical of Israel. Yet the debate continues to broaden, with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu joining the fray on Thursday.

— Hat tip: Fjordman

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Norway: Romanian Gang Targeting Elderly Women: Police

A gang of Romanian women is targeting elderly women across Norway in a series of often brutal jewellery robberies, with 20 such crimes reported in Oslo alone over the last two week, police have said.

— Hat tip: Fjordman

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Norway: Breivik: Mental Ward a Fate ‘Worse Than Death’

Anders Behring Breivik, who is set to go on trial on April 16th for killing 77 people in Norway last July, said in a letter published on Wednesday that being sentenced to psychiatric care would be the worst fate imaginable.

“To send a political activist to an asylum is more sadistic and more evil than killing him! It is a fate worse than death,” the 33-year-old right-wing extremist wrote in a 38-page letter, of which the Verdens Gang (VG) daily published a few extracts.

The letter aims to discredit, point-by-point, a report by two psychiatric experts, Synne Sørheim and Torgeir Husby, who concluded late last year that Behring Breivik was suffering from paranoid schizophrenia and was therefore criminally insane.

If the Oslo court judges reach the same conclusion at the end of his 10-week trial, the confessed killer will be sentenced to a locked psychiatric ward, possibly for life, rather than prison.

— Hat tip: Fjordman

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Norway: Man Beaten and Shoved Into Car Boot in Oslo

A number of witnesses have reported seeing a man being beaten up and bundled into the boot of a car in Oslo’s Grønland district on Thursday morning. Police said three men shoved the victim into the luggage compartment of a black Mercedes before driving away from the scene shortly after 7am, broadcaster NRK reports.

“We have good contact with the owner of the car, and our preliminary assessment is that this an internal dispute in a criminal environment,” Oslo police investigator Finn Belle told news agency NTB. He added that the owner of the vehicle is known to the police, though they have not yet found the victim of the abduction.

Police have spoken to several witnesses, one of whom reported shouting at the men to stop before they quickly closed the boot of the car and drove away. “I heard hysterical screams from the man who was kidnapped. I saw that they beat him and forced him into the boot,” one witness told NRK.

— Hat tip: Fjordman

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Kosovars Hurl Stones at Serbian Delegation

Stones were thrown at a Serbian delegation in Pristina on Wednesday as it headed to a meeting with Kosovo officials. “Two cars of the delegation were slightly damaged, while there were no injuries,” police spokesman Baki Kelani said in a statement. Belgrade, however, said one person was slightly injured.

— Hat tip: Fjordman

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From a Prison Cell to the Egyptian Presidency

Egypt’s Muslim Brotherhood decided to field its own candidate in presidential elections in May. Khairat el-Shater is considered pragmatic, influential and media-savvy. But which direction will he steer Egypt if he wins? Candidates from the political arm of the Muslim Brotherhood, the Freedom and Justice Party, won the largest share of seats in Egypt’s parliamentary elections in December. But the party’s program still remains vague, and the Muslim Brotherhood has not indicated which ideological direction it aims to steer the country in and what consequences it could have for Egypt’s political, social and culture future. Recent plans by the Muslim Brotherhood’s to field one of its own candidates in the country’s presidential election in May have come as a surprise to many as it reverses an earlier pledge by the group to stay out of the presidential race.

— Hat tip: Fjordman

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Presidential Candidate Cheered as He Registers for Election

The man chosen by Egypt’s Muslim Brotherhood to run for president in next month’s election has officially registered as a candidate. He has pledged to introduce sharia law to the country if elected. Khairat el-Shater, a leading figure in Egypt’s Muslim Brotherhood, formally registered himself as a candidate in the presidential election on Thursday amid cheers from supporters. “The people want Shater for president,” the group of about 2,000 supporters chanted. Shater, 61, a millionaire businessman and leading strategist in the Brotherhood, is now a seen as a leading contender for the presidency.

— Hat tip: Fjordman

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Two Tunisians Sentenced to 7 Years in Prison for Posting Caricatures of the Prophet Muhammed Online

The Court of First Instance of Mahdia sentenced two men to seven years of prison for charges relating to their posting of caricatures of the Prophet Muhammed on Facebook. The decision is subject to appeal.

According to an extract of the decision, which was posted online, Jabeur Mejri and Ghazi Beji were sentenced to five years in prison for “troubling the public” order and “transgressing morality” by posting the images of the Prophet and an additional two for “bringing harm to others” across “networks of public communications.” The two men were each levied a fine of 1,200 dinars as well.

Beji has fled to Europe to avoid facing charges while Mejri is currently in jail in Mahdia and studying his appeal with his legal representation.

Bochra Belhaj Hmida, lawyer, activist, and ex-president of the Tunisian Association of Democratic Women, is currently involved in an effort to rally civil society against the decision. She stated that she found the decision shocking, particularly, “when one considers the fact that those in Tunisia who committed terrorist acts are free and those two men are being prosecuted for publishing such insignificant things.”

According to Belhaj Hmida, the case was brought by a lawyer in Mahdia, who complained directly to the public prosecutor in the district.

Belhaj Hmida stated that she had informed Tunisian President Moncef Marzouki of the decision and that he requested her to prepare a dossier in which all the facts of the case are contained.

“He was very interested [in the case],” she said.

The Tunisian Secretary-General of the International Federation of Human Rights (IFHR), Khadira Cherif, also expressed outrage at the judgment.

“It’s scandalous that they’ve arrested these men. We are against [the decision],” stated Cherif.

She went on to say that the IFHR would soon make a formal announcement of their position on the affair.

While the public prosecutor of Mahdia was not available for comment, a clerk at the Court of First Instance in Mahdia, Nourredine Waja, gave his personal decision on the validity of the decision.

“Freedom of expression shouldn’t go that far. It’s a more serious affair than freedom of expression. It’s an attack on our religion,” said Waja.

Waja stated that all religions should be protected from such attacks and that the same standard would be upheld for images mocking holy symbols of Christians or Jews.

A spokesperson at the Ministry of Justice was unaware of the case when contacted by Tunisia Live, and no other representative of the ministry was available for comment at the time.

— Hat tip: RR

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Israel Has Few Options for Rocket Fire From Egypt

JERUSALEM (AP) — Israel’s prime minister on Thursday warned that Egypt’s Sinai desert is becoming a “terror zone” and vowed to strike at militants there after a rocket fired from the area hit a southern Israeli resort town.

The tough talk, however, was tempered by Israel’s desire not to disturb the already fraught relationship with Egypt. Israeli officials acknowledged their options are limited as the new government in Egypt — one of Israel’s few allies in the Arab world — tries to secure its sovereignty over the mountainous Sinai Peninsula.

Thursdays’ rocket attack, the first on Eilat in nearly two years, raised new Israeli concerns about militant activity in Sinai, particularly since the fall of Hosni Mubarak’s regime last year. Israeli security officials have repeatedly warned of a power vacuum in Egypt and say that Islamic militants, including al-Qaida, have stepped up their activity in Sinai and are now active on Israel’s doorstep.

“We are seeing now with Eilat that the Sinai Peninsula is turning into a terror zone,” Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said. “We will strike at those who attack us. There can be no immunity for terrorism; it must be fought and we are doing so.”

Israeli Defense Minister Ehud Barak threatened to “strike those responsible for firing (the Grad rocket) at Eilat.”

No injuries were reported in the overnight strike against Eilat, a normally tranquil Red Sea vacation spot that is set to welcome thousands of visitors this weekend for the Passover holiday.

There was no immediate claim of responsibility, and Egypt denied the attack was launched from its territory. “The chief of security of southern Sinai has already denied that the rocket was fired from the Sinai territory,” Egyptian Foreign Minister Mohammed Amr told reporters in Cairo.

But Israel military officials, citing intelligence, said all signs were that the rocket had been fired from Egypt. It would be the third such time since 2010 that militants in Egypt have fired rockets toward Israel.

Israel has warned of growing lawlessness in Sinai following the uprising last year that overthrew Mubarak’s regime…

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Rocket Fired From Egypt Hits Israeli City of Eilat

A Grad rocket has landed in the southern Israeli city of Eilat, but has caused no damage or injuries, Israeli security officials said.

District police chief Ron Gertner told Israeli radio the rocket had been fired from Egypt’s Sinai peninsula.

He said it struck a construction site close to a residential area shortly after midnight (21:00 GMT).

The blast took place as thousands congregated in the resort town for the Jewish holiday of Passover.

Rocket attacks from Egyptian soil are uncommon. Attacks on Eilat and the nearby Jordanian town of Aqaba in 2010 killed one person and injured another four.

Sinai unrest

Eilat Mayor Meir Yitzhak-Halevy told the Jerusalem Post that the city would function as normal despite the attack.

A wave of unrest has hit the restive Sinai peninsula recently.

Israel says militants have become active in the region since former Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak was overthrown in February 2011…

— Hat tip: Gaia

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Germany: Günter Grass Specializes in ‘Self-Righteousness’

In his poem about Israel and Iran published on Wednesday, German Nobel laureate Günter Grass expressed the fear that he would be labelled anti-Semitic for his anti-Israeli stance. Some commentators in Germany on Thursday say that the fear was more than justified.

— Hat tip: Fjordman

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Gulf: Efforts for Artistic Freedom, Islamists on the Attack

Storm at Bahrain Culture Festival, Kuwait show closed

(ANSAmed) — DUBAI, APRIL 5 — With the curtain coming down in the United Arab Emirates on a month of art characterised by great turn-out and participation, bitter controversy has exploded in neighbouring Bahrain, where the Culture Festival is currently being held, hot on the heels of another storm over artistic expression, this time in Kuwait.

Tension between intellectuals and conservatives in Bahrain exploded in the country’s Parliament on Tuesday with a severe attack by the Culture Minister, Sheikha Mai bin Mohammad al-Khalifa, on Islamist deputies, who in turned demanded the minister’s resignation.

Sheikha Mai and the spring culture festival , the oil-rich island’s most significant cultural event, of which she is a patron, had earlier been the target of criticism from Islamists for failing to cancel the event out of solidarity with victims in Syria, and later for incident during the festival itself.

The mosque located across the road from the building where the cultural events were being held, including a concert by Andrea Bocelli, is said to have been asked not to issue the call to prayer and not to use loud speakers so as not to disrupt the festival. In response, it was claimed that “youngsters were sent” to throw rocks and cause a nuisance at the event.

The Sheikha, a leading figure of some standing in the Gulf’s artistic and cultural landscape is well-known and liked for her efforts to promote culture in Bahrain and that of Arab countries in the region abroad. She is also no stranger to controversy. In 2007, before she became a minister, she clashed explosively with some of the country’s most conservative groups for staging a show by a Lebanese dance group, which was slammed as “obscene and depraved” on account of the sexual allusions in the choreography.

Amid the current rift between culture and tradition, however, intellectuals, writers and non-Islamist deputies have rushed to support the minister.

— Hat tip: Fjordman

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Qatar: 41 Bln Dollar Contract for Underground Lines Ready

(ANSAmed) — DOHA, APRIL 4 — The tenders for the contract regarding the first stage of the Doha underground project will be presented within a few weeks, Qatar Railways announced. The 41 billion dollar project includes a length of 85 km of underground line, divided in four different lines: red, green, blue and orange. More than 20,000 workers will be hired to carry out the project, one of the crucial infrastructures for the 2022 World Championship Football. In 2009 Deutsche Bahn and Qatari Diar Real Estate Investment Co. signed an agreement on the design of the underground. The first stage includes the construction of 45 underground stations. The small state of Qatar is a gas giant and is investing in infrastructure. The emirate is in fact spending 11 billion USD on the new international airport of Doha, 5.5 billion on a new port in Doha, which will be the deepest in the world, and another 20 billion on its road infrastructure.

— Hat tip: Fjordman

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Afghanistan Sees Rise in ‘Dancing Boys’ Exploitation

The 9-year-old boy with pale skin and big, piercing eyes captivated Mirzahan at first sight. “He is more handsome than anyone in the village,” the 22-year-old farmer said, explaining why he is grooming the boy as a sexual partner and companion. There was another important factor that made Waheed easy to take on as a bacha bazi, or a boy for pleasure: “He doesn’t have a father, so there is no one to stop this.” A growing number of Afghan children are being coerced into a life of sexual abuse.

— Hat tip: Fjordman

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NATO Withdrawal From Afghanistan Continues to Raise Doubts

NATO troops are due to hand over responsibility for preventing the Taliban’s advance in Afghanistan to local police and soldiers after 2014. Observers fear the country could descend into civil war

— Hat tip: Fjordman

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Japan: Fukushima Daiichi Site: Cesium-137 is 85 Times Greater Than at Chernobyl Accident

Japan’s former Ambassador to Switzerland, Mr. Mitsuhei Murata, was invited to speak at the Public Hearing of the Budgetary Committee of the House of Councilors on March 22, 2012, on the Fukushima nuclear power plants accident. Before the Committee, Ambassador Murata strongly stated that if the crippled building of reactor unit 4—with 1,535 fuel rods in the spent fuel pool 100 feet (30 meters) above the ground—collapses, not only will it cause a shutdown of all six reactors but will also affect the common spent fuel pool containing 6,375 fuel rods, located some 50 meters from reactor 4. In both cases the radioactive rods are not protected by a containment vessel; dangerously, they are open to the air. This would certainly cause a global catastrophe like we have never before experienced. He stressed that the responsibility of Japan to the rest of the world is immeasurable. Such a catastrophe would affect us all for centuries. Ambassador Murata informed us that the total numbers of the spent fuel rods at the Fukushima Daiichi site excluding the rods in the pressure vessel is 11,421

— Hat tip: JD

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Turkey’s Erdogan Makes Landmark Visit to China

Turkey seeks to develop ties with China. On the first visit of a Turkish prime minister in 27 years, Recep Tayyip Erdogan will also try to convince Chinese leaders to pressure Syria to put an end to violence. Turkey’s Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan is set to make a landmark visit to China on Sunday. His first stop is expected to be Xinjiang province in western China, which is dominated by the Uighur people. China’s crackdown on this predominantly Muslim minority during the riots in 2009 damaged bilateral relations between China and Turkey. Three years after the crisis, Erdogan’s visit is seen as a sign of stronger dialogue and growing confidence between the two countries.

— Hat tip: Fjordman

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Book: Civilization: The Six Ways the West Beat the Rest, By Niall Ferguson

Reviewer: Dr Ricardo Duchesne

Niall Ferguson is known in leftist circles as a ‘right winger,’ even a ‘super-conservative’. He has always resisted this characterization: ‘I’m just a doctrinaire liberal at heart. Quite why I keep getting called rightwing is only mysterious to me’. True; he is not a conservative. He is a liberal right winger, a neoconservative. Wikipedia’s entry on neoconservatism correctly includes him as one of its proponents. The Western world has moved so far left that a committed believer in the spread of individual rights, free markets, enlightenment values around the world, including feminism and gay rights is now seen as a conservative.

Ferguson handles immigration in the mannerism one is expected to in polite liberal society — lest one faces illiberal reprisals. He eulogizes over the fact that with mass migration ‘a single American civilization is finally emerging’ (p. 139) — a mixed-race species. Why ‘finally emerging’? Because both left and right liberals believe that the mass influx from Africa, Latin America and Asia represents the fulfillment of Western egalitarianism. The emergence of a ‘homogenized humanity’ (p. 198) fabricated through the ‘democratic’ blending of races, religions and cultures is the end of history. Ferguson thus notes that the number of mixed-race couples in the United Sates ‘quadrupled between 1990 and 2000’, and that ‘whites will probably be a minority of the US population’ (pp. 138—9).

These ideas have little in common with the same Burke that Ferguson otherwise defends against the singular and abstract citizen of the French Revolution. Calling for the merging of races, the dissolution of the age-old European ethnic character of the West, and the imposition of universal citizenry across the Islamic world, is a revolutionary idea drastically at odds with Burke’s emphasis on the particular customs and folkways of different cultures, and the ‘ancient liberties’ of Englishmen.

— Hat tip: Fjordman

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Massive Illegal Alien Election Fraud Detected in Florida

Many of you will remember that I told America on Fox News on Election Day 2010 that the Democrats planned to use illegal alien voters to save themselves from the Tea Party revolution. We believe we saw that with illegal alien voters saving Harry Reid in Nevada.

Now we have more evidence and we need you to take swift action to make this count.

Florida now joins the states of Georgia and Colorado where we have solid evidence of massive illegal alien voter registration and stolen American votes in elections.

Take the following important steps.

Step 1: Watch, rate, and comment on this copy of the video. Each time you watch it and comment you will help the video make it other people…

— Hat tip: JD

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Sarkozy: EU Needs to Protect Itself

Or walls will be built, warns French president

(ANSAmed) — PARIS, APRIL 5 — “A society without frontiers is a society with no respect. A country without borders is a country without an identity. A continent without frontiers is a continent which will have to raise walls to protect itself. Help me to construct a strong France”. These are some of the words contained in the letter which the French President Nicolas Sarkozy, running for re-election to the Élysée Palace on April 22 and May 6, will send out to the French people.

Contained in the missive which is being handed out at the press conference attended by Sarkozy in Paris, the current President points out that “in democracy there’s nothing better than the love for our country” The letter, which will be printed in six million copies and delivered throughout the whole of France is made up of thirty-four pages divided into small chapters. Among the priorities set out by Sarkozy is the need to “live in security in an open world”, but also taking a zero-tolerance stance against the “ideologies of hate”. The latter being a clear reference to the recent tragedy in Toulouse and Montauban carried out by the young Islamic terrorist Mohammed Merah. With regards to Europe instead, Sarkozy adds, “it’s an open continent but at the same time it cannot become a colander”.

— Hat tip: Fjordman

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What’s Missing From This Easter Message?

The Episcopal Church has sent me a copy of the annual Easter Message from Presiding Bishop Katherine Jefferts Schori. It’s 383 words long, in eight paragraphs.

Not once in this message has the Presiding Bishop seen fit to mention the name of Jesus Christ.

[…]

I’m going to quote Paragraph 6 in its entirety, verbatim—otherwise you might accuse me of having made it up as a satire. Here it is.

“As we began Lent, I asked you to think about the Millenium Development Goals and our work in Lent as a re-focusing of our lives. I’m delighted to be able to tell you that the UN report this last year has shown some significant accomplishment in a couple of those goals, particularly in terms of lowering the rate of the worst poverty, and in achieving better access to drinking water and better access to primary education. We actually might reach those goals by 2015. That leaves a number of other goals as well as what moves beyond the goals to full access for all people to abundant life.”

Does this tell us why the bishop doesn’t mention Jesus? Who needs Jesus Christ? We’ve got the UN and its Millenium Development Goals!

— Hat tip: JD

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Life on Jupiter Moon Europa May Hide in Depths to Survive

Considered one of the best potential sources for extraterrestrial life in the solar system, Jupiter’s moon Europa may host life in the ocean deep beneath the moon’s icy crust.

Some organisms could even travel to Europa’s surface through cracks and instabilities in the crust, some researchers speculate. But radiation from Jupiter’s magnetosphere constantly bombards the moon and could annihilate life at shallow depths, making it difficult to detect with an orbiter or lander.

So scientists are seeking to determine experimentally just how deep organic life on Europa needs to hide in order to avoid being destroyed.

— Hat tip: Fjordman

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Scientists Closing in on Black Hole at Center of Our Galaxy

Though scientists have suspected for a while that a giant black hole lurks at the center of our galaxy, they still can’t say for sure it’s the explanation for the strange behavior observed there. Now researchers are closer than ever to being able to image this region and probe the physics at work — potentially shedding light on the great conflict between the theories of general relativity and quantum mechanics.

At the heart of the Milky Way, astronomers see some wacky things. For example, about a dozen stars seem to be orbiting some invisible object. One star has been found to make a 16-year orbit around the unseen thing, moving at the hard-to-imagine speed of about 3,000 miles (5,000 kilometers) a second. By comparison, the sun moves through space at a comparatively glacial 137 miles (220 kilometers) a second.

Based on the laws of motion, these dozen stars’ orbits should be caused by the gravitational pull of some massive object in the center of the galaxy. Yet telescopes observe nothing there.

“The really important thing is that all the orbits have a common focus,” astrophysicist Mark Reidof the Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics said during the recently concluded April 2012 meeting of the American Physical Society.”There’s one point on the sky, and there’s nothing you can see on images at this position.”

— Hat tip: Fjordman

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	Financial Crisis
»	‘This is a Dignified End Before I Have to Start Scrounging Food From the Trash’: Desperate Man, 77, Shoots Himself Dead Outside Greek Parliament During Rush Hour
	USA
»	County Moves to Dismiss Lawsuit Over Public Notice in Mosque Case
»	Muslim Brotherhood Officials Aim to Promote Moderate Image in Washington Visit
»	Muslim Voters Could Swing Election, Report Finds
»	Obama’s Timidity Risks the World’s Security
»	Respect the Hoodie and the Headscarf
»	Stakelbeck on Terror Show: The Battle for Our Minds
»	Students Angry Over Pricey Courses Pepper-Sprayed
»	UCLA Honors Sharia Apologist Khaled Abou El Fadl
	Europe and the EU
»	British ‘Extremists Caught Carrying Al Qaeda Manual 44 Ways to Support Jihad Were Fundraising for Somali Terrorists’
»	France Arrests 10 Suspected Islamists in Fresh Raids
»	French Police Swoop on More Suspected Islamists
»	Germany: Hitler: A Short Biography [Book Review]
»	Germany: We’re Good Europeans Yet They All Hate Us
»	Norway Killer — ‘Insane’ Diagnosis “Worse Than Death”
»	UK: ‘Child Sex Victims Were Prostitutes With Enough Business Acumen to Win the Apprentice’, Man at Centre of Sex Gang Trial Tells Court
»	UK: British Muslims Transcending Differences
»	UK: Blackburn Woman Jailed for Posing as PC on Facebook
»	UK: Croydon Mosque Unveils Extension Plans for London Road Site
»	UK: Conservatives Will Not Win Election Without More Focus on Minority Voters, Says Baroness Warsi
»	UK: George’s Tongue-Lashing: Third Wife (And Mother of His New Baby) Says They’re Still Wed, Then His Mother-in-Law Warns He’ll Only Marry Someone Else Next Year
»	UK: Leaders Who Lead to Surrender
»	UK: No One Saw it Coming
»	UK: Why the Odds Are Against a Tory Majority
	Israel and the Palestinians
»	We Salute Sheikh Yousuf Al-Qaradawi
	Middle East
»	In the Shadow of the Sword by Tom Holland: Review
»	Iran: Grand Ayatollah Nour: “Islamic Rules Are Based on Fairness”
	South Asia
»	India: Mamata Doles Out Sops to Muslims
»	India: Muslims Hail HC Ruling
»	Malaysia: Don’t Cross Religious Boundary: Raja Nazrin
»	Muslims in Kazakhstan Indignant at Vodka Makers Inclusion of “Allah” On Liquor Bottles
	Far East
»	Can China Makes Its Cuisine — and Finance — Friendly to Muslims?
	Australia — Pacific
»	Police Say Bendigo Mother Raped 14 Times
	Sub-Saharan Africa
»	Ghana: NDC Advised to Show Respect to Muslims and the Islamic Religion
»	Somalia Theatre Bombing Kills Top Sports Officials

‘This is a Dignified End Before I Have to Start Scrounging Food From the Trash’: Desperate Man, 77, Shoots Himself Dead Outside Greek Parliament During Rush Hour

A cash-strapped Greek pensioner shot and killed himself outside parliament in Athens today after saying he refused to scrounge for food in the rubbish.

The public suicide by the 77-year-old retired pharmacist quickly triggered an outpouring of sympathy in a country where one in five is jobless and a sense of national humiliation has accompanied successive rounds of salary and pension cuts.

After becoming desperate at his financial plight, the Greek pensioner is said to have put a handgun to his head in the busy central Athens square before declaring, ‘So I won’t leave debts for my children’, and pulling the trigger.

Just hours after the death, an impromptu shrine with candles, flowers and hand-written notes protesting the crisis sprung up in the central Syntagma square where the suicide occurred. Dozens of bystanders gathered to pay their respects.

One note nailed to a tree said ‘Enough is enough’, while another asked ‘Who will be the next victim?’.

The ‘Indignant’ protesters, who have turned out in the thousands against austerity measures imposed by foreign lenders in exchange for bailout loans, said they planned a march later on Wednesday.

‘This is a human tragedy,’ government spokesman Pantelis Kapsis said as politicians in parliament decried the death.

Acts of suicide have been instrumental in the past in provoking popular protest. A Tunisian vegetable seller triggered the start of the so-called ‘Arab Spring’ by setting himself on fire in December 2010.

‘When dignified people like him are brought to this state, somebody must answer for it.’

Witnesses said the man put a gun to his head and pulled the trigger after yelling out: ‘I have debts, I can’t stand this anymore.’

Another passerby told Greek television the man said ‘I don’t want to leave my debts to my children.’

A suicide note found in his coat pocket blamed politicians and financial troubles for driving him to take his life, police said.

The government had ‘annihilated any hope for my survival and I could not get any justice. I cannot find any other form of struggle except a dignified end before I have to start scrounging for food from the trash”,’ the note said.

The president of the pharmacists’ union in the broader Attica region, Costas Lourantos, said he recalled meeting the man several years ago and was struck by his dignified manner.

‘When dignified people like him are brought to this state, somebody must answer for it,’ said Lourantos.

‘There is a moral instigator to this crime — which is the government that has brought people to such despair.’

Shortly after news of the man’s death, Lourantos says he received an anonymous call from a pharmacist saying she would be next to follow suit.

‘I am now frantically looking to find out who it was so we can stop her,’ Lourantos said.

The busy square, through which thousands pass by during the morning commute hours when the suicide occurred, was cordoned off while the body was taken away.

Greece is stumbling through its worst post-World War Two economic crisis as austerity measures demanded by foreign lenders in exchange for financial aid push the country into its fifth year of recession.

Suicide rates in Greece have dramatically increased in the past three years as the country struggles to cope with economic hardship.

According to the Greek Ministry of Citizen Protection, suicides increased by 22.5 per cent to 622 in 2010.

The government last year said suicides had increased 40 percent over the previous two years as the worsening crisis drives ordinary Greeks to despair.

With financial hardship fast becoming an unavoidable facet of life for many, some Greeks said the pharmacist’s public suicide would not be the last.

‘This is the point to which they’ve brought us. Do they really expect a pensioner to live on 300 euros?’ asked 54-year old Maria Parashou, who rushed to the square to pay her respects after reading about the suicide.

‘They’ve cut our salaries, they’ve humiliated us. I have one daughter who is unemployed and my husband has lost half of his income, but I won’t allow myself to lose hope.’

— Hat tip: Gaia

[Return to headlines]

County Moves to Dismiss Lawsuit Over Public Notice in Mosque Case

Mosque case set for April 25-26

MURFREESBORO — The plaintiffs accusing the Rutherford County government of failing to provide sufficient public notice before approving a mosque will first have to defend a motion to dismiss their case. The county attorney’s office recently filed a motion asking Chancellor Robert Corlew III to make a summary judgment to end the case rather than to proceed with an open meeting trial scheduled for April 25 and 26. Corlew will hear arguments about whether to proceed with the trial during a hearing scheduled at 1 p.m. April 19. The county contends that it provided sufficient public meeting notice through legal advertising and government web posting before the county Regional Planning Commission approved plans on May 24, 2010, for the Islamic Center of Murfreesboro to build a bigger place of worship of 52,960 of square feet.

“This court, in its order denying the temporary injunction, has already ruled that Islam is a religion,” the county’s most recent motion states. “Pursuant to the First Amendment of the United States Constitution, Article I & 3 of the Tennessee Constitution, and the Tennessee Religious Freedom Act, Rutherford County could not provide greater notice to the public based on the Islamic faith, or alleged affiliations, of applicant than is typically provided to any other applicant, religious and unreligious alike. Hence, since the typical notice provided by Rutherford County is, as a matter of law, sufficient, notice in this case was sufficient.”

In a case dating back to September 2010, Corlew so far has ruled the plaintiffs cannot stop the ICM from building a bigger place of worship, and that the congregation has property rights to build a new mosque on Veals Road off Bradyville Pike southeast of Murfreesboro city limits. Corlew, though, has questioned the county’s advertisement in The Murfreesboro Post was sufficient. Plaintiffs’ attorney Joe Brandon of Murfreesboro contends that the county’s motion to dismiss the case has no merit. “We are filing a response in the next couple of days to the county’s motion for summary judgment,” Brandon said during a Tuesday phone interview. “We will be able to show in our response fraud and deceit upon the court. We in no capacity believe the court will grant the county’s motion. The chancellor has already told these plaintiffs that they are entitled to their day in court and we expect our day in court.”

The ICM continues to build its new home to replace a small one on the back side of an office at 862 Middle Tennessee Blvd.

Phase I is supposed to be about 12,000 square feet, and the builder reported last fall he expected it to be done by this summer.

– Scott Broden, 615-278-5158

— Hat tip: JP

[Return to headlines]

Muslim Brotherhood Officials Aim to Promote Moderate Image in Washington Visit

Members of Egypt’s Muslim Brotherhood began a week-long charm offensive in Washington on Tuesday, meeting with White House officials, policy experts and others to counter persistent fears about the group’s emergence as the country’s most powerful political force. The revolution that ousted Hosni Mubarak has rapidly transformed the Brotherhood from an opposition group that had been formally banned into a political juggernaut controlling nearly half the seats in Egypt’s newly elected parliament. With its rise, however, have come concerns from Egypt’s secularists as well as U.S. officials that the Islamist group could remake the country, threatening the rights of women and religious minorities. Such fears were only exacerbated by the Brotherhood’s recent decision to field a candidate in upcoming presidential elections, despite previous pledges that it would not do so.

In meeting with U.S. officials, Brotherhood representatives were expected to depict the organization as a moderate and socially conscious movement pursuing power in the interest of Egyptians at large. “We represent a moderate, centrist Muslim viewpoint. The priorities for us are mainly economic, political — preserving the revolution ideals of social justice, education, security for the people,” Sondos Asem, a member of the delegation, said Tuesday in an interview with reporters and editors of The Washington Post.

[…]

— Hat tip: JP

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Muslim Voters Could Swing Election, Report Finds

(CNN) — The number of Muslims in the United States is tiny — less than one in 100 Americans — but their votes could sway the results of the presidential election in November, a new study says. That’s because they are concentrated in a number of key swing states, says Farid Senzai, the author of the report. Take Florida, for example, the state that famously swung the 2000 presidential election for George W. Bush over Al Gore. Bush won by 537 votes — while a get-out-the-vote phone bank contacted 23,000 Muslims in one day during elections in 2008 and 2010, the report says. Nauman Abbasi — the head of Emerge USA, which ran the phone bank — says efforts like his will increase Muslim voter turnout. There are about 1.2 million registered Muslim voters in the United States, according to the study, “Engaging American Muslims.” More religious Muslims and those more involved in their mosques are more likely to vote, it found. The biggest Muslim populations are in New York and California, which are unlikely to be battleground states in November. But the next largest numbers of Muslim voters are found in Pennsylvania, Michigan and Virginia, all of which could be key battlegrounds between President Barack Obama and his Republican opponent.

Florida and Ohio, two states that have been decided by razor-thin margins in recent years, also have enough Muslim voters to make a difference to the final result, the report says.

Of course, many other, larger constituencies, from Hispanics to women to the unemployed to political independents, could also claim to be the key ingredient in a winning coalition.

And Muslim voters have much the same concerns as the population at large, with domestic issues and the economy dominating, the study says. Most Muslims voted for Bush in 2000, Democratic Sen. John Kerry in 2004 and Obama in 2008. They are more likely than the population as a whole to approve of Obama’s performance now, the study found. The report comes from the Institute for Social Policy and Understanding, a Washington think tank focusing on Muslim issues. It is based largely on earlier data from sources including Gallup, Zogby International and the Pew Research Center.

— Hat tip: JP

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Obama’s Timidity Risks the World’s Security

by John Bolton

Barack Obama’s Stakhanovite efforts to transform America’s economy and society into something akin to European-style social democracy are undergoing considerable analysis and debate, especially as the 2012 campaign steams towards November. Most presidential re-election contests are referenda on the incumbent, and this year will be no exception, despite Obama’s obvious strategy to focus on almost anything but his actual record. His “spread the wealth around” slogan, industrial policy that showers favourites with subsidies and loan guarantees, turning major car manufacturers over to union ownership, and taxing the rich as if they were miscreants, all resemble the paradigm of most current or aspiring European Union members.

But Obama’s driving ideology, whether he wins or loses on November 6, has already had enormous implications for the US role in the world and the very structure of the international order. By reducing not only the visibility of America’s global presence, but also its military capabilities, and by shifting the federal budget even further from national security to social welfare programmes, Obama has also sought to transform the United States into Europe. Of course, the obvious question is what happens once Washington’s protective shield is diminished to the point of feebleness. It was one thing for European and other industrial democracies to be free riders under the sheltering US nuclear umbrella, its strong naval forces, and its essentially global force projection capabilities. But when the only superpower doffs its cape and Lycra uniform, packs them up in the telephone booth, and becomes just another mild-mannered suit, who will then shield those free riders, not to mention a much weakened United States itself?

Obama sees American strength as provocative. He believes its nuclear arsenal is excessive, and hence worthy of reduction, without fearing in any way that shredding the nuclear deterrent might actually have profoundly deleterious consequences not only on US national security, but on security and stability in the world as a whole. He sees his presidency causing “the tide of war” to recede in Iraq, Afghanistan and elsewhere, just as his tenure will mark “the moment when the rise of the oceans began to slow”. Dramatic reductions in military budgets, and the consequent devastating reductions in force levels, capabilities and weapons systems, apparently do not trouble him even slightly.

[…]

— Hat tip: JP

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Respect the Hoodie and the Headscarf

by Hesham Hassaballa

In the Name of the Compassionate and Infinitely Merciful Precious Beloved

It is quite easy to get overwhelmed by your personal predicaments and problems, whether on an individual or communal basis. As a Muslim community, there are almost daily reports of attacks on mosques, a proliferation of anti-Islam seminars and speakers, and most recently, the horrible news about the beating death of an Iraqi-Muslim woman in her own home. It is quite easy to think that no other minority group has got it this bad. Then I heard about the brutal killing of Trayvon Martin by a neighborhood watch captain. Even though Shaima Al Awadi’s death occurred after Martin’s, in the aftermath of the Martin murder, I came to realize the extent to which young black males across our country are being advised on how to conduct themselves to avoid being killed. It truly took me aback.

The easy response would be to say, “But for the grace of God, there go I,” and move on and not think about it. Yes, indeed, that would be easy to do. But, it wouldn’t be the right thing to do. The correct response to these murders is to say: “I am Trayvon Martin;” “I am Shaima Al Awadi.” The correct response would be to say: “Trayvon Martin is my son,” and “Shaima Al Awadi is my sister.” Indeed, the response to Trayvon’s killing has been nationwide outrage, condemnation, and protest. Sadly, the response to Mrs. Alawadi’s equally tragic murder has been deafening silence. These are not just personal tragedies of individual families and communities in opposite ends of our country. Both murders should be in the forefront of our nation’s collective mind, for both may very well be the result of hatred and division.

Yes, the racism and hatred against African-Americans has predated that of American Muslims by centuries. In fact, many of those African Americans to whom such hatred and racism were directed were themselves Muslim. Yes, those American Muslims who are immigrants or children of immigrants, like me, are very much indebted to scores of African-Americans who stood up and shed their blood on the streets of this country to fight for their civil rights. That is why I say, “I am Trayvon Martin.” And, given that my late daughter would have turned 16 this year, I say, “Trayvon Martin is my son,” as well. But, America needs to also see that Shaima Al Awadi is her sister; Shaima Al Awadi is her daughter; Shaima Al Awadi is her mother. If hatred is ultimately the cause of her death, it is no less tragic, no less outrageous, and no less horrific. There is too much at stake for us to continue to allow such hatred to gnaw at our fabric as a nation and a people. There is too much at stake for us to let this sort of hatred to continue unabated.

Already, people across the nation are wearing “hoodies,” the same type of hooded sweatshirt that young Trayvon wore the night he was killed. I wish that people would also wear a headscarf as well: It is also a head covering, and it also may have contributed to the death of Shaima Al Awadi. In both cases, the investigations are ongoing. In both cases, evidence is there that indicates an underlying racial, ethnic, or even religious hatred that motivated the crimes. And if it is confirmed that hatred was the motive in both cases, then the entire nation should be offended. Just as we should all be saying, “I am Trayvon Martin and Shaima Al Awadi,” we must start to say and begin to work for: “No more Trayvon Martins and no more Shaima Al Awadis.” The future of our harmony as a people is at stake.

— Hat tip: JP

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Stakelbeck on Terror Show: The Battle for Our Minds

On this week’s episode of the Stakelbeck on Terror show, author Michael Widlanski joins us to discuss his new book, Battle For Our Minds: Western Elites and the Terror Threat.

Widlanski says our government decision makers, the mainstream media and even our intelligence community are misleading the American people about the nature of the Islamic jihadist threat.

He descibes how they’re doing it, why they’re doing it and why it is so dangerous for America’s national security.

Click the link above to watch.

— Hat tip: Erick Stakelbeck

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Students Angry Over Pricey Courses Pepper-Sprayed

“Police at a California college pepper-sprayed as many as 30 demonstrators after students angry over a plan to offer high-priced courses tried to push their way into a trustees meeting, authorities said.

“Let us in, let us in,” protesters shouted on video posted online Tuesday. “No cuts, no fees, education should be free.”

Santa Monica College students were angry because only a handful were allowed into the meeting and, when their request to move the meeting to a larger venue was denied, they began to enter the room, said David Steinman, an environmental advocate.”

[Note from Egghead: Note that the students are using the Obama re-election talking point that higher education should be free — most especially for minorities and illegals!]

— Hat tip: Egghead

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UCLA Honors Sharia Apologist Khaled Abou El Fadl

by Cinnamon Stillwell and Judith Greblya

Academic self-congratulation reached new heights at the University of California, Los Angeles on March 21, 2012, with “An Event Honoring Professor Khaled Abou El Fadl.” Abou El Fadl-Omar and Azmeralda Alfi Distinguished Professor in Islamic Law and chair of the Islamic Studies Interdepartmental Program at UCLA-was feted by the UCLA Center for Near Eastern Studies, the UCLA School of Law Journal of Near Eastern and Islamic Law, the UCLA School of Law Muslim Law Students Association, and the UCLA School of Law Critical Race Studies Program. Eighty students, professors, and community members gathered to commemorate “the world’s leading authority on Islamic law and Islam, and the prominent scholar in the field of human rights,” according to the event description. In reality, Fadl is an apologist for radical Islam who routinely denies valid concerns over the human rights abuses inherent to Sharia (Islamic) law while charging its critics with “Islamophobia.”

[…]

— Hat tip: JP

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British ‘Extremists Caught Carrying Al Qaeda Manual 44 Ways to Support Jihad Were Fundraising for Somali Terrorists’

Two mean appeared at Westminster Magistrates court yesterday on charges relating to trying to fund terror groups in Somalia.

Cops swooped on the London home of father-of-three Mohammed Shabir Ali, 24, and his twin brother, Mohammed Shafiq Ali, where they discovered a copy of ‘44 Ways to Support Jihad’ by the radical cleric Anwar al-Awlaki.

The pair stand accused of raising cash in the UK to send to their brother Mohammed Shamim who it is believed travelled to Somalia in 2008 to carry out martyrdom atrocities.

Neither brother indicated pleas to the charges of possessing an article for use in terrorism and intending to assist another to commit acts of terrorism between August 20th, 2008, and June 21st last year.

The identical twins, both with shaven heads and small goatee beards, appeared at separate hearings at Westminster Magistrates court.

They were arrested last June when police seized the materials from their home in Stepney, but both were released without charge.

Counter terrorism cops, who had been examining the material, swooped at their home two days ago and arrested them.

Prosecutor Louise Gray said that they believed Ali and his brother had been discussing sending cash to their brother in Somalia that they raised through a ‘Dawah’ religious stall.

During Shabir Ali’s hearing she said that in 2008 Mohammed Shamim travelled with Tufaul Ahmed and Mohammad Jahangit to the Emirates, Nairobi and then Dubai where it is feared they travelled on to Somalia. Their return tickets have never been used.’

Ms Gray said: ‘It is believed he has gone to Somalia and is participating with insurgents out there.’

Unemployed Shabir Ali, who has three children — aged four, two and 18 months and lives with his wife and his mother, spoke only to confirm his name and address. He was supported at court by his wife and other family members, one of whom saluted him as he walked in.

Shafik Ali, who spoke only to confirm his name, address and date of birth, and was supported at court by his pregnant wife and her friend, along with two other supporters.

Mr Mian, who represents both men, argued that, when deciding on bail, the Judge should “stand back from the hysteria surrounding the phrase ‘terrorism’.

He said Shafik’s 19-year-old wife is two and a half months pregnant and need of his support as she has none from her own family.

He also said his clients were not accused of committing any further offences after they were released without charge followin the arrests in June.

But District Judge Caroline Tubbs remanded the pair in custody to appear at the Old Bailey on 20 April.

A Scotland Yard spokesman confirmed a 21 year old woman, and a 30 year old man remain in custody in relation to the offences and have not yet been charged.

— Hat tip: MS

[Return to headlines]

France Arrests 10 Suspected Islamists in Fresh Raids

Paris (CNN) — Ten suspected Islamists were arrested in fresh raids across France on Wednesday morning as the country widens a clampdown on suspected extremists in the wake of a deadly shooting spree last month, the interior ministry said.

Meanwhile, 13 alleged radicals arrested Friday were placed under formal investigation for “criminal conspiracy in connection with a terrorist enterprise,” and possession and transportation of weapons, officials said.

The formal warning is a point in the French legal system that comes after an arrest and before formal charges are filed.

Nine of the 13 have been jailed, including Forsane Alizza leader Mohamed Achamlane.

The other four were released Tuesday but remain “under judicial control,” according to Achamlane’s lawyer Philippe Missamou.

On Tuesday, a French prosecutor said the detained radical Muslims were preparing for holy war.

Forsane Alizza and Achamlane were “calling for the establishment of an Islamic caliphate in France and calling for the implementation of Sharia law and inciting Muslims in France to unite for the preparation of a civil war,” Paris prosecutor Francois Molins said.

The group was reportedly linked to Mohammed Merah, who was accused of killing seven people in the south of France in March before police killed him after a 32-hour siege of his apartment in the southwestern city of Toulouse.

Molins said the investigation into Forsane Alizza began in October 2011, and the arrests were not connected to Merah’s rampage.

Achamlane “united around him a number of individuals who for several months had undergone physical training and received religious indoctrination in order to commit violent acts on French territory,” Molins told reporters Tuesday.

The radical leader was “known for his anti-Semitic stance and condemned for publicly violating French penal code,” the prosecutor said.

Members of his group held “discussions during a meeting held in Lyon in September 2011 about a plan to kidnap a judge based in Lyon,” he said.

But a lawyer for Achamlane rejected the accusations against his client, saying the arrests were related to France’s upcoming presidential election.

“These are statements that are not supported by any material facts. This affair is purely electioneering and politically motivated, that is all,” Philippe Missamou said on CNN affiliate BFM-TV.

Another of his lawyers, Benoit Poquet, released a statement denying any kidnapping plot.

Presidential contender Francois Hollande was asked by French radio station RTL Wednesday if he felt the rash of arrests was linked to the upcoming elections but declined to be drawn on the matter.

The Socialist candidate expressed some surprise, however, that the arrests were being carried out now, after the terror attack by Merah.

“I’m not questioning at all what is being done,” Hollande told RTL. “I’m simply saying that we should, or could, perhaps have done more sooner.”

The interior ministry announced Monday it had deported two Muslims and plans to expel three more.

A statement by Interior Minister Claude Gueant said the moves were part of “an acceleration of the deportation procedures of foreign Islamic radicals.”

An Islamic militant from Algeria who was involved in 1994 attacks in Marrakech, Morocco, was sent to his home country Monday, the statement said. In addition, a Malian imam was returned to his home country for sermons that promoted anti-Semitism and rejection of the West, it said.

Deportation proceedings also have started or are planned against three others: an imam of Saudi nationality, a militant Islamist from Tunisia and an imam from Turkey, the statement said.

Weapons ‘easily’ available in France It cited provisions in the law governing aliens and political asylum, saying the statutes “allow this type of decision with regards to the ‘urgent need for state security or public safety’ or ‘conduct likely to harm the fundamental interests of the state.’“

According to the statement, other expulsions will occur soon.

French President Nicolas Sarkozy, who is running for re-election, said the raids were intended to “deny the entry of certain people to France” who did not share the country’s values.

“It’s not just linked to Toulouse. It’s all over the country. It’s in connection with a form of radical Islam, and it’s in agreement with the law,” he said.

Sarkozy suggested then that more raids would follow, saying, “There will be other operations that will continue and that will allow us to expel from our national territory a certain number of people who have no reason to be here.”

— Hat tip: Nick

[Return to headlines]

French Police Swoop on More Suspected Islamists

PARIS (Reuters) — Police arrested 10 suspected Islamist militants in dawn raids across France on Wednesday after a shooting spree by an al Qaeda-inspired gunman prompted President Nicolas Sarkozy to order a security clampdown, just ahead of an April 22 election.

The DCRI domestic intelligence service, supported by elite police commandos, carried out arrests in the southern cities of Marseille and Valence, two smaller towns in the southwest, and in the northeastern town of Roubaix, a police source said.

Interior Minister Claude Gueant pledged there would be no respite in France’s pursuit of militants.

“The pressure on radical Islam and the threats it represents will not stop,” he said.

The raids, which followed Friday’s arrest of 19 suspects, came 13 days after police snipers shot dead 23-year-old gunman Mohamed Merah, who had killed three Jewish school children, a rabbi and three soldiers in a spate of attacks around Toulouse.

“Those arrested have a similar profile to Mohamed Merah,” a local police source said. “They are isolated individuals who are self-radicalized.”

He said the suspects were tracked on Islamist forums expressing extreme views and were preparing to travel to areas including Afghanistan, Pakistan and the Sahel belt of West Africa to wage jihad (holy war). Some of those arrested had already visited these areas, the source said.

Sarkozy, who faces an uphill task to win re-election in an April-May two-round vote, has vowed to root out any form of militancy following Merah’s killing spree.

Television channels showed images of the early morning raids, with police taking suspects away handcuffed and with their faces covered. Officials also confiscated bags.

Some French media had been tipped off about the raids and police did not cordon off the areas ensuring mass coverage.

Sarkozy Rising

The Toulouse killings lifted domestic security up the political agenda 2-1/2 weeks before the April 22 first-round vote and may have improved Sarkozy’s odds against Socialist Francois Hollande, who he trails in polls for the May 6 runoff.

Sarkozy, a former hardline interior minister, has been accused by some opponents of capitalizing on the Islamist threat for electoral purposes even though only 20 percent of voters consider it their main concern, surveys show.

Centrist election candidate Francois Bayrou accused the government of using the situation for its own political ends.

“It’s fine that the state fulfills its responsibility by controlling and banning gatherings or suspected groups,” he told i-Tele television. “But I find it surprising that it takes place in front of journalists who have been asked to come.”

Speaking on RTL radio, Hollande declined to be drawn on whether he thought the raids were politically driven.

“If there are suspicions and risks, then they must be acted upon,” Hollande said. “But why do it after a terrorist act? I am not questioning what is being done, but maybe we could have done more before,” he said.

Thirteen of the 19 people arrested last Friday are alleged to have links to radical French Islamist group Forsane Alizza (Knights of Pride). They are being investigated on suspicion of terrorism, the Paris public prosecutor said on Tuesday.

Wednesday’s raids were not directly linked to either those arrests or the Merah attacks, the source said.

— Hat tip: Nick

[Return to headlines]

Germany: Hitler: A Short Biography [Book Review]

by Richard J Evans

It’s hard to think why a publishing house that once had a respected history list agreed to produce this travesty of a biography.

Hitler: a Short Biography

A N Wilson

Harper Press, 224pp, £7.99

Following the success of his Booker Prize-longlisted novel Winnie and Wolf, a fictional account of the relationship between Hitler and the British-born wife of Siegfried Wagner, the composer’s son, A N Wilson has decided to publish a short biography of the German dictator. As writers of historical fiction do, he read a handful of English-language biographies and histories for his novel (he doesn’t appear to understand German) but he has added little or no further reading for this biography. What might do as background research for a novel won’t do as preparation for a serious work of history. Nor does he seem to have thought very hard or taken much care over what little reading he has done.

[…]

It’s hard to think why a publishing house that once had a respected history list agreed to produce this travesty of a biography. Perhaps the combination of a well-known author and a marketable subject was too tempting for cynical executives to resist. Novelists (notably Mann) and literary scholars (such as J P Stern) have sometimes managed to use a novel angle of approach to say something new and provocative about Hitler, the Nazis and the German people. However, there is no evidence of that here, neither in the stale, unoriginal material, nor in the banal and cliché-ridden historical judgements, nor in the lame, tired narrative style; just evidence of the repellent arrogance of a man who thinks that because he’s a celebrated novelist, he can write a book about Hitler that people should read, even though he’s put very little work into writing it and even less thought.

Richard J Evans is the author of “The Third Reich at War” (Penguin, £12.99)

— Hat tip: JP

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Germany: We’re Good Europeans Yet They All Hate Us

by Christopher Caldwell

Once again, Europe has a country at its centre that is too big for its neighbours. Merely by keeping on its best behaviour, Germany has managed to reawaken the historic “German problem”. It has succeeded its way into a crisis. Ever since Greece’s finances became a matter of public concern just over two years ago, Germany has been regaining its status as the leading power in Europe. It subjected itself almost a decade ago to a painful reform of its welfare state and a freeze in real wages that has made it as competitive an exporter as any country in the world, including China.

[…]

— Hat tip: JP

[Return to headlines]

Norway Killer — ‘Insane’ Diagnosis “Worse Than Death”

OSLO (Reuters) — A far-right militant who killed 77 people in Norway last year will use his trial to challenge a diagnosis that he is criminally insane, something that would be “worse than death”, excerpts of a letter he wrote showed on Wednesday.

The trial of Anders Behring Breivik, who gunned down 69 at a Labour Party youth camp after detonating a car bomb in central Oslo that killed eight, starts in Oslo on April 16.

In November two court-appointed psychiatrists deemed the 33-year-old was psychotic and paranoid schizophrenic at the time of the attacks, which would normally mean he could not be sentenced to prison.

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Global Emerging Markets: A Promising FutureRequest FREE CopyIn a 38-page letter he wrote in jail and sent to various Norwegian media — of which extracts were published in the daily VG on Wednesday — Breivik said that being deemed criminally insane was unbearable to him.

“I must admit this is the worst thing that could have happened to me as it is the ultimate humiliation,” he wrote.

“To send a political activist to a mental hospital is more sadistic and evil than to kill him! It is a fate worse than death.”

Breivik has said he committed the attacks on July 22 last year to protect Norway from multiculturalism. They were the worst outbreak of violence there since the end of World War Two.

“I knew of course what was right and what was wrong, but I acted instinctively,” Breivik wrote in the letter.

He criticised the two psychiatrists, Torgeir Husby and Synne Soerheim, as unable to be objective.

“Husby said on several occasions that what I had done was bestial and I got the impression from him that he saw me as a wild animal that had to be locked in and drugged at whatever cost.”

“Has an event that has traumatised a nation also traumatised Husby and Soerheim to such an extent that they must be regarded as having a conflict of interest? Can two court-appointed psychiatrists that are so emotionally affected by July 22 mean that they are not able to be objective?”

After a public outcry following the publication of the first psychiatric report, the judges in the case have asked for another evaluation of Breivik’s mental health by different experts. That is due to be published on Tuesday.

Breivik will stand trial, in a case expected to last ten weeks, regardless of the psychiatrists’ assessments.

If his judges rule at the end of the trial that he is psychotic he is likely to be placed in a high-security psychiatric unit. If not, he would face up to 21 years in prison but could be held longer if deemed too dangerous to be released.

Breivik’s lawyer has said he would call defence witnesses to show his client was not criminally insane but held views shared by others.

Among those witnesses are Mullah Krekar, the Kurdish founder of Islamist group Ansar al-Islam, who was recently jailed in Norway for making death threats, and “Fjordman”, a Norwegian right-wing blogger whom Oslo police say was a major intellectual influence on Breivik’s.

Fjordman, whose real name is Peder Jensen, has denied having any links with Breivik.

— Hat tip: The EDL

[Return to headlines]

UK: ‘Child Sex Victims Were Prostitutes With Enough Business Acumen to Win the Apprentice’, Man at Centre of Sex Gang Trial Tells Court

A man at the centre of a child sexual exploitation trial today accused some of his alleged victims of being ‘prostitutes’ with enough business acumen to ‘win The Apprentice’.

Eleven men are on trial at Liverpool Crown Court charged with conspiring to engage children in sexual activity.

Today the first of the defendants took to the witness box to deny the charges, which he dismissed as ‘lies’ and ‘rubbish’.

He also accused one girl of being a racist who believed ‘whites were a superior race’.

The 59-year-old man, who cannot be named for legal reasons, admitted having a prolonged sexual relationship with one girl who is alleged to have conspired with the men to exploit other young girls.

But he said he believed she was 18 and was a prostitute.

When asked about the alleged victims in the case the man said: ‘They were clever girls. They had a business empire which extended to Leeds, Nelson, Bradford.

‘If they went on to Sugar’s programme they would probably win The Apprentice. They did very well.’

The defendant, who is balding and was wearing jeans and a sweatshirt, shocked the court when asked a question about how one of the victims could describe his naked body.

He quickly stood up and took off his light blue sweat shirt to reveal his naked torso.

He said: ‘She would have seen this,’ referring to his hairy body and back, which he claims she did not tell the police about.

The man then threw a clump of chest hair on the floor and said: ‘I only have to walk past someone to leave hairs on them.’

He told the court that one girl in particular used to cause problems and ‘corrupted’ the other girls who would hang around in a large group.

‘She never used to hide the fact that white was superior to any other race.

‘The other girls were much much better…she sort of infected them, corrupted them as well.’

The man described the girl as a ‘bone in a kebab’ and added: ‘I can smell a pig and I can smell abuse when it’s being thrown at me.’

He also said of the alleged victim: ‘Anybody who wanted to try to have sex with (her), they would have sex with her.

‘I have never had sex with her. There’s a price on her.

‘Anybody who pays has sex with her.’

The court heard that the man was separated from his wife in 2000 and had grown-up children.

He told the court he had ‘needs’, which is why he had a relationship with one of the girls connected to the case.

When asked if he had been involved in a conspiracy he responded: ‘It’s all white lies.’

He then accused the police of arresting the wrong people and added: ‘Shame on the police.’

He accused them of letting an ‘illegal immigrant get away’, adding: ‘For all I know he could have been al Qaeda’.

Eleven men are on trial charged with conspiracy to engage in sexual activity with children under the age of 16. The prosecution say they plied girls as young as 13 with drink and drugs so they could “pass them around” and use them for sex.

Five girls from broken homes are said to have been ‘shared’ by Kabeer Hassan, Abdul Aziz, Abdul Rauf, Mohammed Sajid, Adil Khan, Abdul Qayyum, Mohammed Amin, Qamar Shahzad, Liaquat Shah, Hamid Safi and a 59-year-old man who cannot be named for legal reasons.

All deny the charges and are all from the Rochdale and Oldham areas of Greater Manchester.

The trial continues.

— Hat tip: Gaia

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UK: British Muslims Transcending Differences

LONDON: Can love really bring people together, crossing boundaries and breaking down barriers? It sounds like the stuff of fairy tales and movies, but recently in a little corner of London that’s exactly what happened. In a trendy Indian restaurant that used to be a pub, people of different faiths and backgrounds got together for a meal to celebrate that crazy little thing called love. The event was organized by the Islamic Society of Britain in partnership with the Christian Muslim Forum to launch the start of the 19th Islam Awareness Week, which ran from March 12-18, 2012. Every year for the past 19 years, Islam Awareness Week has been an opportunity for people across Great Britain to meet, eat, listen and understand each other better. Organizers of the week pick a theme that is of common interest to people of all faiths, such as looking after our neighbors, celebrating the best of Britain or remembering our common heritage. This year the theme was all about love. At the launch event in London, Jewish, Christian and Muslim speakers explained the centrality of love in their religious teachings. In the Jewish tradition, the world stands on three things: Torah (law), (worship) and Gemilut chasadim (acts of loving kindness). Jesus taught his followers to love God and your neighbour as yourself. In Islam, love is at the heart of the religion, it is the basis of one’s relationship with God and the bedrock of relationships with other human beings and all God has created.

[…]

— Hat tip: JP

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UK: Blackburn Woman Jailed for Posing as PC on Facebook

JAILED Sahrish Idris set up a fake Facebook page A WOMAN took on the identity of a police officer she knew to send abusive and racist e-mails on Facebook.

Sahrish Idris, of Blackburn, targeted PC Zoe Brown by using a Facebook account set up in her name.

She also posted messages from another police officer, PC Michelle Moffat, during her campaign of harassment.

One message allegedly sent by the officer referred to Idris as a “P*** bitch” and threatened to arrest her.

Blackburn Magistrates Court heard that PC Moffat could have been sacked if it had been believed she was the real author of the message.

Idris, of Cedar Street, was known to the two officers individually as they had been involved in incidents when she had run away from home as a teenager.

The 20-year-old was jailed for 12 weeks after she pleaded guilty to harassing PC Brown and harassing PC Michelle Moffat by sending a Facebook friend request from a false account, sending messages from the same account, sending an abusive e-mail and making a false allegation about her to her supervisor.

She was also ordered to serve a further eight weeks for being in breach of a suspended prison sentence and made the subject of a three year restraining order stopping her from having contact with either officer.

Catherine Allan, prosecuting, said there had been a number of messages on the bogus account which was eventually closed by Facebook.

One of the messages included the racist slur allegedly made by PC Moffat.

“PC Moffat did not send that message,” said Miss Allan.

“The two officers bumped into each other one day and PC Moffat mentioned the Facebook account. It soon became apparent PC Brown did not have an account.

“As a result of the defendant’s action PC Moffat was worried about her job and PC Brown was concerned because she felt Idris had accessed her private life.”

Angela Rossi, defending, said Idris mistakenly believed she had been sent a racist message by one of the officers.

“She accepts she responded inappropriately and while she didn’t set up the Facebook account she was involved,” said Miss Rossi.

“She is now aware of the implications there could have been for the officers involved.”

Sentencing Idris District Judge Peter Ward said the messages purporting to come from one or other of the officers were totally bogus.

“The nature of the messages was such that if they had been believed the officers would have been at risk of losing their jobs,” he said.

— Hat tip: The EDL

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UK: Croydon Mosque Unveils Extension Plans for London Road Site

CROYDON Mosque and Islamic Centre has unveiled expansion plans for a “green” four-storey extension, to be used as a women and children’s centre. The plan for the centre’s site in Dunheved Road includes an 18-metre minaret to in front of the mosque in London Road. The steel structure that already standson the site will be pulled down, due to changes in the building’s design. While the main purpose of the extension is to provide a new prayer area for women, the ground floor will offer a wheelchair accessible wudu washing area for men.

The new building will also increase the mosque’s capacity from about 3,700 to 4,000, reflecting the growth of Croydon’s Muslim community since the centre was built in the 1980s.

Members of the mosque have donated around £500,000 to fund the project.

[…]

— Hat tip: JP

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UK: Conservatives Will Not Win Election Without More Focus on Minority Voters, Says Baroness Warsi

The Conservatives will not win the next election unless they appeal more to black and Asian voters, Baroness Warsi, the party’s co-chairman, has warned.

The peer’s intervention comes after George Galloway swept to victory as the new MP in Bradford West by courting Muslim voters, overturning four decades of Labour control over the seat. According the New Statesman, Baroness Warsi told a meeting of MPs: “[U]nless and until campaigning with BME [black and minority-ethnic] communities is institutionalised and embedded in every aspect of what we do as a political party, we cannot win an overall majority in 2015.” Baroness Warsi, the party’s most senior Muslim, has also recently expressed worries that religious voters are being alienated by a tide of “militant secularisation”. She warned that religion is being “sidelined, marginalised and downgraded in the public sphere”.

The Conservative Party has been facing calls to replace Baroness Warsi and her co-chairman Lord Feldman with a senior MP, following the “cash-for-access” scandal involving the party’s fundraising operations. Baroness Warsi had no involvement in the incident, in which Peter Cruddas, the party’s co-treasurer, was filmed boasting that big donors could have dinner in Downing Street and influence policy. However, senior Conservatives are understood to want a firmer, more experienced pair of hands at the top of the party than the current co-chairmen, who are relatively new peers.

[JP note: Why vote Tory when you can have the real McCoy in Labour?]

— Hat tip: JP

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UK: George’s Tongue-Lashing: Third Wife (And Mother of His New Baby) Says They’re Still Wed, Then His Mother-in-Law Warns He’ll Only Marry Someone Else Next Year

George Galloway’s fourth marriage was off to a rocky start yesterday — after his third wife declared he was still wed to her.

In a bitter verbal assault, Rima Husseini, who gave birth to their second son only four months ago, hit out at the 57-year-old politician’s ‘morals’.

The Lebanese researcher said: ‘We are still married under Islamic law. There is a misconception you can have up to four wives in Islam — but it’s just not true in the 21st century.

‘It may have been the case hundreds of years ago as a way of looking after women in the villages who had lost their husbands, but it doesn’t exist now.

‘It’s just a stupid, man-made thing in some Arab countries. It’s not true. Under Islamic law we remain married.’

The Respect MP’s third wife, speaking outside the West London home she shares with their two young children, added: ‘Under English law, he hasn’t done anything illegal. But morally, it’s a different story.

I have been asking for a divorce, but he has been refusing me one for months. To this day he refuses to grant me a divorce.

‘He came this morning to pick up his son and we spoke.’

Mr Galloway also received ‘both barrels’ from Miss Husseini’s mother.

She said her daughter was ‘better off’ without the newly-elected MP for Bradford West, after it was revealed he had married for a fourth time.

The politician showed no remorse yesterday as he winked and boasted about being ‘up all night’ with his latest bride — 27 year-old Dutch-Indonesian Putri Gayatri Pertiwi.

The Mail revealed yesterday how Mr Galloway flew to Amsterdam hours after winning the Bradford West by-election and then married Miss Pertiwi in a Dutch hotel on Saturday.

Few details of the service have been revealed.

Yesterday he posed for pictures outside his £1.4million home in Streatham, South London, alongside his research consultant fourth wife, who is 30 years his junior.

However, just four months ago Miss Husseini, 41, who also worked as his researcher, gave birth to their second son Faris.

The couple had married in a Muslim ceremony in 2007 and have an older son called Zein, aged four.

Yesterday Miss Husseini’s Lebanese family branded the MP a womaniser and claimed his latest union might not last very long.

Her mother Maha said: ‘Next year he will have another wife.’

Referring to all the publicity about his marriages, she added that at least they would know about his past.

Speaking about how her daughter might feel, she said: ‘Ask yourself if you would be angry. Maybe she is better off like that.’

She went on: ‘Rima is only bothered about the children. Of course he sees the children I think. I don’t ask her a lot.’

In the past, father of three Mr Galloway, a Roman Catholic, has claimed that he speaks to his children and grandchildren ‘every day’.

Yesterday morning Mr Galloway mischievously claimed he had been ‘up all night’ — but picking candidates for Bradford city council elections. ‘I was heavily involved, and was up until 2.45am precisely,’ he explained.

He then winked and added: ‘By the Grace of God I am — to coin a phrase — indefatigable.’

Mr Galloway caused outrage in 1994, three years after the Gulf War, when he met Saddam Hussein and was filmed telling the dictator that he praised his ‘strength, courage and indefatigability.’

Yesterday, Mr Galloway — nicknamed Gorgeous George — was less than forthcoming when asked to discuss the attributes of his fourth wife.

He told reporters: ‘Why would I want to discuss my personal life?’ before adding that he would ‘stand here all day and talk politics’.

Miss Pertiwi — a Muslim anthropologist and child rights specialist — studied cultural anthropology at the University of Utrecht before taking a Master’s degree at Amsterdam University.

On one of her blogs she revealed that her parents emigrated to the Netherlands at a young age from Indonesia and had three children.

Between 1979 and 1999 Mr Galloway was married to his former teenage sweetheart, Elaine Fyffe. The couple separated in 1987 but did not divorce for 12 years.

The politician took Dr Amineh Abu-Zayyad, a Palestinian scientist, as a second wife in a Muslim ceremony in 1994.

A year after his divorce from Miss Fyffe in 1999, he married Dr Abu-Zayyad in a civil ceremony in Lambeth.

In 2009 Dr Abu-Zayyad obtained an uncontested divorce citing unreasonable behaviour.

Mr Galloway then married his third wife Rima in a Muslim ceremony in 2007.

— Hat tip: CJ

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UK: Leaders Who Lead to Surrender

by Melanie Phillips

Readers of the Jerusalem Post have doubtless been bemused by a rumbling controversy over whether or not the Anglo-Jewish leadership comprises what Isi Leibler derided as “trembling Israelites”. Leibler suggested that both the Board of Deputies and the Jewish Leadership Council were in denial over the UK’s dramatic upsurge in anti-Israel feeling. In particular, they understated the threat of Muslim antisemitism and jihadism, and continuously issued statements warning of the dangers of Islamophobia which paled beside the violence and threats levelled against Jews. Leibler was accused of misrepresenting the situation. What happened to Brooke Goldstein, however, suggests he is nearer to the truth. Leeds JSoc invited Goldstein, a US lawyer who fights Islamic extremism and defends Israel, to deliver a talk at about the stifling of free speech on the Middle East. The JSoc then abruptly cancelled her talk — on the grounds that it would jeopardise community relations and endanger the welfare of Leeds students.

Why was Goldstein considered a menace? Apparently because she is a supporter of the Dutch politician Geert Wilders, had linked to an article about him on a website called Gates of Vienna, and a member of her staff had blogged about a film entitled The Third Jihad. Such reasoning shows how deeply political correctness has warped the judgment of these students. Wilders has been demonised because he stands resolutely against the Islamist aim of conquering the west — and because he thinks the Koran incites hatred and violence against Jews and “infidels”. Does Leeds JSoc not think this incitement endangers Jewish students? Gates of Vienna is an anti-Islamist site that has provided a platform for some ultra-nationalists. Goldstein says her organisation merely linked to one article. This tars her as a dangerous extremist? As for The Third Jihad, I know this is an important film — narrated by a Muslim — which charts the nature and extent of Islamist aggression and the inroads this has been allowed to make in the west. Yet this film has been smeared by the usual combination of Islamists and their western apologists.

I have a particular interest in this smear because I, too, am interviewed in this film. I, too, could thus be pilloried as an “anti-Muslim extremist” — and I’m afraid to say there are members of the UK Jewish community who already do that. This derives from the confusion among much of the leadership, which seems to believe that to identify the threat from Islamic religious extremism is “Islamophobic”. Indeed, a number of communal worthies wrote to the JC attacking it for “criticising and embarrassing” Leeds JSoc instead of “supporting” and “thanking” it. Thanking it for what? For its “resolve” in repudiating the principle of free speech on campus? For “improving Jewish student life” by smearing those who fight Islamic religious fascism, thus effectively whitewashing the virulent Jew-hatred pouring out of the Muslim world? For “acting in the best interests of their members” by turning on a lawyer who would help them defend themselves against anti-Jewish attacks? The fact that this morally bankrupt act by Leeds JSoc has been supported by UJS and so many in Jewish leadership suggests that these leaders don’t understand who are the true friends of the Jews. “Trembling Israelites” isn’t the half of it. These Anglos are not so much “trembling” as leading the surrender to the enemies of the Jews — and thus indirectly encouraging them to redouble their attacks. British Jews should indeed be trembling at being thus abandoned by those who speak in their name.

Melanie Phillips is a Daily Mail columnist

— Hat tip: JP

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UK: No One Saw it Coming

by Salma Yaqoob

What does Galloway’s victory tell us about British politics?

Anybody wanting to follow the Bradford West result unfold was forced to rely on Twitter as journalists and politicians alike were caught unawares by the political earthquake about to take place. But Respect supporters on the ground had been predicting for the last fortnight that a shock was in the air. And for one simple reason; people are disillusioned with austerity and war, they are disillusioned with being taken for granted, and when presented with positive coherent political alternatives, they respond with enthusiasm.

Bradford is mired in unemployment and stagnation. Its voters don’t think they are “in it together” with the Tories and their millionaire donors. Quite the opposite. Respect’s solution on the doorstep was to argue that we need investment not cuts in order to re-energise our economy and create the growth to deliver jobs. This is not some loony-left pipe dream; it is the experience of the American economy where old fashioned Keynesian intervention is driving down unemployment while discredited Thatcherite neo-liberalism drives it up here. When the voters of Bradford West heard that argument put confidently and coherently, albeit with an eloquence that only George Galloway can summon, they responded warmly to it. Surely that is the real lesson for Ed Milliband to draw from this result.

The other lesson is that huge numbers of people are disillusioned with British politicans sending our troops to occupy other people’s countries. When George said that the two soldiers killed by their Afghan comrade had “died in vain”, he spoke for many people in Bradford and beyond whose views on the war are rarely if ever reflected by mainstream politicians.

Finally, the Respect vote is a call for change to the ossified political structure in Bradford. People are tired of being taken for granted. The Guardianwas the only paper to pick up on the specific way that frustration expresses itself within the Muslim community where the Labour party have for generations relied on and reinforced the corrupting influence of “Braderi” — clan networks — that so disfigures South Asian politics. The fact that Respect won in every ward in the constituency, and won by a massive 10,000 majority, testifies that that disillusionment goes way beyond the Muslim community. In the predominately white, middle-class ward of Clayton approximately 900 votes were cast for Respect compared to 40 for Labour. The resounding mandate also testifies to the unifying message of Respect which addressed the roots of disillusionment and challenges the scourges of neglect and scapegoating.

For me, the most exciting and inspiring aspect of the election was the sight of hundreds of young people and women throwing themselves into the political process. They were galvanised by a man who stands by his principles and tells it straight. A wave became a tsunami, very quickly overwhelming anything that has gone before. People poured out into the streets to exclaim support: an unusual sight in politics where canvassers usually try to cajole some interest. Very large numbers of voters in Bradford West clearly like George Galloway’s distinctive message and style. They are not alone.

Salma Yaqoob is the leader of the Respect Party

[Reader comment by RSS (not verified) on Wednesday, 4 April 2012 at 06:57.]

George Galloway talked a great deal about Iraq, Palestine and Kashmir: forced marriage and the disappearance of many a young Bradford girl never got a mention. Galloway insulted Labour’s candidate saying he wasn’t a true Muslim and implied he drank beer; most in Bradford do!! I would just like to ask George what as Iraq, Palestine and Kashmir have to with youth unemployment in Bradford? Many are either delusional or stark raving mad if they honestly think George Galloway would be elected outside his usual confines. I will agree: most are crying out for an alternative to Labour and the Tories, but most aren’t crying out for Galloway and the Religious lunatic fringe which this political opportunist represents. Respect is a Jihadist front. The awful truth is most outside Bradford just associate Bradford West for been the locality many of the 7/7 bombers spent an awful lot of time.

— Hat tip: JP

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UK: Why the Odds Are Against a Tory Majority

by Mehdi Hasan

Despite losing at the last election, Labour continues to have the bigger pool of potential voters.

Whisper it quietly, but the Tories won’t win the next election. I say this not because of George Osborne’s slashing of taxes on his rich chums — a move described by David Cameron’s former speechwriter as “a basic blunder that sends a missile into six years of Tory modernisation” — nor because of the fallout from the “cash-for-Cameron” debacle. I say it because, despite what the Tory-supporting press might have us believe, this isn’t a Conservative country. Listen to the verdict of Tim Montgomerie, the plain-speaking editor of the ConservativeHome website. “Four numbers should haunt every Tory: 31 per cent, 32 per cent, 32 per cent and 36 per cent — the percentages of the vote that the party won at the last four elections,” he wrote on 20 March, noting how there “may be a Conservative prime minister but the Tory brand remains weak”. It has been 20 years since the Tories last won a Commons majority and, despite losing at the last election, Labour continues to have the bigger pool of potential voters. A recent YouGov poll found that only 30 per cent of the public says it would “never” vote Labour compared to 42 per cent for the Conservatives. The Tory brand isn’t just “weak”, it’s toxic.

[…]

Amusingly, someone who has greater confidence in Miliband’s electoral prospects than most shadow cabinet ministers is Michael Ashcroft, the Tories’ former deputy chairman. “Expanding the Conservative voting coalition to the point where it will elect a majority Conservative government is a strategic challenge for Mr Cameron,” Ashcroft observed last May, adding: “First, he must hold together those who voted in 2010 . . . Just as important, he must attract new voters in substantial numbers.” But where will these voters come from? The three key groups that Cameron failed to charm in 2010 — public-sector workers, Scots and ethnic minorities — will, after five painful years of austerity, have even fewer reasons to vote Conservative in 2015. I’m told the PM is desperate to hire a new adviser on “BME” issues; the Tory chair, Sayeeda Warsi, can’t win over black and minority-ethnic voters on her own.

[…]

— Hat tip: JP

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We Salute Sheikh Yousuf Al-Qaradawi

Sheikh Yousuf al-Qaradawi is undoubtedly one of the most knowledgeable living Muslim religious scholars in the world today. He is the author of dozens of books on all aspects of Sharia and Islamic thinking and philosophy. At 85, he continues to enrich the world with his brilliance, sagacity and thoughtfulness. His televised weekly show “Asharia wal-Haia” is a real gem and food for thought for both the educated and commoners as well as for Muslims and non-Muslims alike. Dr. Qaradawi, who has long been imprisoned, persecuted and harassed by tyrannical Arab regimes, including the regimes of Gamal Abdul Nasser, Anwar al-Sadat and especially Husni Mubarak, played a vital and pivotal role in inspiring the Arab Spring. He continues to issue inspiring calls to Muslim people struggling for freedom, dignity and democracy in various parts of the world.

In recent weeks, the Sheikh has been under fire from several quarters, including, the French government, some Shiite and pro-Iranian circles, a United Arab Emirates security chief and the Wakf minister of the Palestinian autonomous authority. The Sheikh, like all of us mortals, is not infallible. He doesn’t claim to be infallible or perfect. However, there is no iota of doubt that he stands on a higher moral ground, especially when compared to his critics, whose main credentials range from ignorance to mendacity. Let us begin with the recent tirade launched against the Sheikh by the Palestinian Authority’s minister of Wakf and Islamic affairs who called the Sheikh during a Friday sermon “divisive and sowing discord.”

The verbal abuse against al-Qaradawi came after the eminent scholar issued a fatwa or edict ruling that it is not permissible for non-Palestinian Muslims to visit occupied Jerusalem lest such visits contribute to normalizing relations between Israel and the Muslim world.

Qaradawi argued that “why should we have Muslims from all over the world visit Jerusalem when Palestinian Muslims living in the vicinity of al-Aqsa mosque in the West Bank and the Gaza Strip are barred from accessing the holy city by the Israeli occupation authorities. The Sheikh argued that “we should not break the psychological barriers between Muslims and the Zionist entity. They are our enemies and we shouldn’t normalize relations with them.” The Sheikh’s words are axiomatically veracious because, in the final analysis, recurrent visits by Muslims to a Jerusalem that is thoroughly fettered by the Israeli occupation and raped by it would have a definitive normalizing effect. The visit might, at least subconsciously, convince some visiting Muslims, especially from faraway Muslim countries, that the situation is not that intolerable and that a certain modus vivendi with Israel could be preferable to an all-out Muslim effort to liberate the city from the Zionist-Jewish stranglehold.

Jerusalem and Palestine will not be helped, let alone liberated, by a few thousand disoriented Muslim tourists who would spend a few hours in the holy city watching the first Qibla of Islam being raped, molested and moaning of pain. Besides, these so-called tourists would soon return to Tel Aviv to slowly experience life in the only true democracy in the Middle East, not knowing that every town, village or Kibbutz they encounter while traveling through “Israel” was established on the ruins of an Arab town, village or hamlet. I am not opposed to communication between individuals and nations. But Israel is not a normal nation. It has never been a normal nation. The truth of the matter is that Israel is a crime against humanity. It was founded on the basis of ethnic cleansing, mass murder and lies. It massacred our people, destroyed our homes and villages, and then expelled millions to the four winds. Muslims must never ever normalize relations with an entity as such. We must not commit fornication with our Muslim honor and dignity by kissing the hands of our tormentors and grave-diggers.

Yes, Palestine is occupied by Zionist Jews who have amassed an overwhelming power and have at their beck and call power nations, such as the United States. But so what? Where is the Roman Empire, where is the British Empire? Where is Napoleon Bonaparte? Where is the Soviet Union? Where is Adolph Hitler? I have no doubt that Israel is an artificial entity that won’t be able to withstand the test of history. It is an entity that is bereft of justice, morality and humanity. It is a brat, as ugly as the objective historical circumstances that gave birth to it. It will have to go; it will go.

As to the unrelenting campaign of vilification, insinuation and smear by some pro-Iranian circles against Sheikh Qaradawi for siding with the victims of oppression, tyranny and sectarianism in countries such as Syria, there is no doubt that the Iranian attitude is indefensible, morally scandalous and decidedly un-Islamic to say the least. What is Qaradawi, who consistently supported a constructive Sunni-Shiite dialogue based on mutual respect and Islamic authenticity, supposed to do when he, like hundreds of millions of Muslims and non-Muslims around the world, watch thousands of children and civilians being mercilessly killed by a Nazi-like regime in order to keep his sect in power? Is he supposed to pretend that the massacres are happening on a different planet? Is he supposed to consign his honesty and rectitude to indefinite dormancy or hibernation?

Qaradawi, like many Sunni Muslims, supported Iran during confrontations with the West. He is not making a favor to Iran for doing so; he is only doing his religious Muslim duty.

But Iran and her mainly sectarian allies and supporters are going too far. Because a Yazid who is nominally Shiite is no lesser evil than a Sunni Yazid. A genocide doesn’t become benign when it is perpetrated by Shiites. More to the point, some Shiite circles are effectively justifying the abominable sectarian genocide in Syria by invoking the Palestinian struggle. Well, since when the just Palestinian cause justified murderous repression of Arab people by their regimes? We Palestinians refuse to see our cause being manipulated this way. We reject repression and mass murder in Palestine’s name.

— Hat tip: JP

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In the Shadow of the Sword by Tom Holland: Review

by Michael Scott

Tom Holland’s ‘In the Shadow of the Sword’ is an ambitious attempt to unearth the roots of Islam

Readers may be familiar with the fundamental changes that took place in the Roman world as it converted from paganism to Christianity in the fourth century, and as its emperors sought to govern, through the turbulent times of the fifth to seventh centuries, as Christian rulers. This is the stuff of late antiquity as it would be recognised in any classics or history university department. It is, as Tom Holland points out in the opening pages of his latest book, a period of fundamental importance for the shape of our world, as it is the era in which religious monotheism, rather than political kingdom, comes to dominate history.

In that context, Holland focuses on the birth of Islam through the prophet Mohammed in Mecca and Medina (modern-day Saudi Arabia) during the course of the seventh century, as it is told to us by one of Mohammed’s biographers, Ibn Hisham, in the ninth century. The faith of Islam, as Holland points out, is centred on the study and strict observation of both the divine revelations to Mohammed (the Koran), and how Mohammed acted during his lifetime (the Hadith and the Sunna). Yet, echoing what many (mostly non-Muslim) scholars have queried before, Holland points to the historical problem of the evidence: before 800AD, almost 200 years after Mohammed’s death in 632AD, the only “traces we possess” for the development of Islam “are either the barest shreds of shreds, or else the delusory shimmering of mirages”. The task Holland sets himself is to ask what can be done about that gap. His answer is to approach it from the opposite direction: to approach the origins of Islam from its recent past, from the world of fifth to seventh century late antiquity. “Is it possible,” he asks, “that Islam, far from originating outside the mainstream of ancient civilisation, was in truth a religion in the grand tradition of Judaism and Christianity — one bred of the very marrow of late antiquity?”

Holland examines late antiquity not as an age of decline and fall, but of energy and inventiveness, setting the Arab world and Mohammed’s life in the context of the changing geographies, cultures and priorities of the empires of Rome around the Mediterranean, the Sassanians to the East, and the religious and cultural melting-pot of the “Holy Land”, which connected them. Holland identifies key events, places, ideas and decisions within the Persian and Roman systems which may have impacted upon the Arab world, and, in turn, on the birthplace of Islam in Mecca and Medina. In so doing, Holland argues for the forging of Islam in the political and military instability and opportunity of a world convulsed by a changing balance of power. The process, he continues, ensured that, by the ninth century, “a version of Islam’s beginnings that gave no scope for anyone to rule as a Deputy of God”, and in turn no room “for acknowledging the momentous role in the forging of Islam by countless others”, had gained acceptance, the continued presence of which, inevitably, makes Holland’s thesis difficult reading for an Islamic audience.

Focusing on the wider context to unpick key moments in history is a classic Holland approach, echoing, for example, his study of the fifth century BC Persian invasion of Greece in Persian Fire (2005), which explored the context and prior history of the Persian and Greek worlds. Such an approach is now in vogue, because it demands that the historian break the often stifling disciplinary boundaries that have traditionally governed the study of worlds which knew no such boundaries. This is a handsome volume, tackling an important question from a novel perspective, backed by useful notes and written in an accessible and fluid style. But, as I am sure Holland would accept, in part because of the charged nature of the material and issues on which it dwells, and in part because of the vast developments and arenas it attempts to encompass, it is also bound to encounter the full spectrum of critical reaction.

In the Shadow of the Sword: The Battle for Global Empire and the End of the Ancient World

Tom Holland

Little, Brown, £25, 526pp

[Reader comment by bigdaniel on 3 April 2012 at 10:34 am.]

Well it certainly sounds like a rather more robust and honest approach compared to the rather saccharine and partial approaches we are usually offered by popular Western writers on the topic of the origins of Islam. Of course, if The Koran is supposed to be the unchanging Word of Allah as conveyed to Mohammed, then it would be impossible for many Muslims to take on board an approach which suggests rather more prolonged and diverse origins for Islam.?

— Hat tip: JP

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Iran: Grand Ayatollah Nour: “Islamic Rules Are Based on Fairness”

(Ahlul Bayt News Agency) — “Islamic rules and instructions are based on fairness and justice,” said the Iranian Grand Ayatollah Hussein Nouri Hamedani. In visit with Head of the Islamic Azad Univerity, Farhad Daneshjou, the grand Ayatollah clarified the role and place of education in the religion of Islam. “Islam eschews Muslims to be ignorant and underscores the role of science in the society,” said the senior cleric. Qom seminary instructor underlined, “It is incumbent upon each of us to diagnose the needs of society and make all-out effort for obviating them.” Ayatollah Nouri Hamedani touted efforts made during these years by authorities of the university stating that Azad University trained deserved people and citizen for the society. “At this time lessons taught at universities are based on secularism, but the officials responsible in this realm should take the cognizance of Islamic teachings and Islamized lessons and units covered at universities and other educational milieu,” said the grand Ayatollah. The Islamic scholar underlined that the hows and whats of the educational programmed should be adapted with Islamic school and believes.

[JP note: gibberish.]

— Hat tip: JP

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India: Mamata Doles Out Sops to Muslims

KOLKATA — Raising the pitch for next year’s panchayat elections in West Bengal, Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Tuesday announced pro-minority sops including a monthly honorarium for mosque imams. “The government wants to give a monthly honorarium of Rs2,500 to imams of the state which will be paid through the state Wakf Board. “For the purpose a special task force comprising government officials and imams from the city and districts will be constituted which will make the necessary recommendations for the implementation of the scheme,” Banerjee said here during a meet with the religious leaders. Banerjee also said “homeless, landless imams” will now be given the benefits under her pet project “Nijo Bhumi Nijo Griha (Own Land, Own House)”. “There are more than 30,000 imams in Bengal and a large percentage of them do not have a house or land. If they want and if their religious laws permit, then they can avail the benefits under the Nijo Bhumi Nijo Griha’ scheme and get 3 cottahs of land to build house. The government will also provide for the construction expenditure,” she added. She reiterated her government stand of providing reservation to the Muslims.

[…]

— Hat tip: JP

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India: Muslims Hail HC Ruling

HYDERABAD: Muslims across the city welcomed the high court judgment in favour of the state Wakf Board in the Manikonda land case on Tuesday. Jubilation was not limited to the Haj House which houses the Wakf Board. Activists involved in the protection of wakf land described the judgment as a ‘landmark decision’, one which proved that the judiciary is ‘secular, powerful and independent’. The Wakf Board is anticipating moves of the opposition and will take a decision based on reactions to the judgment.

One of the petitioners of the case, Mahboob Alam Khan said that the HC judgment could well mark the end of the politicians’ influence on the Wakf Board. “The decision is historic and has set a precedent. The bench reinforced the decision that a wakf property will always remain a wakf property and that its nature cannot be altered. We have taken steps to file a caveat in case the opposition decides to approach the Supreme Court,” he said. Khan traces the mismanagement of wakf lands to the tenure of Chandrababu Naidu and says that irregularities gained momentum during Y S Rajasekhara Reddy’s reign as chief minister. Many honest officers were frequently transferred according to the whims and fancies of the politicians. The Hazrath Hussain Shah Wali wakf land was deemed a gazetted property by the government itself, he added.

Zaheeruddin Ali Khan, managing editor, The Siasat daily observed, “This is just the beginning of the recovery of wakf properties. The judgment has given us the drive to fight more legal battles to win back our land. The judiciary has discharged its duty well and has given Muslims the hope that the law is with them.” Khan added that he is prepared to fight the case if it is taken to the Supreme Court. A watchdog committee comprising lawyers, bureaucrats and activists has been formed to monitor and fight legal battles against landsharks, he said. “The brokering of lands by means of dubious deals will soon come to an end,” he hoped.

Rajya Sabha MP Aziz Pasha noted that Hazrat Hussain Shah Wali Dargah property had become a symbol of mishandling of wakf land across the country. “Indeed, the judgment has made us happy but there are many more battles to win. The select committee of Parliament has made recommendations for managing wakf land better. Most importantly, it has suggested that if any board member is found to have grabbed wakf land, he should be promptly dismissed from the board. Also a deterrent punishment of two years should be awarded to such member,” he said. Further, Indira Gandhi in 1975 had ordered the government to return wakf land but this has been put in cold storage. He noted that instead of having a board, a commissionerate having judicial powers should be set up. “This way, wakf land like endowments land can be taken back from encroachers,” he added.

— Hat tip: JP

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Malaysia: Don’t Cross Religious Boundary: Raja Nazrin

IPOH, April 3 (Bernama) — The Regent of Perak, Raja Dr Nazrin Shah has reminded the people not to cross the religion boundary as it can spark the country’s worst tragedy. “Don’t lit religious fire as it can burn you up and destroy the state,” he said when opening the State Assembly session at Bangunan Perak Darul Ridzuan here today. He said of late, non-Muslims have crossed religion boundary by challenging Islamic matters via statements that made fun of Islamic laws and the faith of Muslims. “Advice to Muslims on their faith and sharia law by Islamic scholars is being questioned and debated openly by non-Muslims. “This has crossed the religion border. The etiquette of respecting and non-interfering in the affairs of other religions must be adhered.”

Islam’s position is contained in the Federal Constitution and should not not be taken literally but interpreted in a holistic manner and linked with other relevant provisions to ensure that the real purpose of these provisions is not manipulated to deny the rights of Muslims. Raja Nazrin said, “Islam is a protected religion with special and absolute status in the constitution. The provisions and privileges enshrined in the constitution don’t make Muslims proud and arrogant towards those of other religions. “Muslim leaders don’t justify this by being extreme, discriminatory, insulting and offensive of other religions or destroy the houses of worship of non-Muslims.” The Regent of Perak said the majority of Muslims in this country were educated to understand the meaning of religion and the sanctity of God. “Because of this, Muslims avoid making comments, open criticism and don’t interfere in the practices and rituals of other religions,” he added.

— Hat tip: JP

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Muslims in Kazakhstan Indignant at Vodka Makers Inclusion of “Allah” On Liquor Bottles

ALMATY, Kazakhstan — Muslims in the Central Asian nation of Kazakhstan are up in arms at a vodka producer for including the word “Allah” on its liquor bottles. Privately owned Channel 31 cited Bekzat Boranbaiuly, head imam at a mosque in the city of Semey, as saying the vodka maker should seek forgiveness for the blasphemous use of the sentence “The Power of Allah Suffices for All.”

[…]

— Hat tip: JP

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Can China Makes Its Cuisine — and Finance — Friendly to Muslims?

China’s legendary cuisine has been a secret weapon to winning many an investment. But when a major ingredient of the culinary experience is pork, hospitality can only go so far when it comes to entertaining Muslim businessmen from countries like Indonesia and the Gulf’s emirates. How the Chinese have been able to adjust can be seen in Hong Kong, the international trade port that many of these business people go through on their way to mainland China. Take a look at the Islamic Centre Canteen, just a few floors above the Wan Chai mosque. Wrapped up in the savory, little dumplings the canteen serves is the quintessential Hong Kong culinary experience, sans the pork. That kind of accommodation for Islamic dietary rules is growing, along with business prospects from the Muslim world.

In 2010, there were only 14 certified halal restaurants and markets in Hong Kong, advertised by visitor centers. In the past year alone, however, the number has almost tripled. Muslim community leaders have intimated that the Hong Kong government has collaborated with Islamic clergy to lure prospective Muslim guests with dining options. The Hong Kong Tourism Board reports that in recent years, the number of Middle Eastern visitors to the region has grown by as much as 20% annually.

[…]

— Hat tip: JP

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Police Say Bendigo Mother Raped 14 Times

POLICE allege a Bendigo mother of two was subjected to repeated sexual assault at the hands of six youths who dragged her into a laundry and took turns raping her, a court has heard.

Mohammed Elnour, 19, Akoak Manon, 19, and Mohammed Zaoli, 22, all appeared in the Bendigo Magistrates Court yesterday charged with a long list of sex offences stemming from the alleged gang rape in January last year.

All three men are contesting the charges and the first day of a committal hearing began yesterday.

The court heard Manon and Zaoli both faced 17 charges, including 14 counts of rape and single counts of indecent assault, unlawful assault and false imprisonment.

Elnour also faces these 17 charges as well as charges of using a carriage service to harass and harassing a witness. Police allege Elnour contacted the complainant five days after the alleged rape.

In court yesterday, footage taken on the night of the alleged attack — retrieved from Zaoliâ€(tm)s phone — was shown to Magistrate Richard Wright.

The sound was muffled, the recorded voices were mostly unintelligible, but at times a womanâ€(tm)s voice could be heard saying “no” and “stop”.

Prosecuting Alex Albert said the footage showed part of the incident in the complainantâ€(tm)s home, including Zaoli “grabbing” at her, the incident from which the charges of indecent assault and unlawful assault arose.

Informant Detective Senior Constable Chris Reed tendered photographs of the defendants taken by police at the complainantâ€(tm)s house shortly after the incident allegedly took place.

Senior Detective Reed said six men, three under 18, were arrested soon after.

Running through the charges yesterday, Mr Albert explained that each count of rape related to one of the six youths assaulting the complainant while the other five “acted in concert or aided and abetted” the attack.

He detailed 14 separate charges of digital and penile rape committed by the men.

Mr Albert said that at times the youths pinned the complainant against the wall while another raped her.

After the first two incidents, Mr Albert said the woman checked on her two children, asleep in the house, before coming back to the kitchen and being attacked again.

He said the charge of false imprisonment came when the complainant was dragged from the kitchen.

“Zaoli dragged her from the kitchen into the laundry and she was not allowed to leave,” Mr Albert said.

“All the men were involved in that.”

The court was told the woman was allegedly raped a further 10 times in the laundry.

Family of the complainant became emotional as the charges were read out, trying to hold back tears as they sat in the gallery.

In front of them the three defendants remained impassive.

After all the charges were read out, the complainant gave evidence to a closed court via video link.

The committal continues in the Bendigo Magistrates Court today.

— Hat tip: Salome

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Ghana: NDC Advised to Show Respect to Muslims and the Islamic Religion

The Nasara group of the New Patriotic Party (NPP) in the Upper East Region on Monday condemned recent castigations and attacks on Islam and Muslims by the National Democratic Congress (NDC) in the media. At a press conference addressed by Alhaji Abubakari Mohammed, Regional Nasara Co-ordinator in Bolgatanga, the group also condemned Mutala Ibrahim, NDC Parliamentary Candidate for Nanton in the Northern region for questioning the choice of Dr Mahamudu Bawumia and his commitment to Islam. Alhaji Mohammed said Mr Mutala Ibrahims’s statement was shameful, careless and an affront to Northerners and the Islamic religion, asking him what authority he had as a Muslim to judge his colleague and called on him to withdraw and apologise to Dr Mahamudu Bawumia and the Muslim Community. He said every political administration in the country gave recognition to all religious groupings including Muslims but the NDC had failed because they never believed in the abilities and capabilities of Muslims and therefore the NDC dropped Alhaji Mohammed Mumuni, a Muslim who was chosen as running mate to then candidate John Atta Mills in 2004.

Alhaji Mohammed said it was time for the NDC to live with the reality that the NPP had chosen Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia, a northerner and a Muslim for that matter to be a running mate to Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo -Addo, Flagbearer of the NPP. “We have been keeping our cool hoping that the NDC would come to the reality that Muslims and for that matter Islam deserved respect and dignity just like any other religion” he said. He said Fiifi Kwetey’s report revealed by Wiki leaks indicated that no Muslim will ever become a president of Ghana and Mr Sam Pee Yarley on Radio Gold also made statements to the effect that Nima, a predominantly Muslim community was near the Jubilee House built by the NPP government and so President Mills would not move into it, this according Alhaji Mohammed, went to confirm the disrespect the NDC had for Muslims.

On behalf of the Nasara group, Alhaji Mohammed thanked the NPP for maintaining the tradition of north-south and Christian-Muslim balance since the time of Alhaji Aliu Mahama as Vice President during the NPP regime. The Group also thanked Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo for the confidence reposed in Dr Bawumia and for the honour done the Muslim community, and prayed for a peaceful electioneering year.**

— Hat tip: JP

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Somalia Theatre Bombing Kills Top Sports Officials

The head of Somalia’s Olympic committee and its football chief are among eight people killed in a bomb attack on a high-profile event in Mogadishu.

Prime Minister Abdiweli Mohamed Ali survived the blast unhurt after it struck the newly re-opened national theatre in the capital, Mogadishu.

Militants from the al-Shabab group say they carried out the bombing.

African Union peacekeepers said the “despicable” attack would not deter peace efforts in Somalia.

The President of the Somali Olympic Committee, Aden Yabarow Wiish, and the Somali Football Federation chief, Said Mohamed Nur, were both killed. They were among a group of dignitaries who had gathered to mark the first anniversary of the launch of Somalia’s national television station.

Sepp Blatter, president of football’s governing body Fifa, said he was shocked at the deaths of the sport officials.

“I knew both men personally and can only say good things about their endless efforts to promote sport and football in their country,” he said in a statement. “They will be sorely missed.”

Three Somali television journalists were also wounded in the blast, sources told the BBC Somali Service.

The theatre had closed in the early 1990s as Somalia descended into civil war and was only reopened last month, amid a new period of relative optimism.

‘Unimaginable’ scene

Police and hospital sources told BBC News in Mogadishu that eight people had been killed.

Also speaking to the BBC, the prime minister said a woman suicide attacker had carried out the attack.

The prime minister was addressing the crowd of about 300 high-profile guests gathered to celebrate a year since the government-owned TV station took to the air — meant to be yet another milestone in Somalia’s slow return to peace.

But scenes of chaos ensued when a blast ripped through seats. The rescue effort was haphazard and some wounded journalists say they were left to organise their own lifts to hospital.

Police say initial investigations point to a female suicide bomber as being behind the explosion, but the Islamist group al-Shabab said it had planted a device at the theatre ahead of the event, which was announced on television on Tuesday night.

All guests were thoroughly frisked as they entered the theatre, so suspicions are growing that it may have been an inside job. It has also prompted people to question why officials would publicise the event when the government is unable to guarantee security — even for its own prime minister.

Condemning al-Shabab, he said it was in the group’s nature to “kill innocent people” and described the attacks as “the last breaths of a dying horse”.

Abdullahi Yussuf Abdurahiman, 22, survived the explosion. He told BBC News: “I saw mutilated bodies, shoes on the ground, bloody mobile phones and chairs cut in half by the force of the blast.

“A lot of people were being carried out and there were dead people on the floor. It was unimaginable. Then everyone was running away.”

Soldiers started shooting after the blast, witnesses said.

In a statement al-Shabab said it was behind the bombing but referred to a planted device rather than a suicide bomber.

“The Mujahideen successfully planted the explosives before the gathering,” it said on Twitter.

Al-Shabab spokesman Sheikh Abdiasis Abu Musab told Reuters news agency: “We were behind the theatre blast. We targeted the infidel ministers and legislators, and they were the casualties of today.”

The explosion comes as the UN-backed government seeks to show it has re-established control of the city since al-Shabab was forced out in August.

However, al-Shabab has continued to attack the capital with bombs and mortars.

Last week, African Union (AU) troops said they had seized control of territory on the outskirts of Mogadishu which, they said, had allowed the Islamist fighters to launch their frequent attacks on the city.

Appeal for information

Brigadier General Audace Nduwumunsi, deputy commander of the AU mission said the peacekeepers stood firmly with the Somali government.

“Yet again the terrorists’ methods show that they are enemies of peace and are foreign to Somali culture,” he said.

“By their attack they are trying to derail the hopes and dreams of the Somali people but they will fail.”

He encouraged people in Mogadishu to come forward with any information about possible further attacks.

[Return to headlines]

	Financial Crisis
»	Bankruptcies Have German Solar on the Ropes
»	EU-IMF Experts Praise Portugal, Warn of Risks From Recession
»	Fed Buying 61 Percent of US Debt
»	Labour: Jobs in Middle East Booming, +47% in Saudi Arabia
»	Spain: Government, Public Debt to Approach 80% GDP in 2012
»	Spanish Unemployment Hits Record High in March
»	Swiss Take Fall as US and UK ‘Havens’ Thrive: Report
	USA
»	Glenn Beck to Publish Blockbuster on Obama’s Communist Mentor
»	It’s Not Road Rage, It’s Terrorism
»	Obama Imposes Martial Law
»	Scrubbing Space Exploration Saved $3 Billion a Year, A Mere Rounding Error
»	Sharpton Lands in Jail in Vieques
»	Terry Jones Files Federal Suit Against Dearborn Over Free Speech Issues
	Europe and the EU
»	France: Torture Instrument Sale Suspended After Protests
»	France Expels Five Islamist Radicals
»	France: The Liberal Jewish Eunuch
»	French Islamist Suspects ‘Meant to Kidnap Jewish Judge’
»	Greece: After Robberies, Museum Guards Get Police Training
»	Norway: Islamists and Far Right on Breivik Witness List
»	Norway: Krekar, ‘Fjordman’ Called to Testify
»	Stolen Tax CD Case: Germany Outraged Over Swiss Arrest Warrants
»	Sweden: Teens’ Savage Attack ‘May Have Been Filmed’
»	UK: Terrified Pedestrians Scatter as Deranged Driver Tries to ‘Bowl Them Over Like Skittles’ Following a ‘Respect Row’
	Mediterranean Union
»	Research and Innovation, Towards New Partnership
	Israel and the Palestinians
»	Books: Kibbutz Experiment Infantile and Cruel, Amos Oz
»	Hebron, Army’s Ultimatum to Settlers, Netanyahu Steps in
»	Obama’s Got Israel’s Back: That’s Where the Knife Goes
»	See Why Israel Doesn’t Trust Obama?
	Middle East
»	Non-Muslims Not Allowed to Buy Property on Turkish Island
	Russia
»	Two Blazes in Moscow, 17 Killed
	South Asia
»	German Military Fears for Afghanistan’s Future
»	Mumbai Attack: US Announces $10 Mn Bounty on Lashkar-E-Taiba Founder Hafiz Saeed
»	The Logistical Nightmare of Leaving Afghanistan
	Sub-Saharan Africa
»	Power Elite and the Muslim Brotherhood, Part 11
	Immigration
»	Greece Eyes Illegal-Immigrant Detention Measure
»	Tragedy South of Lampedusa, 10 Dead at Sea

Bankruptcies Have German Solar on the Ropes

The German solar industry is at a turning point. The bankruptcy of Q-Cells this week shows that the days of German solar cell production are numbered. Asian competitors took the lead years ago, and German government subsidies were part of the problem.

— Hat tip: Fjordman

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EU-IMF Experts Praise Portugal, Warn of Risks From Recession

(LISBON) — Portugal is meeting debt-rescue targets and could be strong enough to borrow on financial markets next year but is in a deeper recession than thought, EU and IMF auditors said on Tuesday.

The economy is now set to shrink by 3.25 percent this year, they said, pointing to a worse recession than expected so far with contraction forecast to be 3.0 percent.

There is a resurgence of concern on financial markets that Portugal is near a danger zone of possibly needing a second round of rescue help from the EU and IMF, and that Spain is also at risk of needing help.

But the creditors commended the Portuguese government for having cut the budget deficit to 4.2 percent of GDP, sharper than a 5.9 percent target.

Portugal still faces risks, the experts from the European Union, The European Central Bank and the International Monetary Fund, warned.

Portugal last year became the third eurozone country after Greece and Ireland to be bailed out, receiving an EU-IMF package worth up to 78 billion euros in return for a commitment to reform its economy and impose austerity measures.

Since the beginning of the year and particularly in the last month, tensions over the eurozone debt crisis have eased, largely because of progress by the eurozone in increasing emergency funding if further bailouts are needed.

“Overall, the programme is on track. But important risks and challenges remain,” the European Commission said in a report based on the latest assessments of Portugal by the troika, conducted in late February.

The report said: “Noticeable progress has been made in the area of structural reforms. The far-reaching and ambitious reform agenda is on track in the areas of labour market, health care, housing, judiciary and the insolvency and regulatory framework including competition. Also, privatisations so far have been highly successful.”

The auditors said that economic conditions in Portugal had worsened markedly towards the end of last year and that there was concern about a weakening of the external trade balance.

— Hat tip: Fjordman

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Fed Buying 61 Percent of US Debt

The Federal Reserve is propping up the entire U.S. economy by buying 61 percent of the government debt issued by the Treasury Department, a trend that cannot last, Lawrence Goodman, a former Treasury official and current president of the Center for Financial Stability, writes in a Wall Street Journal opinion article published Wednesday.

“Last year the Fed purchased a stunning 61 percent of the total net Treasury issuance, up from negligible amounts prior to the 2008 financial crisis,” Goodman writes.

Goodman also warns that U.S. economy and markets are “at risk for a sharp correction” if conditions aren’t “normalized.”

— Hat tip: JD

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Labour: Jobs in Middle East Booming, +47% in Saudi Arabia

Education and healthcare most dynamic sectors, report

(ANSAmed) — DOHA — Amid a global economic crisis, many Middle Eastern countries stand out for their dynamism, at least as concerns work: over the past year jobs in the region increased by 14% according to the figures provided by the Monster Employment Index on the basis of February 2012. With the Arab Spring many Arab countries decided to invest in job creation in order to ensure social peace. The top place goes to Saudi Arabia, with a 37% increase, followed by Egypt with +31%. Also doing well was Kuwait, where jobs increased by 12%. The opposite was seen in Oman (-18%), in the United Arab Emirates (-13%), Qatar (-12%) and Bahrain (-6%). The most dynamic sectors, according to the report, are education, with a 47% increase in jobs, healthcare (+33%), the financial and banking sector (+28%) and media and communications (+26%). Paradoxically, job opportunities are in decline in the oil sector, which saw a 21% drop in the Middle East despite the oil and gas giants being concentrated in the region. The hotel sector also saw a drop in jobs (-6%).

— Hat tip: Fjordman

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Spain: Government, Public Debt to Approach 80% GDP in 2012

It currently stands at 68,5%

(ANSAmed) — MADRID — The Spanish government expects public debt to rise by about 10% over the course of this year, reaching almost 80% of GDP, compared to the current figure of 68.5%, according to Spain’s Finance Minister. The Wall Street Journal’s interview with Luis de Guindos, which is published tomorrow, has been quoted by the EFE agency. The increase in public sector debt is partly due to the need to finance deficit, the minister says, and the result of government support through syndicated loan guarantees to local governments, who own around 35 billion euros. De Guindos made it clear that the increase in public debt will not require a significant increase in the classification of sovereign debt, a figure that is binding thanks to loans from a number of government schemes. Spain has started out on a difficult road to economic reform, but measures should restore the country to growth in 2013, according to the Minister. The government predicts that anti-deficit measures will lead the economy to a decrease of 1.7% this year, a forecast that De Guindos calls “cautious and conservative”, but will bring about “lightly positive growth” for next year.

— Hat tip: Fjordman

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Spanish Unemployment Hits Record High in March

Spain’s number of jobless people has risen for the eighth consecutive month with companies across the nation laying off staff. Madrid’s 2012 austerity budget may further worsen the situation in the short-term.

The number of job seekers in Spain jumped to an all-time high in March, the National Statistics Institute announced on Tuesday. Unemployment rose for the eighth straight month to reach 4.75 million people.

That meant a 0.82-percent increase from February of this year and a 9.63-percent rise year-on-year.

“We continue to face an unsatisfactory situation of an increase in the number of jobless people,” Secretary of State for Employment, Engracia Hidalgo, said in an official release.

He added it is important to create confidence and flexibility for companies. In February, the Spanish government of Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy passed a new labor reform which made it easier and cheaper for firms to hire and fire people as well as cut wages unilaterally.

— Hat tip: Fjordman

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Swiss Take Fall as US and UK ‘Havens’ Thrive: Report

Despite the recurrent finger-pointing aimed at Switzerland for providing a haven to tax dodgers, the Tax Justice Network has found that the US and the UK hold over 50 percent of the global offshore market.

Switzerland has been the big loser in the war on tax havens, the newspaper Tribune de Genève reports.

According to the Tax Justice Network, a British organisation made up of accountants, lawyers, academics and others, for all the criticism and worldwide attention, Switzerland is only responsible for about 6 percent of the offshore trade.

“When you read the statement which followed the G20 in April 2009, we find that the emphasis is made on banking secrecy, a Swiss concept, while trusts, a typically Anglo-Saxon legal tool, are forgotten,” Nicholas Shaxson, writer and researcher for the Tax Justice Network, said.

Shaxson is a British author best known for his investigative books, Poisoned Wells (2007) and Treasure Islands (2011), the latter of which is an investigation into the harmful effects of tax avoidance.

Having completed his research, Shaxson now believes that the US and the UK are the biggest tax havens in the world.

According to his survey, the US is responsible for approximately 21 percent of offshore business, while the UK is responsible for about 20 percent. A further 10 percent derives from trade carried out through Britain’s dependent territories, such as the Cayman Islands, and crown dependencies Jersey, Guernsey and the Isle of Man.

— Hat tip: Fjordman

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Glenn Beck to Publish Blockbuster on Obama’s Communist Mentor

Seizing on the scandal involving President Obama’s “open mic” obsequious conversation with Russian President Dmitry Medvedev, Glenn Beck has announced that Paul Kengor’s explosive new book on Frank Marshall Davis will be published this summer through Beck’s Mercury Ink outlet. Davis was a pro-Moscow communist who helped raise and mentor Obama.

Davis, Beck says, is the key to understanding Obama’s pro-Russian foreign policy.

The new Kengor book carries the title, THE COMMUNIST Frank Marshall Davis: The Untold Story of Barack Obama’s Mentor. Mercury Ink, which is publishing the book, is the publishing imprint of Mercury Radio Arts, Inc., a multimedia production company owned by Beck.

In the embarrassing “open mic” incident, Obama told Medvedev that he needed some “space” from the Russians before meeting any more of their demands, and that he would have more “flexibility” after being re-elected. Medvedev promised to transmit the information to “Vladimir,” meaning Vladimir Putin, the former KGB officer who is going to assume the Russian presidency for the second time on May 7. Putin has described the fall of the Soviet Union as “the greatest geopolitical catastrophe of the century.”

— Hat tip: JD

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It’s Not Road Rage, It’s Terrorism

And thus matters rested until a few days ago, when Baz’s confession in 2007 finally became public via a New York Post article. In it, Baz acknowledged the impact of the Goldstein atrocity on him, admitted having specifically targeted Jews, and confessed to following a van of Hasidic boys for two miles from the Manhattan Eye and Ear Infirmary to the bridge. Asked if he would have shot at a van full of black or Latino people, he replied, “No, I only shot them because they were Jewish.”

This belated confession points to a recurring problem of politicians, law enforcement, and the press with Islamist terrorism: their unwillingness to stare it in the face and ascribe murder to it.

Most recently, this avoidance reared its ugly head in the case of Mohammed Merah in Toulouse, France, where the establishment’s immediate impulse was to assume the murderer of three soldiers and four Jews was a non-Muslim. As my colleague Adam Turner notes in the Daily Caller, “the elite Western public officials’ and media’s speculation about the true killer, prior to the discovery of his identity, heavily focused (also here and here and here) on the belief that he was a white European neo-Nazi.” Only when Merah himself boasted of his crime to the police and even sent videos of his actions to Al Jazeera did the other theories finally vaporize.

— Hat tip: JD

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Obama Imposes Martial Law

On March 16, President Obama without public notice unilaterally assumed dictatorial power over the entire country, issuing an Executive Order (“Executive Order—National Defense Resources Preparedness”) that would permit him in times of peace or war, in his sole discretion, to control all of the nation’s industry and resources for “purposes of national defense.”

Under Article I, Section 9, Clause 2, Congress has the exclusive power to suspend the writ of habeas corpus (the right of one to be released by a court from military or police custody) in “cases of rebellion or invasion” when “the public safety may require it.” Although not synonymous with martial law, which the Constitution never mentions by name, it is nevertheless clear that the Founding Fathers did not intend the President either to declare a state of war or to act independent of Congress to suspend the writ. Moreover, there is no executive power to impose blanket regulations over the economy independent of Congress, even in times of war. In this Executive Order, President Obama assumes that extraordinary power beyond the limits of the Constitution. Indeed, so sweeping are the areas of control, that there is no substantive difference between the powers he has assumed and those of a dictator.

— Hat tip: JD

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Scrubbing Space Exploration Saved $3 Billion a Year, A Mere Rounding Error

After 30 years of liftoffs, 7,000 NASA workers found themselves unemployed and unemployable. America lost its Shuttle program and its ability to fly into space unless it buys a seat on a Russian rocket. We saved $3 billion a year, a mere rounding error in our out-of-control trillion-dollar spending, but we lost our national pride.

“President Obama canceled NASA’s plan to replace the space shuttle in favor of a more modest program, and then Congress slashed the funding for that.” (Scott Pelley)

According to Chris Millner, this is not the first time Brevard County experienced unemployment on such large scale. It happened in 1972 after the last mission to the moon. NASA had the shuttle designed for years, ready to replace the lunar mission. Similarly, President Bush had approved a program called Constellation to follow the Shuttle.

[…]

Mike Carpenter was shocked when President Obama cancelled Constellation in 2010 and turned over development of a new spaceship program to private entrepreneurs. “Well, we were lied to when Obama came through, gave us a lot of hope and supposedly a lot of change. Well, I’ve got change in my pocket, but the hope is gone.”

— Hat tip: JD

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Sharpton Lands in Jail in Vieques

The Civil-rights Leader Got The Stiffest Sentence Among The Anti-navy Protesters.

The Rev. Al Sharpton and three Puerto Rican politicians from New York City received stiff jail sentences Wednesday for breaking onto the U.S. Navy’s grounds in Vieques during protests over bombing exercises there.

Cuffed in the courtroom and led to jail, Sharpton was sentenced to 90 days on a misdemeanor charge of trespassing, a stiffer sentence than most of the other 12 on trial received. In determining jail time, U.S. District Judge Jose Fuste considered Sharpton’s previous conviction stemming from a 1993 protest at the Brooklyn Bridge.

New York State Assemblyman Jose Rivera, New York City Councilman Adolfo Carrion and Roberto Ramirez, president of the Bronx Democratic Party, were sent to jail for 40 days and fined $500 each. They all arrived in Puerto Rico from New York early Wednesday morning after being told Tuesday afternoon that they had to be in Fuste’s courtroom in a matter of hours.

Angry and surprised lawyers for the New York men said they would appeal the convictions and sentences immediately. Local lawyers represented Sharpton, Ramirez, Carrion and Rivera after the judge refused to delay the trial…

[Return to headlines]

Terry Jones Files Federal Suit Against Dearborn Over Free Speech Issues

Detroit— Controversial Florida Pastor Terry Jones sued the city of Dearborn and police chief Monday in federal court, alleging they violated his constitutional rights.

The lawsuit stems from alleged restrictions placed on Jones, who wants to demonstrate and distribute literature Saturday in front of the Islamic Center of America on Ford Road.

A Jones colleague applied for a special events permit, which includes a document releasing the city from any liability, costs or claims resulting from the event.

“Plaintiffs should not be forced to sign a one-sided, unconscionable contract subject only to the unbridled discretion of the city’s legal department in order to exercise their constitutional rights,” Jones lawyer Erin Mersino wrote in the lawsuit. “The city’s free speech restriction imposes an unconstitutional burden on plaintiffs’ constitutional rights.”

Jones wants a judge to declare the city is violating his constitutional rights and block the city from restricting his free speech rights, according to the lawsuit. Jones also wants unspecified damages.

The lawsuit was filed by Jones, Christian minister Wayne Sapp of Florida and the group Stand Up America Now, which was established to educate people about the threat of sharia law.

The group does not have insurance to cover the city’s “hold harmless” agreement and can’t afford to obtain coverage, according to the lawsuit.

Jones says he is coming to Dearborn on Saturday to protest “the rise of shariah” and what he calls “special Muslim privileges.”

Last year, authorities blocked Jones from protesting outside the mosque on Good Friday, but a Wayne County Circuit Court judge later ruled a lower court had erred by requiring Jones to take out a “peace bond” before holding his demonstration.

— Hat tip: RE

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France: Torture Instrument Sale Suspended After Protests

A planned sale of torture instruments in Paris which belonged to one of France’s last executioners has been cancelled, for now at least.

The macabre collection of over 350 items was built up by Fernand Meyssonnier, one of France’s last executioners.

He worked between 1947 and 1961 and executed more than 200 people. Meyssonnier, who died in 2008, was particularly known for the executions he carried out in Algeria.

The collection, planned to take place on Tuesday, was put up for sale by his only daughter and was to be handled by the Cornette de Saint Cyr auction house.

On Tuesday morning the sale was still listed on the auction house’s website as “Penalties and Punishments of Yesteryear”.

Gruesome items up for sale included thumb screws, a hand-crusher and a guillotine.

Other torture instruments included a “pear of anguish”, also known as a “choke pear” as the pear-shaped instrument was inserted into the victim’s mouth and then slowly expanded during questioning.

— Hat tip: Fjordman

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France Expels Five Islamist Radicals

France has expelled two Islamic radicals and plans to deport three more as part of its crackdown following last month’s attacks by an Islamist who shot dead seven people, interior minister Claude Guéant announced on Monday.

An Algerian radical and a Malian imam were sent back to their home countries on Monday, the interior ministry said in a statement.

A Saudi imam would not be let back into the country, a Turkish imam and a Tunisian radical would also shortly be expelled, and others would follow, the statement added.

At an election rally in the eastern city of Nancy on Monday, President Nicolas Sarkozy said he was sending a very clear message.

“All those who make remarks contrary to the values of the Republic will be instantly put outside the territory of the French Republic, there will no exception, there will be no leniency,” he said.

French police arrested 19 people in a crackdown on suspected Islamist networks in dawn raids on Friday as Sarkozy made the battle against extremism a keynote of his re-election campaign.

Of those, 16 were still in custody on Monday, sources close to the investigation said.

Some of the arrests were made in the southwest city of Toulouse, where gunman Mohamed Merah was shot dead by police last month after a 32-hour siege at a flat there.

Of the two deported on Monday, Algerian activist Ali Belhadad had served 18 months in France for his part in a 1994 attack on a Marrakesh hotel in which gunmen killed two people and wounded two others, said the ministry.

Belhadad, who had in recent weeks re-established links with the radical Islamist movement, had been deported to Algeria, the ministry said.

— Hat tip: Fjordman

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France: The Liberal Jewish Eunuch

[WARNING: Disturbing content.]

The verdict is in on the Tolouse killings of Jewish children and the villain is that old standby, “Failure to Integrate”. What it comes down to is that Mohammed Merah did not kill Jewish children because he hated Jews, because he had breathed in the foul poisonous vapors of a creed which believes Jews to be subhuman devils whose destruction must come to pass before the golden age of Islam finally arrives. Mohammed Merah killed Jews because he was unhappy and it was France that made him unhappy.

Murder across religious and ethnic boundaries in Europe is inevitably a crime against multiculturalism. If someone kills a Muslim, it’s an assault on multiculturalism. If a Muslim kills someone, it’s also an assault on multiculturalism. Whoever ends up in the morgue, the incident becomes a clarion call for recommitting ourselves to more multiculturalism.

It’s unsurprising then that the real villains of the Tolouse killings are Sarkozy for banning burqas, Marine LePen for being critical of Islam and anyone who employs words or images which make Muslims feel unwelcome in France. Alienate a Muslim from French society and before you know it he’s shooting up some children in order to express his grievances about integration. Fail to make him happy and the blood of his victims is on your hands.

— Hat tip: JD

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French Islamist Suspects ‘Meant to Kidnap Jewish Judge’

Suspected Islamist militants arrested in France were plotting to kidnap a Jewish judge, sources close to the investigation told French media.

Of the 19 people arrested across the country on Friday, 16 remain in custody and the first court hearings are due to be held shortly.

France expelled two foreign-born radical Islamists on Monday.

An Islamist gunman, Mohamed Merah, killed seven people in south-western France last month before being shot.

A lawyer for his Algerian father says she has evidence his son pleaded his innocence in talks with police besieging his flat in Toulouse.

A French police source suggested the allegation did not square with the facts of the siege.

Police protection

Sources close to the investigation told French media that some of the suspects seized in Friday’s dawn raids had been planning to kidnap Jewish magistrate Albert Levy in the eastern city of Lyon.

Mr Levy and his family are now under police protection.

The head of France’s Central Directorate for Domestic Intelligence (DCRI), Bernard Squarcini, said earlier that the suspects were French nationals involved in “collective war-like training, linked to a violent, religious indoctrination”.

Some belonged to a banned extremist group, Forsane Alizza, and had been involved in paintball gun games, he added.

Police also seized a number of weapons including four Kalashnikov rifles, eight other rifles and “seven or eight” handguns, along with tear gas canisters and a taser, Mr Squarcini said.

French anti-terrorism legislation allows for suspects to be held for four days, and some of the suspects may be charged on Tuesday.

Right to appeal

On Monday, the French interior ministry announced two men had been expelled on grounds of state security and public safety, and had returned to their countries of origin.

One of these, Malian imam Almany Baradji, had reportedly preached anti-Semitism and advocated the full face veil for women — which is illegal in France.

The other, Algerian national Ali Belhadad, had already served a prison sentence for his role in a 1994 attack in Morocco, and had renewed his “ties with the radical Islamist movement in recent weeks”.

Both men may appeal against their expulsion, the French interior ministry told the BBC News website on Tuesday.

They had not been allowed to make appeals earlier because their expulsion was an “urgent procedure”.

Two imams from Saudi Arabia and Turkey and a suspected Tunisian militant are similarly expected to be expelled, with more expulsions to follow, officials said…

— Hat tip: Nick

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Greece: After Robberies, Museum Guards Get Police Training

(ANSAmed) — ATHENS, APRIL 3 — More than 2,000 museum employees across Greece have begun week-long security seminars by police, in the wake of two embarrassing robberies as daily Athens News reports. Police said training sites has been set up in 23 cities and towns, with the seminars starting on Monday.

Last month, gunmen snatched dozens of ancient artefacts and a 3,200-year-old gold ring from a museum at Ancient Olympia. The heist came weeks after paintings by Picasso and Mondrian were stolen from the Athens’ National Gallery. “We have many priceless works on display on our museums,” Culture Minister Pavlos Geroulanos said. “I think the events at Olympia have concerned everyone, and the fact that human lives were put at danger is something we must strive to avoid at all costs.”

— Hat tip: Fjordman

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Norway: Islamists and Far Right on Breivik Witness List

The lawyer for Norwegian confessed killer Anders Behring Breivik said on Monday he would call right-wing extremists and Islamists, including a radical jailed mullah, as witnesses in support of his client at this month’s trial.

Defence attorney Geir Lippestad said the idea of calling extremists like Mullah Krekar, who founded the radical Iraqi Kurdish Islamist group Ansar al-Islam and has been sentenced to five years in prison for making death threats, was important to show that his client was not criminally insane.

An expert evaluation determined late last year that Behring Breivik was suffering from paranoid schizophrenia, but the 33-year-old far-right extremist who has confessed to killing 77 people in twin attacks last July insists he is sane.

“We have to determine if the experts who evaluated Breivik mistakenly blew off his ideas and opinions, especially about an ongoing war (between Islam and the West), as paranoid hallucinations and a psychosis,” Lippestad told reporters.

“The question is to know if there are in fact groups, even small ones, in Norway who agree (with his premise). That could be important when it comes to the question of legal responsibility,” he added.

The far-right Norwegian blogger “Fjordman,” one of Behring Breivik’s mentors, will also be called to the witness stand, Lippestad said, stressing though that the defence does not intend to enable a free-flow of “political propaganda,” as his client appears to wish.

“Calling witnesses from extremist milieus is important because we think that the psychiatric experts perhaps do not have the necessary knowledge” to distinguish ideological extremism from a psychiatric disorder, he said.

— Hat tip: Fjordman

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Norway: Krekar, ‘Fjordman’ Called to Testify

Defense attorneys for confessed terrorist Anders Behring Breivik have confirmed that former guerrilla leader Mullah Krekar and anti-Muslim blogger Peder Jensen, better known as “Fjordman,” are among the roughly 35 persons they’re calling to testify during Breivik’s trial. The goal is to prove that Breivik, like Krekar and Jensen, is driven by political ideology, not insanity, and therefore can be held responsible for his attacks.

— Hat tip: Fjordman

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Stolen Tax CD Case: Germany Outraged Over Swiss Arrest Warrants

Many German politicians and tax collectors are furious about Switzerland’s decision to issue arrest warrants against three German officials who bought a stolen CD with tax data. The move has gone down well in Switzerland, where politicians have praised the country’s assertiveness. But it is unclear how the Swiss authorities will proceed — the main witness is dead.

— Hat tip: Fjordman

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Sweden: Teens’ Savage Attack ‘May Have Been Filmed’

Video footage may be available of the brutal beating in Gothenburg where a gang of teenage boys are suspected of having beaten a 61-year-old into a coma as bystanders looked on.

On Sunday, four of the seven teens believed to have viciously attacked a 61-year-old man two weeks ago in Gothenburg were ordered held on remand, while the victim is still fighting for his life in hospital.

The boys, who are aged between 15 and 16, were ordered held on suspicion of aggravated assault in the beating of 61-year-old Carl-Eric Cedvander, who was left unconscious in a fountain in a town square.

Another three younger boys who were involved have been taken into custody by social services due to their age, but remain suspected of having a role in the attack.

On Tuesday, the Aftonbladet newspaper reported that video surveillance cameras may have captured the event, with the tapes having been collected by police in hopes they will provide them with a better understanding what happened in the beating, which has has left Cedvander hovering between life and death in a coma ever since.

The attack, which occurred in Kortedala Torg on March 18th, has left other residents embittered and calling for action, and police are concerned that talks of a demonstration against violence may boil over into an anti-immigrant protest.

“We see that racist websites blame foreigners in general after what happened. It makes me angry, and we need to monitor developments carefully,” said the police’s Bertil Claesson to Aftonbladet.

— Hat tip: Fjordman

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UK: Terrified Pedestrians Scatter as Deranged Driver Tries to ‘Bowl Them Over Like Skittles’ Following a ‘Respect Row’

A crazed driver turned his car into a 50mph motorised battering ram as he tried to mow down a crowd of terrified pedestrians on a night out in Manchester.

These dramatic CCTV images show the moment the deranged driver screeched to a halt, did a U-turn and careered down the wrong side of a city centre street directly towards a group of revellers.

The frightened men and women scatter in terror as angry motorist Dominic Ali, 23, revs up his girlfriend’s Ford Focus and deliberately tries to bowl them over ‘like skittles’.

The businessman said he committed the act of extreme road rage because the group of people had been mocking him as he drew up at a junction.

Footage taken from a camera high above the street shows Ali exchange words with the pedestrians before screeching away, only to turn around a few yards down the street and drive directly at the pedestrians.

The images show an oncoming taxi pass by as Ali made the potentially deadly manoeuvre. The pedestrians are only saved by a lamppost as they dart for cover.

Ali then slammed his car into reverse and sped off backwards into the night as his victims furiously punched the bodywork of the blue vehicle.

Amazingly no one was hurt in the 4am incident which occurred on October 14 last year after the group left a bar in Manchester city centre.

Ali drove the battered car home but later handed himself in after he saw footage of the attack on BBC TV’s Six O’Clock News.

He later claimed a passer-by had tried to punch him through the driver’s side window whilst he was picking up a friend from a ‘gentleman’s club’ and he took revenge on the ‘spur of the moment.’

At Manchester Crown Court Ali, who runs a sports company, was jailed for eight months after he admitted dangerous driving.

His mother sobbed in the public gallery as her son was also disqualified from driving for two years and ordered to pay £366 compensation to Manchester City Council for the damaged lamppost.

Earlier Tim Greenald prosecuting, said the incident occurred after Ali borrowed his girlfriend’s car and drove it into the city centre where he got caught up in the fracas.

He said: ‘There was between three and four passengers in the car as well as the defendant driving.’

According to Mr Greenald the front end of the car was damaged, the lights were damaged, and there was damage to the front suspension and nearside tyres.

‘He stated that he was picking up a female friend from a gentleman’s club and had driven up and saw fighting,’ added Mr Greenald.

‘A male tried to hit him and kicked the car and he claimed to have driven off because he was pursued by males.

‘He said he had to go back to pick up his friend and he was trying to turn right when he lost control due to the nature of the power steering.

‘We say it was intentional and he had driven off.

‘There are clearly words being said but if he had been punched and his car was kicked it’s nothing that the court can see.

‘When he made that right turn there were pedestrians on the road so that endangered their health and safety.’

In mitigation defence counsel Miss Carolyn Smith said: ‘He accepts his driving was deliberate and is struggling to accept the enormity of his actions. When confronted by the CCTV in his police interview he was horrified.

‘He did act on the spur of the moment following a conversation with those people. He was driving with a friend and was driving to pick another friend up from work.

‘He did make off from the group and it was his decision to turn round and frighten them. His actions are inexplicable and he has shown sincere remorse.’

But Judge Martin Steiger QC told Ali: ‘This behaviour is as bad as what can be imagined. You deliberately drove into people on the pavement.

‘You displayed shocking behaviour and the public were put at risk.’

Police said the incident was an act of ‘outrageous recklessness.’

Det Con Dave Berry, of Greater Manchester Police said: ‘Anyone who views this footage will be in disbelief that no-one was seriously injured or even worse, killed.’

— Hat tip: Vlad Tepes

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Research and Innovation, Towards New Partnership

EU Commissioner, arab spring called for a new vision

(ANSAmed) — BRUSSELS, APRIL 02 — Research and innovation are key elements of the European Union’s cooperation with Mediterranean countries, European Commissioner for Research, Innovation and Science Maire Geoghegan-Quinn has told the Euro-Mediterranean Conference that brings together more than 300 participants from over 30 countries to define a medium- to long-term agenda for Euro-Mediterranean cooperation, in Barcelona.

Facing common challenges such as climate change, water and energy, “it makes perfect sense — said the the EU Commissioner — to tackle these issues jointly, and to bring our scientists together so they can find the answers we need”. “But there is also — Gheoghegan-Quinn added — a strong economic rationale to work together: investing in and cooperating on research and innovation promotes growth and jobs, and improves people’s lives across both regions”. Commissioner Geoghegan-Quinn said a lot had been achieved since the European Neighbourhood Policy but the events of the Arab Spring “called for a new vision for Cooperation in Research and Innovation between the EU and the Mediterranean countries, which would contribute to sustainable and inclusive growth in the region, and create the conditions for developing a new cooperation partnership”.

— Hat tip: Fjordman

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Books: Kibbutz Experiment Infantile and Cruel, Amos Oz

Stories collection comes out, homage to maladjusted pioneers

(ANSAmed) — TEL AVIV, APRIL 3 — In drawing up the collectivistic project of the kibbutzim, “our founding fathers tried to change human nature in a single swoop, but the attempt was infantile and cruel”: these are the feelings running through the eight short stories in Amos Oz’s latest book. Its title, ‘Ben Haverim’, is willfully ambiguous, and could be translated as either “Among Friends” or “Among Comrades”.

— Hat tip: Fjordman

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Hebron, Army’s Ultimatum to Settlers, Netanyahu Steps in

They occupied central building

(ANSAmed) — TEL AVIV — Tensions are running high today in the West Bank city of Hebron, with the deadline imposed by the Israeli army on a group of settlers, who have been asked to leave a building they occupied a few days ago, about to expire.

The settlers claim that they acquired the building legally (through a Palestinian intermediary), but the Defence Minister, Ehud Barak, has said that, for reasons of public order, the decision to allow new Israeli inhabitants into areas populated by Palestinian lies with the military authorities.

Meanwhile, in an attempt to avoid outbreaks of violence, the Prime Minister, Benyamin Netanyahu, has asked Barak to allow settlers the chance to prove their claims in front of a court, a process that the press says could take several days.

Hebron’s Palestinian mayor, Khaled Osseili, told military radio that settlers took possession of the building, which is located close to the sanctuary known as the Cave of the Patriarchs, by forging documents. The mayor also complained that he was unable to visit the contested building because he was refused access by both settlers and the Israeli army.

— Hat tip: Fjordman

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Obama’s Got Israel’s Back: That’s Where the Knife Goes

Is the Obama administration using either leaks or black propaganda to sabotage Israel’s defence against the threat of genocide?- Melanie Phillips, Daily Mail Online

Evidently, reporters at the Daily Mail are not so caught up in the Trayvon ruckus that they’re ignoring the Obama administration’s most recent and most brazen efforts at sabotaging Israel’s efforts to keep itself on the planet.

John Bolton, also seemingly immune from Trayvonmania, told Fox News that an article in Foreign Policy quoted government sources claiming that Israel had been granted access to airfields in Azerbaijan, a former Soviet puppet state.

But, the best part was the element of surprise. Iran has, up till now, expected Israel to strike from the south. Now, thanks to the Obama administration, which is hell bent on preventing Israel from committing acts of self defense, Iran can move to protect itself.

Bolton made it clear that this was an “orchestrated leak”, not some CIA agent gone rogue. Phillips points out that the Foreign Policy piece was written by Mark Perry, a former unofficial Yasser Arafat adviser and well established Israel basher.

— Hat tip: JD

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See Why Israel Doesn’t Trust Obama?

Not only has our beloved “Dear Leader,” Obama, managed to “PO” Israel even more, he has now “PO’ed” the Baku government of Azerbaijan. By leaking news, recently, that Israel and Azerbaijan have reached an agreement for Israeli aircraft to have landing rights at Azeri airbases, Obama has infuriated Israel’s Netanyahu government even more and may have compromised Azerbaijan’s relations with Iran (shaky as they may be), as well.

In case you missed it when looking at a map, Azerbaijan is the small country snuggled tightly against the northern border of Iran. There are roughly sixteen million Azeris (The people of Azerbaijan).

Now here’s the thing: Azerbaijan’s government and the Israeli government have become, er, friends. The only people who are having a problem with this is the Obama Administration in America — and the Ahmadinejad Administration in Iran. Suddenly, it would seem, the US and Iran are BOTH going after Israel.

We have told you for months and even years that the Netanyahu government in Israel does not trust the Obama administration in the US and that is why the Israelis refuse to give Obama a heads-up on an attack on Iran. They are convinced (as am I) that the Obama Administration would immediately pick up the phone and call Iran and tell Ahmadinejad “the Israelis are coming.”

Far-fetched, you say? Believe what you want, but the truth is—Obama’s people have already tipped off Iran that there is a pact of some sort between the Baku government in Azerbaijan and the Netanyahu government in Israel possibly for landing rights for Israeli combat aircraft on Azerbaijan soil.

— Hat tip: JD

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Non-Muslims Not Allowed to Buy Property on Turkish Island

Turkey’s Greek Orthodox citizens living on the island of Gökçeada (Imbros) in the north Aegean cannot buy property on the island, the Taraf daily claimed on Sunday.

The issue emerged when lawyer Erhan Gökçe complained in court about officials who put up difficulties before non-Muslims on the island who want to obtain property. He first petitioned Gökçeada’s Land Registry and Cadastre Department, demanding to know why Muslims can easily buy property on Gökçeada while members of the Greek Orthodox community cannot. The Land Registry office has admitted to preventing non-Muslims from buying property, citing a National Security Council (MGK) decision, but refused to give further details. The office said details constituted state secrets and giving out the information might harm national security, foreign relations and national defense. Gökçe took the issue to an administrative court in Bursa earlier this year. The court ruled that Gökçe has the right to be informed by the bureau about the dubious property sale procedures on the island. However, the Gökçeada Land Registry and Cadastre Department appealed the ruling at the Council of State. The office argued in its appeal that both Gökçeada and Bozcaada are located in a strategic area in terms of national security.

— Hat tip: Fjordman

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Two Blazes in Moscow, 17 Killed

Moscow officials say a fire has been extinguished in a skyscraper under construction that’s set to become Europe’s tallest high-rise. On Moscow’s southern outskirts a blaze in a hostel has killed 17 migrant workers.

Helicopters dumped water to put out the blaze between the 65th and 67th floors of Moscow’s Federation Tower. Firefighters trudged up stairs because elevators are not yet in service on the construction site. Fourteen people were evacuated without injury, according to Russian news agencies.

The fiery night-time spectacle, watched by Moscow residents, reportedly began when a construction spotlight lamp set fire to plastic sheeting. The twin towers are being erected west of the Kremlin.

A second blaze on Moscow’s southern outskirts killed 17 migrant workers who were using a shed as a hostel fitted out with bunk beds, next to a market, according to a spokesman for Moscow’s fire department.

Unconfirmed reports suggested that the workers might have been from Tajikistan, a country in economic tatters which has a tenth of its population — especially its younger people — living abroad.

The news agency Interfax quoted investigators as saying an electric space heater left on in the improvised hostel overnight to ward off frigid spring weather may have been the cause of the blaze.

— Hat tip: Fjordman

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German Military Fears for Afghanistan’s Future

German soldiers are preparing to withdraw from an unstable Afghanistan, a massive operation that defense officials are in the process of organizing. But military leaders worry that they’ll be leaving Afghans at the mercy of the Taliban — and warn that the country could fall apart.

— Hat tip: Fjordman

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Mumbai Attack: US Announces $10 Mn Bounty on Lashkar-E-Taiba Founder Hafiz Saeed

The US has announced a bounty of $10 million on outlawed Pakistan-based Jamaat-ud-Dawa chief Hafiz Saeed, the mastermind of the 26/11 Mumbai attacks.

This was stated by US Undersecretary of State for Political Affairs Wendy Sherman while addressing a gathering at the American Centre in New Delhi.

She was replying to a question on what the US was doing to bring to justice those involved in terror attacks against India.

Saeed, the founder of terror group Lashkar-e-Taiba, is on India’s most wanted list. After the 26/11 attacks that left 166 people dead, India has asked Pakistan to hand him over.

The US also offered up to $2 million for the deputy leader of Lashkar-e-Taiba, Hafiz Abdul Rahman Makki.

Sherman, who is on a four-day visit to the country, met Indian officials including Foreign Secretary Ranjan Mathai during which a host of key issues pertaining to Indo-US ties were discussed.

They also discussed the agenda for the Indo-US strategic dialogue to be held in Washington DC in mid-June.

Sherman is leaving for Patna today, the first visit by such a high-ranking US official to Bihar.

From India, Sherman would travel to Nepal, where she will meet with Prime Minister Baburam Bhattarai, other Nepalese officials and South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation Secretary-General Ahmed Saleem.

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The Logistical Nightmare of Leaving Afghanistan

NATO forces are due to leave Afghanistan by the end of 2014, but the withdrawal poses a massive logistical challenge. The US and its allies are dependent on air hubs in Russia and authoritarian Central Asian republics to transport its troops and equipment home — and getting those countries to play along is not always easy.

— Hat tip: Fjordman

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Power Elite and the Muslim Brotherhood, Part 11

The imposition of Sharia nationwide is also the goal of Boko Haram in Nigeria. Boko Haram (which means “Western education is sinful”) is modeled after the Taliban, and in a January 27 interview with The Guardian, senior member Abu Qaqa said they were spiritual followers of al-Qaeda and had met senior members of their network while visiting Saudi Arabia. Qaqa also revealed that Boko Haram “have our sights set on [bringing Sharia to] the whole world, not just Nigeria.”

Boko Haram first became active around 2003 in its spiritual home of Maiduguri in northern Nigeria where the Islamic Hausa are the majority. The group killed over 500 people in 2011 and at least 262 in the first few weeks of 2012, with its leader Imam Abubakar Shekau acknowledging the January 20 attacks in Kano (Nigeria’s second largest city in an oil-rich nation of 160 million) that killed at least 185 people.

The AP on January 25 in “Niger official: Nigeria sect linked to al-Qaeda” reported that Niger foreign minister Mohamed Bazoum said members of Boko Haram have had training and received explosives from al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb. This would be at camps in Mali in the summer of 2011, and remember that al-Qaeda came from the MB. Bazoum also said “there is no doubt the two organizations [Boko Haram and al-Qaeda] are connected and they have the same objective of destabilizing our region [Sahel].”

Reuters (Al Arabiya News, January 26) indicated that a UN report released January 26 revealed the “Libyan civil war might have given militant groups [Boko Haram and al-Qaeda] access to large weapons caches…including rocket-propelled grenades, machine guns and anti-aircraft visors,… explosives [Semtex], and light anti-aircraft artillery mounted on vehicles…More advanced weapons such as surface-to-air missiles and man-portable defense systems, known as MANPADS, may also have reached groups in the region.”

And what else did the U.S. and NATO-supported civil war in Libya bring? Look at the result of the new Libyan “democracy,” which President Obama helped bring about. You can see Libyan rebels on a YouTube video posted March 2 and titled “Springtime in Libya” desecrating Christian and Jewish graves. On the same website, there is also a link to another video showing these “freedom loving” rebels torturing blacks in Libya.

— Hat tip: JD

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Greece Eyes Illegal-Immigrant Detention Measure

The Greek government has put forth a proposal that would enable authorities to hold illegal immigrants indefinitely if they posed ‘a public health risk.’

A proposal from the Greek government announced late Monday night would make it legal for illegal immigrants to be held indefinitely if they are considered a public health risk. The human rights organization Amnesty International harshly criticized the proposal, saying it was “deeply alarming.”

“The Greek authorities must withdraw such measures immediately,” said Amnesty’s Jezerca Tigani, saying they would “only exacerbate the stigmatization of migrants and asylum-seekers in the country.”

Under the proposal, which comes days after another Greek plan that would convert 30 old military bases to immigrant detention centers with a capacity for a thousand people each, illegal immigrants could also be held for compulsory testing and treatment for HIV/AIDS and other diseases.

Parliament is scheduled to vote on the measure next week.

The draft legislation says that those immigrants who qualify for detention do so because they have contracted an infectious disease, or because they belong to groups vulnerable to such diseases, like intravenous drug users, persons involved in prostitution or people who reside in conditions that do not meet the elementary standards of hygiene.”

Greece is the European Union’s busiest hub for illegal immigrants.

— Hat tip: Fjordman

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Tragedy South of Lampedusa, 10 Dead at Sea

Say rescued migrants

(ANSAmed) — LAMPEDUSA (AGRIGENTO) — Ten migrants, six Somalians and 4 Eritreans, are said to have died at sea during a crossing between Libya and Italy. The deaths have been reported by 48 refugees rescued yesterday some 60 miles south of Lampedusa by the Italian Navy’s Orione boat and by a motorboat belonging to the Coastal Guard.

— Hat tip: Fjordman

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	Financial Crisis
»	Bundestag’s Rights Could Threaten Euro Rescue
»	EU Hoping for IMF Boost After Firewall Increase
»	Eurozone Unemployment Hits Record as Debt Crisis Bites
»	Eurozone Unemployment Spikes to Record as Austerity Bites
»	IMF Chief Welcomes Eurozone Firewall Increase
»	Investors Expect Another Bond Swap in Greece
»	Irish Citizens Boycott Austerity Tax
»	Irish PM Kicks Off Treaty Referendum Campaign
»	Opposition Party Warning: EU Fiscal Pact May Breach German Constitution
»	Return to Dutch Guilder Costly, Says Report
»	Sarkozy Set to Announce €115bn in Cuts
»	Spain Unveils €27bn in Budget Cuts
	USA
»	Frank Gaffney: The Truth or Taqiyya?
»	Gunned Down in Their Classroom: Horror as Seven Are Shot Dead After Nursing Student Opens Fire During Lesson at California Religious School
»	Islamic Week Kicks Off Monday in Student Center
	Europe and the EU
»	EU Accession a Priority for Ukraine: Yanukovych
»	Exhibition Documents Architectural Evolution of Mosques
»	France Expels Five Islamist Radicals
»	German Opposition Condemns Swiss Tax Arrest Warrant
»	Italy: “Mosques Springing Up Like Mushrooms”
»	Jailed Mullah to be Norway Gunman Witness
»	Kiev-Berlin Negotiations: Ukraine May Release Tymoshenko for Care in Germany
»	Lawyer: Norwegian Who Killed 77 to Call Islamist, Anti-Muslim Extremists to Testify
»	Mullah Krekar on Witness List for Norway Gunman
»	Robert Spencer Interviews Nicolai Sennels: “Muslims Are Taught to be Aggressive, Insecure, Irresponsible and Intolerant”
»	Sweden: Malmö Mayor’s Remarks ‘Wrong’: Party Head
»	Sweden: Man Held for Setting His Wife on Fire
»	‘Switzerland Has a Lot of Explaining to Do’
»	Switzerland: ‘We Need Border Checks to Combat Crime’
»	Toulouse Father: ‘My Son Was Liquidated’
»	UK: A Lethal Game-Changer for British Politics?
»	UK: Emma Thompson Backs Israel Boycott for Shakespeare Festival
»	UK: George Galloway and Ken Livingstone Show That the Left Has Given in to Sectarianism
»	UK: George Galloway’s Victory is the Last Thing Britain Needs
»	UK: Scenes From a London Hatefest
»	UK: The Tories Must Return to True Blue Values to Survive
»	UK: The 100-Year War Against Football Fans’ Freedom of Speech
»	UK: What Else Tory MPs Say About David Cameron and His Leadership
»	Ukraine Allows Ex-Premier to Leave Prison for Medical Care
»	US Holocaust Legislation: German National Railway Fears Flood of Lawsuits
»	‘We Need to Invest in a European Identity’
	Middle East
»	Forget Cornish Pasties. Forget Jerry Cans. It’s More Likely Than Not That Israel Will Strike Iran
»	German-Turkish Trade Relations Are Gaining Momentum
»	Iraq: Man Whose WMD Lies Led to 100,000 Deaths Confesses All
»	Syria: Jihadists Declare Holy War Against Assad Regime
»	UAE: Death Gets Cheaper in the UAE
	South Asia
»	Suu Kyi’s Party Wins Decisive Victory in Myanmar by-Election
»	Wives, Daughters of Osama Bin Laden Jailed in Pakistan
	Far East
»	Hong Kong Protesters Reject Beijing-Friendly Leader
»	North Korea’s Leader Was No Whizz at Swiss School
	Australia — Pacific
»	9,000 Burial Plots for Muslims and Jews
»	Burqa-Clad Men Prompt Anger in Sydney
»	The Terrorist Australia Doesn’t Want
	Sub-Saharan Africa
»	Kenya Church Blast Leaves One Dead
»	Mali: Neighbours Set to Close All Borders
»	Mali: Islamists Push for Sharia Law in Northern Mali
»	Mali: Ancient Islam Site Attacked by Tuaregs
»	Nigeria: Christian Blood on Obama’s Hands
	Immigration
»	Greece to Complete Anti-Migrant Wall ‘Very Shortly’
»	Obama to Relax Rules for Illegal Immigrants to Become Citizens
	General
»	In the Shadow of the Sword, By Tom Holland [Book Review]

Bundestag’s Rights Could Threaten Euro Rescue

The German parliament has secured far-reaching rights to decide on the actions of the euro rescue fund. But several German politicians are warning that the Bundestag’s determination to have its say could threaten efforts to save the euro, by hindering the fund’s ability to act quickly.

— Hat tip: Fjordman

[Return to headlines]

EU Hoping for IMF Boost After Firewall Increase

COPENHAGEN — EU ministers are hopeful their decision to raise the combined ceiling of two eurozone bail-out funds to €700 billion will be enough to secure an increase in contributions from the International Monetary Fund (IMF). A two-day meeting of EU finance ministers in Copenhagen ended on Saturday (31 March) with renewed appeals to foreign countries to step up their contributions to the IMF war chest.

“It’s important to ensure the IMF has sufficient resources to play its systemic role in the global economy,” Danish economy minister Margrethe Vestager told a press conference after the meeting. She said the decision by eurozone ministers “is very important in this respect. What we are hoping for is an agreement in Washington” later this month when the IMF board is to decide on an increase in its own lending capacity.

— Hat tip: Fjordman

[Return to headlines]

Eurozone Unemployment Hits Record as Debt Crisis Bites

(BRUSSELS) — Eurozone unemployment jumped to an all-time high in February, hitting southern nations the hardest as the social toll from the debt crisis grips the 17-nation bloc, official figures showed Monday.

The jobless rate rose for the 10th consecutive month and at 10.8 percent set a 15-year record for the single currency area, according to the Eurostat data agency.

Eurozone leaders have vowed to pursue growth and jobs strategies to fend off a looming recession but they insist that unpopular budget cuts and structural reforms must continue in order to restore market confidence after two years of crisis.

In another sign that recession is gripping the region, a key survey showed that manufacturing activity dropped to a three-month low in March, with the “malaise” spreading to top economies Germany and France.

“It looks odds-on that Eurozone GDP contracted again in the first quarter of 2012 after a drop of 0.3 percent quarter-on-quarter in the fourth quarter of 2011, thereby moving into recession,” said Howard Archer, chief European economist at IHS Global Insight.

“The prospects for the second quarter of 2012 currently hardly look rosy,” he said, adding that unemployment also appears “odds-on” to top 11 percent in 2012.

Eurostat estimated that more than 17.1 million men and women were out of work in February, 162,000 more than a month earlier and 1.48 million more than a year ago.

The seasonally-adjusted unemployment rate also rose to a record in the wider, 27-nation European Union, hitting 10.2 percent in February compared to 10.1 percent the previous month.

An estimated 24.55 million people were unemployed in the EU, an increase of 1.87 million from February 2011.

“Soaring unemployment is clearly adding to the pressure on household incomes from aggressive fiscal tightening in the region’s periphery,” said Jennifer McKeown, senior European economist at Capital Economics research firm.

“But even in Germany, survey measures of hiring point to a downturn to come and with inflation remaining stubbornly high throughout the eurozone, there is very little hope of a consumer recovery,” McKeown said.

The unemployment rate rose in 18 EU states and fell in eight compared to a year ago. It remained stable in Romania.

Spain remained the worst affected, with the highest rate at 23.6 percent, followed by bailed-out Greece at 21 percent, Portugal at 15 percent and Ireland at 14.7 percent. Italy hit a record 9.3 percent.

Highlighting the North-South divide, the states with the lowest rates were Austria on 4.2 percent, the Netherlands 4.9 percent, Luxembourg 5.2 percent and Germany 5.7 percent.

Unemployment is highest among young people, with data showing one in five persons under 25 looking for work in the eurozone, mainly in southern nations. One in two young Spaniards or Greeks are unemployed.

— Hat tip: Fjordman

[Return to headlines]

Eurozone Unemployment Spikes to Record as Austerity Bites

Unemployment in the 17-nation currency area has reached its highest level since the introduction of the euro in 1999, as debt-wracked governments cut spending. With it grows the likelihood of recession in the EU. Unemployment in the eurozone rose to 10.8 percent in February, the highest level in 15 years, the EU’s statistics office Eurostat announced Monday.

— Hat tip: Fjordman

[Return to headlines]

IMF Chief Welcomes Eurozone Firewall Increase

International Monetary Fund (IMF) chief Lagarde has welcomed the increase of eurozone’s firewall to €700 billion, saying it “will support the IMF’s efforts to increase its available resources for the benefit of all our members.” The IMF had insisted for months on the need to boost the eurozone bail-out funds.

— Hat tip: Fjordman

[Return to headlines]

Investors Expect Another Bond Swap in Greece

Following the first economic haircut, Greece is expecting improvements in its debt situation. However, some investors remain skeptical.

In early March, after months of talks, Greek authorities negotiated a debt swap with private investors. One of the participants in the discussion was Hans Humes, president of Greylock Capital Management, an investment firm that specializes in emerging markets and distressed assets. He described the mood as similar to “a family falling-out at the dinner table,” although “a bit more formal.”

A lot was at stake for Humes, as 10 percent of Greylock’s investments had been poured into Greek bonds. This is yet another in a series of debt restructuring programs that the firm has contributed to in the last 20 years — it also provided its assistance in Mexico, Argentina, Ecuador, Yugoslavia, Russia and the Philippines.

The problems in those countries were similar to those currently affecting Greece.

“When a country can no longer carry its debts and when it can’t find a way to get hold of new money, then the investors have no choice but to look for a solution,” said Humes, pointing out that, from an investor’s perspective, breaking negotiations with Greece and demanding a full payback of the debt would be “completely irrational.”

“The alternative is the collapse of their economy, and then they won’t be able to pay us any money for 20 years.”

— Hat tip: Fjordman

[Return to headlines]

Irish Citizens Boycott Austerity Tax

BRUSSELS — Almost half of Irish people have refused to pay a household tax imposed as part of promised savings measures, while government pressure to secure the levy risks further angering an austerity-weary public.

By a Saturday (31 March) midnight deadline, around 805,000 of the country’s 1.6 million registered households had paid the tax, which has been subject to a high-profile boycott campaign.

The Irish government agreed to introduce it in 2012 as part of a deal with the EU and the International Monetary Fund — from which it secured an €85 billion loan in 2010. But it has been unpopular from the very beginning for its across-the-board nature: the same levy is applied both to rich and poor households.

— Hat tip: Fjordman

[Return to headlines]

Irish PM Kicks Off Treaty Referendum Campaign

Irish Prime Minister Enda Kenny on Sunday started the government’s campaign in favour of the fiscal discipline treaty ahead of the 31 May referendum. “We have a brilliant opportunity to say to the world that Ireland believes in the future of the euro,” said Kenny.

— Hat tip: Fjordman

[Return to headlines]

Opposition Party Warning: EU Fiscal Pact May Breach German Constitution

Germany’s opposition Left Party says the fiscal pact agreed by 25 of the EU’s 27 members may breach the constitution because — the party argues — it can never be rescinded. Legal experts are divided. But Germany’s top court may be called on to settle the issue, and to rule on Europe’s future yet again.

— Hat tip: Fjordman

[Return to headlines]

Return to Dutch Guilder Costly, Says Report

Leaving the euro and re-introducing the guilder in the Netherlands would cost €4,500 per year per citizen, according to research carried out for the pro-EU D66 party. Early last month, the country’s far-right PVV party had presented results of a similar study, indicating that such a move would be beneficial.

— Hat tip: Fjordman

[Return to headlines]

Sarkozy Set to Announce €115bn in Cuts

French President Sarkozy is set to announce €115bn in cuts when he unveils his electoral programme at the end of the week, Le Figaro reports. To get a balanced budget in 2016, Sarkozy, a candidate in the 22 April elections, plans €75bn in spending cuts and raising €40bn through taxes.

— Hat tip: Fjordman

[Return to headlines]

Spain Unveils €27bn in Budget Cuts

The Spanish government will cut €27 billion from the 2012 budget as part of EU-required efforts to bring the deficit down to 5.3% of GDP, despite record unemployment and the economy shrinking by one percent. Deputy prime minister Soraya Saenz de Santamaria said the nation is in an “extreme situation.”

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— Hat tip: Fjordman

[Return to headlines]

Frank Gaffney: The Truth or Taqiyya?

One of the most important challenges we face as a free people is understanding the true nature of — and threat posed by — a totalitarian, supremacist Islamic doctrine its adherents call shariah. So, it would seem to be good news that a $3 million public education campaign is being launched nationwide to “clarify” what shariah is.

The question is: Will this campaign be truthful and helpful, or will it amount to an exercise in what is not only permissible under shariah, but obligatory: lying for the faith, or taqiyya in Arabic?

Unfortunately, since the sponsor of this initiative is one of the most virulent Muslim Brotherhood fronts in the United States, the Islamic Circle of North America (ICNA), the shariah tour will assuredly be all taqiyya, all the time. As we are seeing in Egypt at the moment, the Brotherhood is fully prepared to lie about its repressive agenda until it is too late for its opponents to resist…

— Hat tip: CSP

[Return to headlines]

Gunned Down in Their Classroom: Horror as Seven Are Shot Dead After Nursing Student Opens Fire During Lesson at California Religious School

Police surrounded a Christian university in search of a gunman who reportedly opened fire on Monday morning and killed seven people.

The suspect was caught in the parking lot of a shopping centre mall miles away from the Korean Christian school in Oakland, California.

The shooter, named by police as 43-year-old One L. Goh, apparently stood up in the middle of a nursing class at Oikos University, ordered classmates to line up against the wall and opened fire.

A bystander saw a woman ran out of the building saying that her right arm had been shot.

The victim said that the shooter — a former student — was in her nursing class when he stood up in the middle of class and shot another student point blank in the chest before spraying the room with bullets.

The bystander, Angie Johnson, stayed with the woman until she received medical attention.

‘She said he looked crazy all the time but they never knew how far he would go,’ Ms Johnson said the victim told her.

Police spokesman Cynthia Perkins said seven people were dead. She did not release any other details about the victims.

Five people were believed to have been killed at the scene, while two of the five wounded later died at hospital.

One student, 19-year-old Dawinder Kaur, told her brother she was in her nursing class when a former student who had been absent from the class for months told them all to line up against the wall.

After he revealed he had a gun the students started to run away, and Ms Kaur said she was shot in the arm when she tried to help her friend.

‘She told me that a guy went crazy and she got shot,’ her brother Paul Singh told the Oakland Tribune.

‘She was running, she was crying, she was bleeding. It was wrong.’

The suspect was detained at a Safeway supermarket about three miles from the university, about an hour after the shooting.

A security guard at the supermarket approached the man because he was acting suspiciously, KGO-TV reported. The man told the guard that he needed to talk to police because he shot people, and the guard called authorities.

Lisa Resler said she was buying fruit at Safeway with her 4-year-old daughter when she saw the man she later learned was the suspect walk toward the store exit.

‘He was just in the store looking like somebody who was going to pick a deli sandwich up or something,’ she said.

When she left the store, she said, she saw him standing on the sidewalk next to two police cars. She said she saw an officer kick his legs apart and pat him down for weapons but said they didn’t appear to find anything.

The officers then placed him in handcuffs.

‘He didn’t look like he had a sign of relief on him. He didn’t look like he had much of any emotion on his face,’ she said. ‘From what I could see he was completely cooperative with police. He wasn’t saying a word.’

Television news footage showed officers surrounding the building in search of the suspect, described as a Korean man in his 40s with a heavy build and wearing khaki clothing.

At 12.13pm local time, the Oakland police department Tweeted that the suspect was in custody.

‘Possible suspect in custody. No imminent public safety threat appears to exist in immediate area,’ the tweet said.

The footage also showed wounded people being carried out of the building, and more gurneys were being brought in.

Four people were taken by ambulance to the emergency room while others were treated on the scene.

Founder and head of school Pastor Jong Kim said that the shooter had been a nursing student at Oikos but no longer is.

Mr Kim would not say if the man had been expelled or dropped out of the nursing programme.

He guessed that there were about 30 or so gunshots and said that he stayed in his office during the shooting.

Myung Soon Ma, the school’s secretary, said she could not provide any details about what happened at the small private school, which serves the Korean community with courses from theology to Asian medicine.

‘I feel really sad, so I cannot talk right now,’ she said, speaking from her home.

Deborah Lee, who was in an English language class, said she heard five to six gunshots at first. ‘The teacher said, “Run”, and we run,’ she said.

‘I was OK, because I know God protects me. I’m not afraid of him.’

The deadliest school shooting in U.S. history was the Virginia Tech massacre on April 16, 2007. Mentally ill student Seung-Hui Cho killed 32 people before shooting himself in a campus rampage.

Another notorious killing was that at Columbine High School on April 20, 1999, when 10 students as young as 15 as well as two members of staff were shot by Eric Harris and Dylan Klebold at the Denver school.

More recently, graduate student Steven Kazmierczak killed five at Northern Illinois University, his alma mater, on February 14, 2008, then turned the gun on himself.

The 2006 shooting at the Amish West Nickel Mines School attracted national attention after relatives of the five young girls killed by Charles Roberts publicly forgave the killer and sent condolences to his family.

An earlier example of a deadly campus massacre came in 1966, when student and former Marine Charles Whitman killed 16 at the University of Texas at Austin, mostly by shooting from a 28th-floor balcony.

Another bystander saw a woman running away from the scene.

‘One of the people who was inside the building, she was saying there is a crazy guy inside,’ witness Brian Snow told KGO-TV.

‘She did say someone got shot in the chest right next to her before she got taken off in an ambulance.’

One man heard the shootings and saw one of the victims running from the scene.

‘I just heard more gunshots. A lady came out running and she had blood on her arm, but I didn’t know how bad the wound was,’ said Brian Snow, who was at a credit union near the school the at the time of the shooting.

‘She was just trying to make sure everyone was safe and took off her jacket and she had a big old hole in her arm,’ he told KGO Radio.

According to its website, Oikos University offers studies in theology, music, nursing and Asian medicine with the hopes of educating ‘emerging Christian leaders’.

The school’s website says it ‘was established specifically to serve the community of Northern California in general and San Francisco and Oakland areas in particular’.

California political figures expressed their condolences at the horrific events.

Governor Jerry Brown said: ‘The tragic loss of life at Oikos University today is shocking and sad.

‘Our thoughts and prayers go out to the victims, their families and friends and the entire community affected by this senseless act of violence.’

U.S. Senator Barbara Boxer added: ‘I am praying for a full and speedy recovery for all those injured in today’s shooting.’

And Jean Quan, Mayor of Oakland, called the killing a ‘terrible tragedy’, but praised police for their response to the incident.

— Hat tip: Vlad Tepes

[Return to headlines]

Islamic Week Kicks Off Monday in Student Center

Marshall University’s Interfaith will have Islamic week Monday through Thursday in the Memorial Student Center. Shaheed Elhamdani, sophomore chemistry and political science major from Huntington, said Islamic week is there to help students understand the religion with elections coming up. “Especially with the growing political atmosphere right now and the way things are, people are uncertain about what it is,” Elhamdani said. “They don’t understand the concept behind it and what we believe. Islamic Week is our way of reaching out.” Ammar Haffar, senior biomedical sciences major from Scott Depot, W.Va., and president of Interfaith, said a table will be set up where people can receive information about Islam from 11 a.m. through 2 p.m. Monday, Wednesday and Friday in the student center. Haffar said there will be a lecture “Unveiling Sharia” where Interfaith will discuss Sharia law and politics from 6 p.m. through 7:30 p.m. Tuesday in the Shawkey Dining Room at the student center. He said Sharia is Islamic law that came from the Quran and teachings of the Prophet Muhammed. “Sharia law has been a hot topic that was heavily discussed at the beginning of the election season, especially by the Republican candidates, and there has been a bill circulating around at least half the states on banning it,” Haffar said. “The purpose behind this is to explain what Sharia is and discuss its role in current political discourse.”

Haffar said there will be an “Islam Question and Answer Session” where people can ask questions to Islamic students about the religion from 6 p.m. through 7:30 p.m. Wednesday in the BE-5 Multi-Purpose Room in the basement of the student center.

— Hat tip: JP

[Return to headlines]

EU Accession a Priority for Ukraine: Yanukovych

(WARSAW) — Accession to the European Union remains a priority for Ukraine, the country’s President Viktor Yanukovych said Monday, three days after initialing an association agreement with the 27-member bloc.

“Ukraine’s integration into the European political, economic and judicial space, in other words its accession to the EU, is our priority,” Yanukovych said in an interview published by the Polish daily DGP.

He said his country was “ready to proceed without delay to the phase of signing and ratifying the agreement” but regretted that the text did not comprise “a clear perspective of accession.”

Yanukovych said the EU should also ease visa requirements for Ukrainians, given the “progress in the introduction of reforms and European standards” in his country.

“The establishment of a free trade zone should be accompanied by aid for a modernisation of the Ukrainian economy,” he added.

Friday, the EU initialed an association agreement with Ukraine after months of tensions over the jailing of ex-prime minister Yulia Tymoshenko.

The agreement, which includes an ambitious trade component, is part of EU efforts to keep the former Soviet state from straying too far into Russia’s sphere of influence.

But the actual signing of the pact is unlikely to happen for months, or before Ukraine’s legislative elections in October, as the EU remains concerned over Tymoshenko’s fate and the state of democracy in the country.

— Hat tip: Fjordman

[Return to headlines]

Exhibition Documents Architectural Evolution of Mosques

Islamic places of worship often cause controversy: Take the construction of Cologne’s grand mosque or the ban on minarets in Switzerland. A new exhibition in Germany covers the architectural evolution of mosques.

Mustafa Pinarci from the Turkish-Islamic Diyanet Culture Association proudly presents the interior of a mosque during construction to a small group of visitors in Esslingen. The group has many questions: Who finances the building of the mosque? Why is there a separate floor for women to pray on?

The mosque guide shows the visitors a list of sponsors and explains that the construction work is also financed through voluntary contributions. The members of the group — particularly the women — react with astonishment when the guide explains that Muslim women prefer not to pray in the presence of men. “Women could be disturbed by looks from men as they pray in various positions,” said Pinarci.

— Hat tip: Fjordman

[Return to headlines]

France Expels Five Islamist Radicals

France has expelled two Islamic radicals and is planning to deport three more as part of a crackdown announced after a gunman killed seven people, officials said on Monday.

An Algerian radical and a Malian imam were sent back to their home countries on Monday, while a Saudi imam, a Turkish imam and a Tunisian radical were also subject to expulsion orders, the interior ministry said in a statement. The statement said that the imams had made anti-Semitic statements in their sermons, called for Muslims to reject Western values, and said women should wear the full-face veil. It said the Saudi imam was currently out of France but would be refused entry should he try to return. French police arrested 19 people in a crackdown on suspected Islamist networks in dawn raids on Friday as President Nicolas Sarkozy made the battle against extremism a keynote of his re-election campaign.

Some of the arrests were made in Toulouse, where extremist gunman Mohamed Merah was shot dead by police last month after a series of cold-blooded shootings that left seven dead, including three Jewish children. Merah, branded a “monster” by French leaders after his killing spree, died in a hail of police bullets after a 32-hour siege on his Toulouse flat.

France last week banned four Muslim preachers from entering the country for a conference of the Union of Islamic Organisations in France (UOIF), citing their “calls for hatred and violence”.

— Hat tip: JP

[Return to headlines]

German Opposition Condemns Swiss Tax Arrest Warrant

German opposition politicians have blasted plans by the Swiss federal prosecutor to file charges against German tax officials for obtaining lists of accounts belonging to possible tax-evaders.

Members of the Social Democrats (SPD) voiced outrage at the Swiss arrest warrant for three civil servants alleged to have bought the data belonging to the bank Credit Suisse.

The Swiss federal prosecutor’s office said on Saturday it had sought legal assistance from German authorities in an investigation into the theft of the information.

“When dictators and mass murderers have been forced out of their homelands, they have often put their stolen assets in Switzerland,” Joachim Poss, deputy SPD parliamentary leader told the German daily newspaper Die Welt. Poss added that Switzerland should “criminalize” those people instead.

The SPD parliamentary whip Thomas Opperman told the mass-circulation daily Bild that the inspectors — who had been trying to root out the accounts of potential tax evaders — should receive a government honor rather than be arrested. “They have upheld the rule of law by fighting money laundering and tax evasion,” he said.

— Hat tip: Fjordman

[Return to headlines]

Italy: “Mosques Springing Up Like Mushrooms”

by Soeren Kern

Donors are using alternative channels to ensure that their donations escape the control of the regular financial system.

More than 250 mosques across Italy have reached an agreement to create a new umbrella organization, the Italian Islamic Confederation (CII). The CII will be controlled by Morocco, and will compete with an existing Muslim umbrella organization, the Union of Islamic Communities and Organizations in Italy (UCOII). The UCOII, which is estimated to control 60% of the mosques in Italy, is closely tied to the Muslim Brotherhood. Since its founding in 1990, the UCOII has used its virtual monopoly over the mosques in Italy to spread its Islamist ideology over the 1.5 million Muslims in the country. The UCOII has also worked to become the main interlocutor between the Muslim community and the Italian state. But the Italian government has ruled out reaching an agreement with the UCOII because of its links to the Muslim Brotherhood. “There can be no accords with those like the UCOII, who de facto deny the existence of the state of Israel and hold ambiguous positions on terrorism at the national and local level,” according to Andrea Ronchi, Italy’s former Minister for Community Policy.

After it came to light that the majority of the mosques in Italy are controlled by the Muslim Brotherhood, Italian Interior Minister Roberto Maroni called for a moratorium on the building of new mosques until a new national law could be written to regulate the phenomenon. According to Manes Bernardini, a politician with the Northern League in Bologna, “Mosques are springing up like mushrooms, and mayors can do nothing about it because there is no national law to regulate the proliferation of these structures.”

[…]

— Hat tip: JP

[Return to headlines]

Jailed Mullah to be Norway Gunman Witness

The lawyer for Norwegian confessed killer Anders Behring Breivik says he will call right-wing extremists and Islamists, including a radical jailed mullah, as witnesses in support of his client at this month’s trial.

Defence lawyer Geir Lippestad said the idea of calling extremists such as Mullah Krekar, who founded the radical Iraqi Kurdish Islamist group Ansar al-Islam and has been sentenced to five years in prison for making death threats, was important to show that his client was not criminally insane.

An expert evaluation determined late last year that Behring Breivik was suffering from paranoid schizophrenia, but the 33-year-old far-right extremist who has confessed to killing 77 people in twin attacks last July insists he is sane.

The far-right Norwegian blogger “Fjordman”, one of Behring Breivik’s mentors, will also be called to the witness stand, Lippestad said, stressing though that the defence does not intend to enable a free-flow of “political propaganda”, as his client appears to wish. “Calling witnesses from extremists milieus is important because we think that the psychiatric experts perhaps do not have the necessary knowledge” to distinguish ideological extremism from a psychiatric disorder, he said.

The defence will place a special emphasis on calling medical and psychiatric witnesses who are likely to testify that Behring Breivik is of sound mind, Lippestad said. The psychiatric experts’ conclusion last year, which if confirmed would entail that the confessed killer is locked up in a psychiatric institution instead of prison, caused outcry in Norway and an Oslo court ordered a second evaluation by two new experts, who will present their findings on April 10.

— Hat tip: Fjordman

[Return to headlines]

Kiev-Berlin Negotiations: Ukraine May Release Tymoshenko for Care in Germany

Ukraine may be prepared to release Yulia Tymoshenko, the imprisoned former prime minister, for urgently needed medical care in Berlin. The country’s current president, Viktor Yanukovych, is interested in defusing international pressure, but some in his party are refusing to back down.

— Hat tip: Fjordman

[Return to headlines]

Lawyer: Norwegian Who Killed 77 to Call Islamist, Anti-Muslim Extremists to Testify

OSLO, Norway — A lawyer for the Norwegian who confessed to killing 77 people says the defense will call both a Muslim cleric and an anti-Islamic blogger to the stand to refute claims that his client is insane. Geir Lippestad, who represents Anders Behring Breivik, wants their testimony to show there are others who share Breivik’s world view.

Lippestad told public broadcaster NRK on Monday “we wish to call witnesses from both right-wing extremist and Islamist environments.” Lippestad said witnesses would include Mullah Krekar, a radical Iraqi cleric jailed in Norway for making death threats, and a prominent anti-Islamic blogger known as Fjordman. Breivik denies criminal guilt for the July 22 attacks, saying they were part of an anti-Muslim revolution. His trial starts April 16.

— Hat tip: Fjordman

[Return to headlines]

Mullah Krekar on Witness List for Norway Gunman

An Islamic extremist implicated in the murder of an Australian cameraman in Iraq could be called to give evidence in the trial of Norwegian gunman Anders Behring Breivik.

Breivik’s lawyer says he will call a number of right-wing extremists and Islamists, including the jailed radical Mullah Krekar, as witnesses in support of his client at this month’s trial.

Defence attorney Geir Lippestad says the idea of calling extremists like Krekar, who founded the radical Iraqi Kurdish Islamist group Ansar al-Islam and has been sentenced to five years in prison for making death threats, is important to show that his client is not criminally insane.

An expert evaluation determined late last year that Breivik was suffering from paranoid schizophrenia, but the 33-year-old far-right extremist who has confessed to killing 77 people in twin attacks last July insists he is sane.

“We have to determine if the experts who evaluated Breivik mistakenly blew off his ideas and opinions, especially about an ongoing war (between Islam and the West), as paranoid hallucinations and a psychosis,” Mr Lippestad said.

“The question is to know if there are in fact groups, even small ones, in Norway who agree (with his premise). That could be important when it comes to the question of legal responsibility.”

Breivik, who has claimed to be on a crusade against multiculturalism and the “Muslim invasion” of Europe, wants to be declared of sane mind, according to his lawyers, so as not to damage the political message presented in his 1,500-page manifesto published online shortly before the July 22 attacks.

During the trial, which will begin on April 16, the defence attorneys will therefore, upon their client’s request, try to prove that he is sane even though their success would entail that he be locked away in prison instead of a psychiatric institution.

On Monday, Mr Lippestad refused to reveal the “30 to 40” names on the list of witnesses the defence plans to call, but he confirmed that Mullah Krekar was on it…

— Hat tip: Frontinus

[Return to headlines]

Robert Spencer Interviews Nicolai Sennels: “Muslims Are Taught to be Aggressive, Insecure, Irresponsible and Intolerant”

Nicolai Sennels regularly contributes to Jihad Watch, with articles on psychology and translations of Scandinavian and German news. To help you get to know Sennels better, we decided to do an interview.

Nicolai Sennels (born 1976) is a Danish psychologist. His first appearances in the Danish media concerned his unorthodox therapy methods that he developed as the only psychologist at Sønderbro, the youth prison (see here, here, here, here and here). He taught the young prisoners about mindfulness meditation and developed a special program on anger management. Sennels also developed a psychotherapeutic method that focused on teaching criminals with a low understanding of emotions and empathy how to take responsibility for their own behavior. In 2008, the prisoners of Sønderbro voted the facility as the best prison in Denmark. The leader of Social Services in the Copenhagen municipality concluded that this was due to the work of Nicolai Sennels (Amagerbladet, November 3, 2008).

At a conference on immigrant crime in 2008, arranged by the Copenhagen municipality, Sennels said that one should not use the term “criminal immigrants,” but “criminal Muslims,” since the majority of criminal immigrants have Muslim backgrounds. Seven out of ten inmates in the Danish youth prisons have immigrant backgrounds, and almost all of them are Muslims. Sennels was threatened that if he were to discuss his experiences, he would risk losing his job. This story developed into a national debate on the freedom of speech and became a widely discussed topic in the Danish media (please see here and here), and the Minister of Integration joined the discussion.

Sennels decided to publish a book on his experiences, Among Criminal Muslims. A Psychologist’s Experiences from the Copenhagen Municipality, which was well received in both the official Psychologists Union’s magazine and the newspapers. He found himself a new appointment at the Danish Ministry of Defense, and now once again he works as a psychologist for children and teenagers.

— Hat tip: Fjordman

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Sweden: Malmö Mayor’s Remarks ‘Wrong’: Party Head

Social Democrat head Stefan Löfven called recent “anti-Semitic” comments by Malmö mayor Ilmar Reepalu “wrong” following what Jewish leaders called a “constructive” meeting to discuss the issue on Monday.

“The comments were wrong, but I still have total confidence in him,” Löfven told the Dagens Nyheter (DN) newspaper.

Sweden’s Jewish leaders called the meeting “constructive”, but emphasized they still lack confidence in Malmö mayor Ilmar Reepalu following his recent “anti-Semitic” remarks.

“It was a very constructive meeting,” Lena Posner Körösi, chair of the Jewish Community in Stockholm (Judiska församlingen i Stockholm) told the TT news agency following the talks, which were called in the wake of comments labeled as “anti-Semitic” by Sweden’s Jewish leaders.

Following the meeting, which was held on Monday at Social Democrat headquarters in Stockholm, Löfven and Posner Körösi emerged together and addressed reporters.

“We’ve now had a meeting between the Social Democrat party leadership and the Official Council of Swedish Jewish Communities (Judiska centralrådet i Sverige — JC) and discussed the situation in Malmö and respect for the rights of different minorities,” said Löfven, according to the TT news agency.

“We’ve made it very clear that we are committed to our values and the ideology of people’s equal value and religious freedom. I understand and respect the Jewish community’s concern when they view these comments as an insult to these rights.”

While Löfven expressed his continued confidence in Reepalu, he admitted that the Malmö mayor’s comments were regrettable.

“I want to improve dialogue with the Jewish community in Malmö for which Ilmar Reepalu has a great deal of responsibility,” he said.

“I have confidence in him, but it’s clear that the statements he’s made haven’t been good and I’ve been very clear that it’s unfortunately that they were viewed as anything other than what the party stands for.”

At the centre of the controversy were comments by Reepalu suggesting there were “strong ties” between the Jewish community in Malmö and the Sweden Democrats, a political party with a clear anti-immigrant and anti-Muslim line which has its roots in Sweden’s neo-Nazi movement.

According to Reepalu, “Sweden Democrats have infiltrated the Jewish community in order to push their hate of Muslims”.

He later admitted he had “no basis” for the claims, but the comments had already sparked an angry reaction from the Jewish community, prompting a letter to Löfven from the Official Council of Swedish Jewish Communities (Judiska centralrådet i Sverige — JC) demanding action.

While Posner Körösi was pleased with the meeting, she said the onus is now on Reepalu to show he can live up to the Social Democratic values emphasized by Löfven during the meeting.

“Now it remains for Ilmar Reepalu to prove it by his words and actions. Today I don’t have any confidence in him,” she said.

Reepalu on Monday said he planned to contact the Jewish community in Malmö to try to figure out how his comments became misconstrued.

He admitted he doesn’t always express himself that well, but remained emphatic in rejecting claims that he was anit-Semitic.

“Anti-Semitism is the worst form or racism that humanity has ever experienced,” Reepalu told TT.

He said he’s never held the views ascribed to him regarding alleged alliance between the Jewish community in Malmö and the far-right Sweden Democrats.

“My criticism when it comes to the meeting in the Jewish community was directed against the Sweden Democrats and their way of assigning Muslims with collective guilt, not against the Jewish community.”

— Hat tip: Freedom Fighter

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Sweden: Man Held for Setting His Wife on Fire

A man in Malmö in southern Sweden is suspected of having set his wife on fire following a domestic dispute stemming from her request for a divorce.

The 38-year-old woman received serious burns in the incident, but her injuries are reportedly not life threatening.

“She has injuries from her midsection and upward and on the entire front of her body…both her her torso and arms. But her face is in pretty good shape,” police spokesperson Peter Martin told the local Skånska Dagbladet newspaper.

According to Martin, investigators believe the woman was drenched in a flammable liquid which was then ignited by her 53-year-old husband.

“The woman wanted a divorce but the man didn’t. He was said to be very controlling,” police spokesperson Anders Lindell told the Expressen newspaper.

The couple’s two children were also present in the apartment at the time, but were unharmed in the incident and have since been taken in by neighbours.

Police received a call shortly after noon on Sunday about a disturbance in a flat in the city’s Rosengård district.

A short time later, emergency services received a call about a fire at the same address.

When fire crews arrived they were met by a woman who had fled out of the apartment. Her clothes had been burned and she was taken by ambulance to Skåne University Hospital in Malmö.

“We heard there was a fire in the building, but when we got there we only found a little smoke in the apartment. A woman whose clothes had been burned ran out of the flat,” emergency services commander Mats Steer told Expressen.

The 53-year-old husband who was still in the apartment was overpowered by police and apprehended on suspicions of attempted murder with an alternative charge of aggravated assault.

The man was placed in arrest later in the evening and interrogated about the incident and denies committing any crime.

Another man was also taken to the police station for questioning, but only as a witness.

— Hat tip: The Observer

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‘Switzerland Has a Lot of Explaining to Do’

Swiss arrest warrants issued over the weekend for German tax inspectors have sparked heated debate in Berlin over the ongoing tax evasion conflict with Bern. German commentators on Monday discuss how renewed tensions could endanger a preventative deal between the two nations.

— Hat tip: Fjordman

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Switzerland: ‘We Need Border Checks to Combat Crime’

A top Swiss security official has called for the country to reintroduce border checks in a bid to combat a spike in burglaries committed by organized foreign crime gangs.

Jacqueline de Quattro, head of canton Vaud’s security department, believes emergency measures are required after cantons bordering France experienced a 30-percent rise in burglaries last year, newspaper 20 Minutes reported.

A prominent member of the liberal Free Democratic Party, de Quattro said the spiralling crime figures gave Switzerland a legitimate reason to unilaterally sidestep the Schengen agreement and check the identities of people entering the country.

“We need the tools to send out a deterrent signal to criminals,” de Quattro said. “If we do nothing, we risk cross-border crime spreading to the north.” Schengen has opened up Switzerland’s borders, allowing a much freer flow of traffic in and out of the country.

De Quattro’s comments come after the publication last week of official crime statistics showing what has been referred to as an “explosion” of cross-border crime, particularly in cantons Vaud and Geneva.

Switzerland is attractive to criminals not only because of its wealth, but also because the punishments for certain crimes are less severe than in France, news website Swissinfo.ch reported.

The number of car thefts rose by as much as 45 percent in some areas, and overall crime committed by foreigners increased 10 percent on the previous year’s figures. The police are dealing with three main groups of foreign offenders, Francois Schmutz, head of the Geneva police, told Swissinfo.

The first are gangs from Romania and the Balkans; the second, Roma groups who live between Milan and Paris and are thought to be responsible for a whole spate of burglaries; and finally, North Africans living illegally in Geneva. “We need an exception rule which would allow us to conduct systematic border controls,” Swiss People’s Party National Councillor, Heinz Brand, told 20 Minutes.

— Hat tip: Fjordman

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Toulouse Father: ‘My Son Was Liquidated’

The lawyer for the father of the man police shot dead in Toulouse claims to have video proof that Mohamed Merah was needlessly killed. In an interview with Le Parisien newspaper, Zahia Mokhtari said she had seen the videos and they proved the police did not want to capture Merah alive. “What I saw on these videos is proof that Mohamed Merah was manipulated,” she said. “I will be presenting this proof to the French judicial authorities.”

Merah was shot by the elite RAID unit of the French police on March 22nd after he was cornered in a Toulouse apartment block. Merah was the chief suspect in the murder of three school children and a teacher at a Jewish school in the town, as well as the deaths of three French soldiers.

“They didn’t want him alive,” said the lawyer. “What I’ve seen shows there was a deception and we need to show the truth.” In the two videos, Merah is alleged to tell police “I’m innocent, why do you want to kill me, I’ve done nothing wrong.”

Mokhtari said she will be in Paris this week to join forces with a French lawyer to launch legal action. She said the videos were given to her by people “at the heart of events” who wanted to “get the truth out.”

The RAID unit has insisted that it gave Merah every chance to come out alive. “If an assault was launched, it was by Merah,” said the chief of the unit, Amaury de Hauteclocque. 23-year-old Merah was killed after a 32 hour siege in the apartment block where he was tracked down after the seven killings which took place over three days on March 11th, 15th and 19th.

— Hat tip: Fjordman

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UK: A Lethal Game-Changer for British Politics?

by Melanie Phillips

The general response to George Galloway’s sensational victory in the Bradford West by-election has missed the point by a mile. Comment has concentrated on the undoubtedly stunning defeat for Labour, and has ascribed Galloway’s victory to widespread disaffection with mainstream political parties. This is certainly part of the story — strikingly, a significant section of the Tory vote appears to have gone to Galloway — but it is not the key factor behind this torrid triumph of a discredited demagogue. For this rested principally on something that commentators are too blinkered or politically correct to mention. Galloway won because young Bradford Muslims turned out for him in droves. They did not vote for him because he was promising them better public services. They did not vote for him, indeed, on account of any British domestic issues. They did so because he tailored his message to appeal to their religious passions and prejudices about conflicts abroad. Specifically, he campaigned against the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq and for the Palestinians, declaring that his victory would help satisfy voters’ ‘duty’ to care about such grievances.

Most commentators have dismissed this victory as a shocking one-off with no further significance than an upset by an entertaining maverick. Not so. For with Galloway’s election, religious extremism has become for the first time a potential game-changer in British politics. The point being so resolutely ignored is that Galloway ran on an Islamist religious ticket. It wasn’t simply that he was pandering to Islamist foreign policy obsessions. He made explicit references to Islam throughout his campaign. ‘All praise to Allah!’ he saluted his victory through a loud-hailer — having previously told a public meeting that if people didn’t vote for him, Allah would want to know why. Indeed, declaring in one address that ‘God knows who is a Muslim’, he implied that he was even more of a true adherent of that faith than Labour’s Muslim candidate who, he suggested without a shred of evidence, drank alcohol whereas he himself had never touched the stuff. Pinch yourself — a British politician using the inflammatory rhetoric and professions of Islamic piety more commonly heard in Iran or Saudi Arabia. Just as such religious hucksterism inflames millions of followers in the Islamic world, so certain unscrupulous British politicians have now realised they too can tap into the same well of irrational hatred to deliver them electoral victory.

[…]

— Hat tip: JP

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UK: Emma Thompson Backs Israel Boycott for Shakespeare Festival

British Oscar-winning actress Emma Thompson has added her name to a list of high-profile figures in the arts world calling on the Globe Theatre to cancel its invitation to an Israeli company to next month’s Cultural Olympiad event. Israel’s national theatre company, Habima, was invited to stage one of 37 Shakespeare plays in foreign languages as part of the Globe to Globe festival. Habima will perform The Merchant of Venice, while during the six-week festival the Ramallah-based Ashtar Theatre will put on an Arabic version of Richard II.

The invitation to the Israeli company had already raised concerns of disruption in the manner of the anti-Israel protests during the Israel Philharmonic Orchestra’s Proms performance last year. In January activists from Boycott From Within, formed by Israelis who back the boycott movement, urged Globe directors to stop the performance. The Globe said “active exclusion was a profoundly problematic stance to take”.

Now 37 people have signed a letter calling for Israel to be removed from the roster, including the prominent Jewish anti-Israel activists Miriam Margolyes, David Aukin, Jonathan Miller and Mike Leigh. Also on the list is the star of the play Jerusalem, Mark Rylance. Writing that Habima should be boycotted because it had performed in Israeli settlements, the signatories said: “By inviting Habima, Shakespeare’s Globe is undermining the conscientious Israeli actors and playwrights who have refused to break international law.”

The signatories said they had no problem with the Globe including a Hebrew — language performance. “But by inviting Habima, the Globe is associating itself with policies of exclusion practised by the Israeli state and endorsed by its national theatre company,” they said. “We ask the Globe to withdraw the invitation so that the festival is not complicit with human rights violations and the illegal colonisation of occupied land.” The writers added that “Inclusiveness” is a core value of arts policy in Britain, and we support it.”

Earlier this year the Globe said Habima was “the most well-known and respected Hebrew-language theatre company in the world” and so “a natural choice to any programmer wishing to host a dramatic production in Hebrew”. “They are committed, publicly, to providing an ongoing arena for sensible dialogue between Jews and Arabs, Israelis and Palestinians.” The letter provoked a response from Professor Geoffrey Alderman, who said: “The activities of the Habima theatre company in connection with the Israeli communities that live in these areas is therefore entirely legitimate.” Speaking to the JC last year, Rut Tonn of the Habima Theatre said it was a blessing that Israelis and Palestinians could take part. “We are always looking for collaborations which will help with the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.”

— Hat tip: JP

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UK: George Galloway and Ken Livingstone Show That the Left Has Given in to Sectarianism

by Graeme Archer

[…]

The modern successful Left-wing politician seeks election through a machinery that should give nightmares to anyone who’s ever pondered the importance of “one nation”. A vicious, divisive sectarianism is… I was going to say “waiting in the wings”, but after Galloway’s victory, that would seem out of date. Those to whom Galloway’s theologically imbued demagoguery gives succour, it should now be clear, are completely immune to metropolitan sneering at his feline antics on Big Brother. The mainstream needs more than to laugh at such people, or deploy colour-coded candidates in a patronising nod towards “authenticity”. Conservatives must show that they are on the side of shopkeepers and their customers, rather than the oligarchs of big business. Fish suppers, if you like; not kitchen ones. Because Galloway isn’t unique. In London, Livingstone imitates George’s unapologetic appeal to sectarianism, in a campaign that must, by now, have cured all but the most delusional Labour supporter of residual eye-scales. “Jews are rich, so they won’t vote for me” is a morally repugnant tone to attach to a mayoral election, but would you be willing to bet that it will fail? The politics of liberal tolerance are being tested against the arithmetic of electoral calculus; arithmetic is winning. It always will, in the absence of a solid Tory counter-appeal to the majority.

So Osborne’s miscalculations and Downing Street’s impression of a Carry On film matter. We can’t trust the Left to fight modern sectarianism: it is their last hope of winning a majority. The Conservatives need rapidly to rediscover why those of us who aren’t toffs support them through thick and thin; it’s got nothing to do with the colour of a cabinet minister’s skin, or with whom he or she sleeps. It’s got everything to do with One Nation — in its proper sense, not as a code for anti-Thatcherite hand-wringing. Cut the taxes of the people who fear for their jobs, Chancellor, because a Tory Chancellor who increases the taxes on people who work is an aristocratic Emperor, quickly seen to be wearing no clothes. The politician in London who benefits from the recent Tory own-goals isn’t called Boris Johnson: and the fight — Boris’s fight — against communal sectarianism is too important to lose.

— Hat tip: JP

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UK: George Galloway’s Victory is the Last Thing Britain Needs

by Abhijit Pandya

Galloway’s victory is a vindication for, above all people, Enoch Powell. Powell warned of the dangers that mass immigration would have. Ted Heath failed to listen, what we have is Galloway- a product of classic third world, unassimilated, rabble-rousing, engineering of election results. Galloway’s victory shows that we now have our ghettos. We have segregation. We have a divided land with the consequences of not assimilating failed third-world backward cultures within us. These are growing and multiplying generation after generation. Respect has a future, and provided the Islamic population continues to grow at its present rate, and is not fully assimilated, it is an Islamist one. Be warned.

[…]

— Hat tip: JP

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UK: Scenes From a London Hatefest

Have a look at the scene at last Friday’s “Global march to Jerusalem” demonstration in London. “From the river to the sea” calls for Israel’s annihilation. A Hezbollah flag (it wasn’t the only one). The Neturei Karta freak show. “Zionism, terrorism”. This is what deranged Israel hated looks like.

[…]

It seems Labour can’t even be bothered to answer criticism of such behaviour anymore.

I have written three times to Ed Miliband and other party leaders in a personal capacity. In July, I expressed my concern about my MP’s jaunt to Beirut [i.e. Corbyn], for Viva Palestina’s Summer University, alongside Palestinian hijacker Leila Khaled, and Azzam Tamimi, who has spoken of his desire to become a suicide bomber. No response. I emailed expressing my alarm at Ken’s backing for Rahman. No response. And having been invited to a fundraising night for Ken at the “Shadow Lounge”, I wrote that he should spend less time there and more time working out how large his cheque to HMRC should be. No response.

And who is the man to Corbyn’s right in the photograph above? Labour MP Andy Slaughter. The man Labour thinks should be this country’s Justice Minister.

— Hat tip: JP

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UK: The Tories Must Return to True Blue Values to Survive

by Leo McKinstry

THE Tories seem to be in meltdown. As ministers lurch from one crisis to another, the Prime Minister is mired in a deepening scandal over party funding. On too many fronts, the Conservative-led Government appears to be incompetent, sleazy, out of touch and divisive, precisely the cocktail of negative characteristics that brought down John Major’s administration in 1997. David Cameron can take no comfort from last week’s by- election result in Bradford West, where maverick Left- winger George Galloway achieved a sensational land- slide victory in one of Labour’s northern heartlands. The out- come was a humiliation for Labour leader ed Miliband, plunging his vapid leadership into yet more turmoil. But the Tories did just as badly with their share of the vote dropping by 22.78 per cent, fractionally more than Labour’s decline.

[…]

— Hat tip: JP

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UK: The 100-Year War Against Football Fans’ Freedom of Speech

by Brendan O’Neill

Last week, Nick Hawkins, the man in charge of prosecuting football fans for the Crown Prosecution Service, gave a lecture titled “Crossing the line: when sport becomes a crime”. It might have been better titled “Blurring the line”, since, like all of today’s intolerant snobbish football-watchers, Hawkins collapsed the age-old, Enlightened distinction between words and actions and argued that football fans’ chanting — mere speech — is potentially a criminal offence. According to Hawkins, fans “cross the line”, and potentially commit a crime, when they indulge in “inappropriate crowd behaviour [and] chanting”. “I would strongly urge clubs to stop their fans singing some of their more choice chants”, he said, before proposing that the FA have the power to deduct points from football clubs, thus causing them to plummet in their league tables, if they fail to police and correct their fans’ speech. He also suggested making clubs “play games behind closed doors” — that is, with no fans at all in attendance — if they don’t get shot of lewd chanting.

Clearly, Hawkins is not satisfied with the reams of public-order legislation which already limit what fans can shout, or with the fact that many clubs now employ stewards who wear headcams to capture fans saying untoward things. No, he wants even stiffer penalties to be imposed on fans whose speech doesn’t measure up to what you might hear around an Islington dinner table. In no other area of public life would such stringent proposals to restrict speech be tolerated. Imagine if ushers at the opera wore headcams to film audience members who jeered at a particularly poor aria. Or if a public official suggested that certain novels — really racy ones — should only be made available to certain people, “behind closed doors”. There would be outrage. Liberty and PEN would go mad. But football fans? They don’t matter. Any assault on their freedom of speech is okay. They have become the lab rats for new forms of censoriousness.

It isn’t hard to work out why things uttered in football stadiums are treated as fundamentally different to all other forms of speech, so much so that special laws are needed to curb and potentially punish them. It’s because football fans, those largely working-class blokes, are viewed as more volatile and suggestible than other sections of society, as something closer to attack dogs than rational human beings. Indeed, a writer for the Evening Standard recently likened fans to “Pavlov’s foaming dogs” — that is, they hear a hateful chant and they act on it. Where middle-class theatregoers can be trusted to watch a foul or violent play and not try to re-enact it afterwards, and where erudite literature-consumers can be trusted to work out that an edgy novel about mass murder is just fiction and not an invitation to kill, apparently football fans must be prevented from hearing offensive chanting because they lack the mental skills needed to distinguish between vile words and real, everyday life. A person’s attitude towards free speech often reveals a great deal about his attitude towards Other People — and the clamour to restrict what can be chanted in football stadiums shows that many in officialdom and the commentariat view fans almost as animalistic, as incapable of hearing weird words without taking them to heart and going mental.

Some of the warriors against football fans’ uncouthness claim that the really offensive chanting we hear today is a relatively new phenomenon and is ruining the Beautiful Game. And all they want to do is make football a pleasant sport once more. So the Guardian’s resident railer against working-class shouting says “extremist” chants are a “late-1960s bolt-on to football”. It is unlikely, says the Guardian, that the fans of the 1950s, “in their caps and overcoats” (back when the working classes were decent!), would have chanted really obnoxious stuff. Perhaps. And yet even back then, when fans were the salt of the earth (ugh), there were campaigns to clean up their speech. There always have been.

As pointed out in an interesting collection of essays called The Roots of Football Hooliganism, “Complaints about the language used at football matches regularly surfaced in the British press in the 1890s and early 1900s”. Usually the focus was on swearing. Indeed, just as today’s FA, in an attempt to appease the middle-class loathers of lewd chanting, promises to try to stamp out offensive speech, so in 1901 the FA said it was “determined… to stop the use of foul language on the part of spectators at football matches”. Newspapers frequently published scandalised news reports about the “verbal misconduct” of working-class football fans, with one complaining that “bad language prevents a decent-minded man enjoying the game and prevents a lady attending”. So, in fact, even when fans merely swore rather than sang properly offensive songs, even when they wore “caps and overcoats” rather than sporting naked, tattooed bellies, still there was a war on their vulgar speech in the name of protecting the sensitives of “decent-minded men”. And so it is today. The socially aware commentators and campaigners who present their efforts to stamp out offensive chanting merely as an attempt to “clean up footie” are in fact the latest footsoldiers in a 100-year war on working-class fans’ colourful language. To use a bit of terrace lingo, if you don’t like what is said at football matches, then **** off somewhere else.

— Hat tip: JP

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UK: What Else Tory MPs Say About David Cameron and His Leadership

by Benedict Brogan

James Kirkup and Holly Watt have set the proverbial heather alight with their splash today on the four recommendations being put to David Cameron by members of the ‘22 Executive for sorting out the current difficulties of the Coalition’s Tory end. When I last looked it had clocked up more than 1300 comments. I’ve had a succession of telephone calls from MPs wanting to bash my ear about what’s wrong — or what’s not wrong. Downing Street is stressing Mr Cameron’s willingness to listen to his colleagues about anything that concerns them. He will pay particular attention to demands for a broader set of voices on the ministerial benches — code for a reshuffle — and it might be worth putting a small wager on a ministerial overhaul at the end of the session in May, though my money remains on the autumn or not at all this year. The business about the party chairman — or chairmen — has been noted too. A reorganisation of No10 is less likely I reckon, but only because Dave likes it as it is, ie in his image. As for the Chancellor, he would argue with good reason that the closeness of their relationship is one of the big pluses of the Government, and he has no reason to risk it.

For the sake of completeness, here’s a flavour of what other MPs are telling me.

• The 1922 Committee is no longer representative of the parliamentary party, because members of the new intake in particular seldom attend. The executive in turn attracts criticism from loyalists because, they say, it is packed with mavericks and eccentrics.
• A considerable majority of Conservative MPs — some say the vast majority — see no reason to question either Mr Cameron’s leadership or his policies.
• If anything, Downing Street communicates too much, crowding the inboxes of MPs with briefing and notes to guide what they tell their constituents.
• There is no money: the economic fundamentals have not changed, the Government has no room to manoeuvre.
• The Coalition is doing God’s work — or words to that effect — on welfare, education and deficit reduction.
• If this is a crisis, it is one of temporary hysteria encouraged by a small number of malcontents that in no way reflects the reality, namely that Mr Cameron’s authority is not in doubt.

Of course, that’s the situation within the parliamentary party, a strange tempermental beast at the best of times. Trouble is, it’s the voters who matter, and the overnight polls show how confidence in Mr Cameron’s leadership has plummeted following last week’s fiasco. And even those MPs who support Mr Cameron voice frustration at the way George Osborne got the presentation of the granny tax so wrong last week. As Iain Martin pointed out today, MPs have spotted that Mr Cameron is already on the downward glidepath to the end of his leadership, and that very quickly the election that will decide it will be upon us.

— Hat tip: JP

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Ukraine Allows Ex-Premier to Leave Prison for Medical Care

Ukraine’s prosecutor general has given jailed opposition politician Yulia Tymoshenko permission to get outside medical care for a back condition. Germany is in talks with Ukraine for her to get that care in Berlin.

Prosecutor General Viktor Pshonka said on Monday that Tymoshenko could get care from “a specialized medical facility” outside the Kharkiv penitentiary where she is being held, because she could not get adequate treatment there.

The former premier and rival to President Viktor Yanukovych was sentenced in October 2011 to seven years in prison for abusing her power as prime minister during negotiations with Russia over a natural gas supply contract. Tymoshenko said the trial was an attempt to silence the opposition.

It was expected the 51-year-old would be treated at a Ukrainian hospital, however, the German government confirmed it is in talks to have Tymoshenko brought to Berlin.

“We … hope that the talks with the government of Ukraine make medical treatment (in Germany) possible,” said Chancellor Angela Merkel’s spokesman Steffen Seibert in Berlin on Monday.

— Hat tip: Fjordman

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US Holocaust Legislation: German National Railway Fears Flood of Lawsuits

Germany’s national railway, Deutsche Bahn, has hired a law firm and PR agency in the United States to prepare for legislation being considered by Congress that would allow Holocaust survivors to sue European railway companies for damages in American courts. Deutsche Bahn fears victims could sue for millions if the legislation passes.

— Hat tip: Fjordman

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‘We Need to Invest in a European Identity’

BRUSSELS — The European Parliament is trying to cultivate a “European identity,” with top officials saying that it is the only way to ensure a lasting union between member states. “National systems have very much invested in constructing their own identity,” Klaus Welle, the secretary general of the European Parliament told an audience at the Centre for European Policy Studies, a think-tank, on Thursday (29 March).

“If we want to build a lasting union of solidarity we also need to invest in European identity. We need to understand history as European history and not just as compilation of national histories.” Referring to his native Germany, Welle noted that people speak of the country as if it has existed forever. But the modern German state was created in 1871. Before that there was the German Confederation, which also included Prussia and Austria.

— Hat tip: Fjordman

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Forget Cornish Pasties. Forget Jerry Cans. It’s More Likely Than Not That Israel Will Strike Iran

by Bruce Anderson

Volatile is a word often used by political commentators and indeed political scientists. Latinate and polysyllabic, it sounds thoughtful, academic. The plain English translation was supplied by Harold Wilson: “A week is a long time in politics”. Weeks have rarely come more volatile than the past few days. Let us start with Mr Galloway. He invoked God so often that one is forced to an inescapable conclusion. The House of Commons now has its first Hizbollah MP (the word means party of God). So will the Almighty acquire more adherents? That will depend on the political demography of other Northern cities. There may be more Bradford Wests ripe for exploitation. On one point, however, Ed Miliband can feel safe. It is extremely unlikely that the catsuit man will realise his fantasy of spreading his message to the white working class. There is not much appeal in a programme of no alcohol, sweets for Saddam Hussein and an extreme reluctance to condemn Islamic terrorism.

But we should not draw comfort from that. The only way of mitigating racial tensions in this country is integration on the basis of mutual respect. The Bradford result does nothing to assist that. So Tories tempted to gloat over Labour’s defeat should think again — and get ready to act. If they but knew it, a lot of the Muslims who voted for the wrong sort of respect last Thursday have much in common with the Tory party. They believe in family values and hard work. There should be no problem in persuading them of the need for an economic recovery based on sound public finances. Although there are difficulties over Iraq and Afghanistan, Tories should take those issues head on, not forgetting to mention Kosovo. The removal of Saddam and the Taleban not only offered the prospect of democracy. It also sowed the seeds of the Arab Spring. Why should other Muslims not enjoy the freedom to vote, as in Bradford?I am not saying that this would be an easy case to make, but there is nothing to be gained by apologising. We should treat Muslims with proper respect by arguing vehemently when we disagree. Labour have always been good at patronising coloured immigrants and assuming that it can count on their votes. When there are declarations of independence, Labour politicians do not know how to respond. Their demoralisation should be the Tories’ opportunity. The party’s core message should be: “We know that you have minds of your own”.

[…]

That leads to a final point, which is even more important than Cornish pasties. Over the last week, I have spoken to three people who both realistic and well-informed on matters pertaining to the Muddle East. In the past, they have proved reliable. They all think it more likely than not that the Israelis will take military action against Iran before the US elections.

So if you have stashed away the odd jerry-can, it might still prove useful…

— Hat tip: JP

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German-Turkish Trade Relations Are Gaining Momentum

In the past 10 years, Turkey has become an important trade partner for Germany. Export figures have balloned by around 400 percent in the the past decade. But new statistics suggest it’s far from a one-way street.

Turkey has successfully defended its place among the 20 most important trade partners for Germany despite ongoing political tensions over Ankara’s bid to join the European Union.

Over the past 10 years, German exports to Turkey have risen almost four times, the Wiesbaden-based National Statistics Office (Destatis) said on Monday. German imports from Turkey doubled between 2001 and 2011.

In 2011 alone, German exports to Turkey amounted to 20.1 billion euros ($26.8 billion), with imports totaling 11.7 billion euros over the same period. The German trade surplus therefore reached 8.4 billion euros.

Turkey last year took 15th place among the recipients of German exports, which totaled 1,060 billion euros worldwide.

Vehicles and auto parts made up the bulk of German to Turkey exports last year and reached a volume of 5.1 billion euros, followed by engineering tools and machinery as well as chemical products.

Turkey for its part was able to export textiles worth 3.2 billion euros to Germany, followed by specialized machine tools.

— Hat tip: Fjordman

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Iraq: Man Whose WMD Lies Led to 100,000 Deaths Confesses All

Defector tells how US officials ‘sexed up’ his fictions to make the case for 2003 invasion

A man whose lies helped to make the case for invading Iraq — starting a nine-year war costing more than 100,000 lives and hundreds of billions of pounds — will come clean in his first British television interview tomorrow.

“Curveball”, the Iraqi defector who fabricated claims about Iraq’s weapons of mass destruction, smiles as he confirms how he made the whole thing up. It was a confidence trick that changed the course of history, with Rafid Ahmed Alwan al-Janabi’s lies used to justify the Iraq war.

He tries to defend his actions: “My main purpose was to topple the tyrant in Iraq because the longer this dictator remains in power, the more the Iraqi people will suffer from this regime’s oppression.”

The chemical engineer claimed to have overseen the building of a mobile biological laboratory when he sought political asylum in Germany in 1999. His lies were presented as “facts and conclusions based on solid intelligence” by Colin Powell, US Secretary of State, when making the case for war at the UN Security Council in February 2003.

But Mr Janabi, speaking in a two-part series, Modern Spies, starting tomorrow on BBC2, says none of it was true. When it is put to him “we went to war in Iraq on a lie. And that lie was your lie”, he simply replies: “Yes.”

US officials “sexed up” Mr Janabi’s drawings of mobile biological weapons labs to make them more presentable, admits Colonel Lawrence Wilkerson, General Powell’s former chief of staff. “I brought the White House team in to do the graphics,” he says, adding how “intelligence was being worked to fit around the policy”.

As for his former boss: “I don’t see any way on this earth that Secretary Powell doesn’t feel almost a rage about Curveball and the way he was used in regards to that intelligence.”…

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Syria: Jihadists Declare Holy War Against Assad Regime

Abu Rami hails from Lebanon, but his heart is in Syria these days. The 40-year-old is one of hundreds of Arabs who are fighting against the Assad regime at the side of Syrian insurgents. Many of these volunteer fighters are veterans of the Iraq war, who have now brought their holy war to Syria.

— Hat tip: Fjordman

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UAE: Death Gets Cheaper in the UAE

New crematorium cuts costs, but shipping expat bodies home remains expensive.

The government of Abu Dhabi has altered regulations that appear to encourage the use of a new emirate-funded crematorium over burial or repatriation of non-Muslim expatriates.

The cost of funerals has been steadily increasing in the United Arab Emirates (UAE), with coffin prices nearly doubling this year alone. The families and friends of many expatriate workers who die in the UAE are also finding that the cost of shipping the bodies back to their home country is expensive because of the paperwork involved. But now steps have been taken that authorities say would ease the misery of mourners by reducing the red tape and permits required and funding the cremation of dead bodies in a modern crematorium built in Al Ain in Abu Dhabi. “They have spent a great deal of money on this facility and it is a state-of-the-art building,” Don Fox, the chief executive of the Al-Foah Funeral Services in Abu Dhabi, told The Media Line. “No expense has been spared and it gives an aura of serenity and peacefulness to all of the people who have been here.” The facility was built on the orders of Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, the crown prince of Abu Dhabi and furnaces were lit up for the first time in mid January. Orders were also given to eliminate a police clearance certificate for natural deaths and other permits that can reportedly save up to 1,000 dirhams ($272).

The UAE, a Gulf confederation of seven mini-states, has an enormous number of foreign residents. Of the 8.3 million people living in the UAE in 2012, 7.31 million of them (88.5%) are expats, according to the National Bureau of Statistics. Foreigner workers began arriving in the Gulf nearly half a century ago when the discovery of oil kicked off a massive infrastructure construction drive. Europeans and Asians, as well as citizens from other Arab countries, have helped turn Abu Dhabi and Dubai from sleepy villages into international trade and financial centers and tourism destinations. Gulf nations are heavily reliant on expatriates to do everything from pouring concrete to running locally-based multinational corporations. But earlier this year, Forbes magazine reported the UAE, was an “expat unfriendly” country. Until the crematorium was built, expats who passed away would either be boxed up in an expensive coffin to be shipped back to their native lands for burial or interred locally. The local options for non-Muslims were old, run down and poorly tended cemeteries. “This prompted the government to do something and they provided this marvelous facility,” Fox said, adding that the facility included a multi-faith church that seats 400 people and was easily accessible from all of the UAE. Flowers and other special requests, such as live transmission of funeral services or recorded on DVD, have also become available.

In Dubai, only caskets sold by the Al-Shindagha Trading Company are approved for transporting the deceased abroad. But that company nearly doubled the price of the coffins from 1,200 dirhams to 2,300. The National, a local daily, reported that the Dubai Health Authority is now trying to bring down the price because poor people struggle to ship the bodies of their loved ones home. “The cost of transporting a body to a country like India comes to more than 5,000 dirhams with the new rates. It would be good news if the prices are brought down,” C.P. Matthew, the founder of Valley of Love voluntary organization, was quoted as saying. Fox of Al-Foah Funeral Services confirmed that the price of caskets had doubled. He said that according to international standards of the Institute of Cemetery and Crematorium Management (ICCM), a coffin is even required for cremation. He said some of the coffins they used were custom made, but many were shipped in bulk from abroad. “Most of them are from China, which seems to be conducting a very thriving business,” Fox said. Fox said the cost of cremation is considerably less than getting buried back at home. Some 2,500 human remains are estimated to be repatriated from Abu Dhabi and Al Ain annually. “To have somebody cremated here would be approximately a third of the cost of being repatriated back to their country,” he said. “The reason it’s cheaper so much is because the actual cremation in Al Ain is free. This is paid for by the UAE government.”

In a further move to ease the burial process the health authorities and police agreed that a “no objection certificate” would be required for any natural deaths, but only if buried locally or cremated. “One had to have a letter from the police department to release the body for burial or repatriation. Now for burial or cremation in the UAE that is not required if the person dies a natural death,” Fox said. “This eases things up considerably here and makes the procedure a lot faster.” Despite the moves that will likely channel more business to the crematorium, public awareness among expats in the UAE is still low. Opened since mid-January, Fox expects business to pick up once their website becomes active. Ninety-nine percent of the public in the UAE are not aware that this facility is available yet,” Fox said, adding that visits by the ambassadors of the U.S., European countries and word of mouth would also help business. “When that website comes up there is going to be quite a publicity campaign for the benefit of all the populace.”

— Hat tip: JP

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Suu Kyi’s Party Wins Decisive Victory in Myanmar by-Election

After her release from years of house arrest just 17 months ago, democracy activist Aung San Suu Kyi has secured a seat in Myanmar’s parliament. Her NLD party won all of the seats that it contested.

— Hat tip: Fjordman

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Wives, Daughters of Osama Bin Laden Jailed in Pakistan

A Pakistani court has convicted five close relatives of deceased al Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden for illegally staying in the country. They were sentenced to 45 days in prison, fined, and will subsequently be deported.

Osama Bin Laden’s three widows and two of his daughters were convicted of illegally entering and staying in Pakistan on Monday. They received sentences of 45 days in prison — with 31 of those already served during their trial — fined 10,000 rupees ($110, 75 euros), and will face deportation to their home countries when released.

Despite being formally arrested on March 3 ahead of their trial, the five women had been in detention since last May when the al Qaeda leader was killed by US commandos at a compound in the town of Abbottabad.

The women’s lawyer, Amir Khalil, said that the fines had been paid on the spot and that the family’s younger children would travel with them when they left Paksitan. Khalil also said that his clients did not plan to appeal the ruling.

Two of the wives are Saudi Arabian, one hails from Yemen. Khalil said authorities in Yemen had already approved the defendants’ return, though he was still negotiating with Saudi Arabia, which stripped Bin Laden of his citizenship in 1994.

Once out of Pakistan, the women might reveal more information about how Bin Laden was able to evade capture and detection for years in Pakistan. No evidence has been found suggesting that Pakistani authorities knew where Bin Laden was, but doubts remain given that he lived so close to some sensitive military sites.

Washington hunted Bin Laden for almost a decade after the September 11, 2001 attacks.

— Hat tip: Fjordman

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Hong Kong Protesters Reject Beijing-Friendly Leader

Hong Kong’s leader-in-waiting, Leung Chun-ying, faces broad questions of legitimacy because of his close ties to Beijing. Thousands of protesters have now called for his resignation and for universal suffrage.

Thousands of people protested in the streets of Hong Kong on Sunday against last week’s selection of the semi-autonomous city’s new leader, a property consultant with close ties to the mainland government in Beijing.

Organizers said about 15,000 people took part in the demonstration, which was the first against the new leader since his selection, while police put the figure at around 5,300. Protesters chanted slogans like “One person, one vote” and “Leung step down.”

Leung Chun-ying, a 57-year-old millionaire, won 689 votes in the 1,200-seat committee that chooses Hong Kong’s chief executive. The committee is full of loyalists to the Communist government in Beijing.

— Hat tip: Fjordman

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North Korea’s Leader Was No Whizz at Swiss School

North Korea’s young leader Kim Jong-Un, who was schooled in Switzerland, obtained poor grades in school and was often absent, according to a Swiss newspaper report. Kim, who is 29, was absent for 75 days in his first year at the International School of Bern, according to Le Matin Dimanche, while in his second year, he missed 105 days of classes.

The boy, who was registered under the pseudonym Un Pak, was sometimes in school only in the afternoons, said the newspaper, quoting an unnamed former classmate. Not surprisingly then, Kim failed natural sciences with 3.5 out of 6, and obtained a just minimum passing score of 4 for mathematics, culture and society and German.

Even in English, where he was placed in an advanced class before being downgraded to an average one, he obtained the minimum pass grade. Only in music and technical studies did he obtain 5.

This was despite the fact that Kim, who was born January 8th, 1983, was in a class of children mostly born in 1985 due to his poor level of German — the main language used in the Swiss capital Bern. Kim took over the reins of the hermetic country after his father Kim Jong-Il’s death on December 17th, 2011.

— Hat tip: Fjordman

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9,000 Burial Plots for Muslims and Jews

Thousands more burial plots will be made available in Sydney, after it looked like the Muslim community would run out of space for their dead in just six months. The NSW government on Monday announced the allotment of 6000 additional burial plots for Muslims and 3000 for the Jewish community at Rookwood Necropolis in Sydney to address the space shortages. Approximately 350 Muslim burials occur each year at Rookwood, and community leader Ahmad Kamaledine said there were only enough spaces to accommodate burials for the next six months. “For us as a Muslim community … the news is overwhelming. In six months’ (time) we had nowhere to go,” he told reporters at NSW Parliament House. Mr Kamaledine said he’d been working to secure burial plots for the past 12 years. The Muslim community will receive half of the land at Lot 10 in the NSW government-owned Rookwood Necropolis, accommodating 6000 people in double-depth plots. The other half of Lot 10 will be used for 3000 single Jewish burial plots which will be protected in perpetuity, under Jewish requirements.

[…]

— Hat tip: JP

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Burqa-Clad Men Prompt Anger in Sydney

Ugly scenes erupted between a group of burqa-clad protesters and a Muslim man outside NSW State Parliament in Sydney today.

A group of men dressed in the veiled female garb as a publicity stunt to try and get the outfit banned.

Members of the group Faceless ventured into a Sydney CBD courthouse, pub and bank without drawing much reaction, but faced a stronger backlash later outside parliament.

“It’s got no place in Australia — it’s a front to a civilised country like Australia,” Faceless member Nicholas Folkes said of the burqa.

Nine News filmed a man outraged by the protesters, shouting in their faces and pulling off their veils.

“That’s what I think of you,” the man said after spitting on the ground.

The argument became more heated when a man connected to Faceless referred to the prophet Mohammed as “a rat”.

No one will be charged over the stunt.

— Hat tip: Vlad Tepes

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The Terrorist Australia Doesn’t Want

The Australian Federal Police did not pursue the extradition of an Islamic extremist over the murder of an Australian cameraman in Iraq, the ABC can reveal. A diplomatic cable dated 2009 and leaked to WikiLeaks suggests there were “no obstacles” to such an extradition request being approved. Paul Moran, a freelance cameraman, was killed in a suicide attack while on assignment for the ABC in 2003. Iraqi terrorist group Ansar al Islam claimed responsibility for the attack. The group’s founder, Najmuddin Faraj Ahmad, also known as Mullah Krekar, openly taunted the Australian Government to come and get him. But no-one did. In 2007 the ABC’s Foreign Correspondent broadcast Norwegian Jihad: An investigation of Mullah Krekar. An AFP spokesman has told Foreign Correspondent that officials considered launching a probe into the case. “The evaluation of evidence was considered against a possible offence under section 115 of the Criminal Code 1995 (Harming Australians),” he said. “In this case, there was insufficient information available to justify an investigation and as a result the AFP determined not to investigate the matter.” But there is no indication of how the AFP reached this conclusion.

Australia’s most experienced international war crimes prosecutor, Graham Blewitt, has slammed the decision as “a lot of crock, a fob-off”. Mr Blewitt was deputy chief prosecutor at the United Nations International Criminal Tribunal from 1994 to 2004 and also headed the Australian Nazi War Crimes Unit in the early 1990s. He says the AFP “has a policy of not touching anything to do with terrorism or war crimes with a 10-foot pole”. They don’t want to do it. Too expensive,” he said. “Their argument that it’s difficult to pursue witnesses and evidence overseas is a load of ****.” Mr Blewitt has accused the Federal Government of lacking the political will to pursue suspects as “there are no votes in war crimes, they walk away from it”.

[…]

— Hat tip: JP

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Kenya Church Blast Leaves One Dead

At least one person has been killed and some 18 injured in bomb attacks in and near to the Kenyan city of Mombasa. The blasts are the latest in a string of attacks since the country sent troops into neighboring Somalia.

— Hat tip: Fjordman

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Mali: Neighbours Set to Close All Borders

All borders into landlocked Mali could be closed and its central bank starved of cash as the country’s neighbours attempted to force the controlling junta to restore democracy after the coup.

West Africa’s leaders met on Monday night to plot strategies on how to strong-arm Mali’s new governors into standing down and bringing back the ousted president. Chief among the options is to close borders and cut off capital to the national bank in Bamako. That would leave the country’s 15 million citizens, many of them facing the threat of famine as drought continues, struggling to find food, fuel and cash to buy medicines or keep businesses running. As the crisis in the West African country intensified on Monday, France and Belgium followed Britain’s lead in ordering its citizens to leave as soon as possible. Islamist militants fighting alongside Tuareg forces in the north planted their black flag in the centre of the ancient city of Timbuktu after it fell to the advancing rebels on Sunday night.

France, Mali’s former colonial ruler, ruled out sending troops to help resolve the crisis. But Alain Juppe, the foreign minister in Paris, said on Monday that he would “relay” the needs of Mali’s neighbours to the United Nations Security Council. Rebels in Mali’s Sahara regions have taken the opportunity of the confusion following last month’s coup to seize control of almost all territory in the north. There are fears that the rebels, initially mostly Tuaregs demanding self-determination, are now being overtaken by Islamist factions aiming to forge a new rule according to a strict interpretation of Islam. Captain Amadou Sanogo, the coup leader, took power because he said that the government of Amadou Toure, the deposed president, was doing little to beat back the rebels. But since the March 21 coup, the rebels have taken more and more territory. Their spokesman said yesterday that they did not intend to advance on Bamako, the capital, but would cement their control over newly-captured areas. They would prove hard to dislodge and would demand representation in the national parliament once the crisis passed, one diplomat in Bamako said.

— Hat tip: JP

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Mali: Islamists Push for Sharia Law in Northern Mali

by Bate Felix

BAMAKO, April 2 (Reuters) — Islamists moved to impose sharia law in northern Mali after helping Tuareg separatists seize key towns, ransacking bars and banning Western-style clothes and music, residents said on Monday. A lightning 72-hour advance by rebels over the weekend, which exploited the chaotic aftermath of a military coup in the distant capital, is the latest threat to stability in West Africa, whose leaders met for crisis talks in Senegal. Coup leaders agreed on Sunday to prepare to hand power back to civilians after neighbouring states threatened to shut the land-locked country’s borders. Residents in the ancient trading post of Timbuktu said local Ansar Dine Islamists, who alongside Tuareg separatists seized the town on Sunday, had declared they were in control of the former Saharan tourist draw and would impose Islamic law. A Reuters reporter in the northern city of Gao, seized by rebels on Saturday, said Islamists there were ransacking bars and hotels serving alcohol. In Kidal, the third main town of the region, one resident told Reuters music had been barred from radio stations and Western-style clothes had been banned.

[…]

— Hat tip: JP

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Mali: Ancient Islam Site Attacked by Tuaregs

AGADEZ, NIGER Booms from rocket launchers and automatic gunfire crackled around Mali’s fabled town of Timbuktu over the weekend. Known as an ancient seat of Islamic learning, for its 700-year-old mud mosque and, more recently, as host of the musical Festival in the Desert that attracted the Irish group U2’s lead singer Paul Hewson (Bono) in January, many are shocked at the attacks. On Sunday, nomadic Tuaregs who descended from the people who first created Timbuktu in the 11th century and seized it from invaders in 1434, attacked the city in their fight to create a homeland for the Sahara’s blue-turbanned nomads. Their assault deepens a political crisis sparked March 21 when mutinous soldiers seized power in the capital. The Tuaregs have rebelled before, but never have they succeeded in taking Timbuktu or the major northern centres of Kidal and Gao, which fell Friday and Saturday as demoralized government troops retreated.

[…]

— Hat tip: JP

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Nigeria: Christian Blood on Obama’s Hands

Drops in a tidal wave of death that is sweeping toward us: We must not forget Boko Haram, the murdered Christians of Africa, the murdered Jews of Tolouse or the murdered Hindus of Karachi.

On Christmas Day of last year, Muslim terrorists set off bombs in churches across Nigeria. It was one of the worst attacks by Boko Haram, which is determined to continue its reign of terror until the country is ruled by Muslim law. Christian pastors have been beheaded by Boko Haram and a spokesman for the group has openly stated that their interim goal is “to eradicate Christians from certain parts of the country.”

The Boko Haram death toll has surpassed a thousand in only a few years. It has killed 250 people this year alone. It draws inspiration from the Taliban, has links to Al-Qaeda, and has carried out numerous sophisticated attacks, including multiple car bombings.

That leaves one question. Why hasn’t Boko Haram been designated a terrorist organization? it has killed more people than some of the organizations on the list and it is dedicated to ethnic cleansing, something that we decided was unacceptable when it came to Muslims. Shouldn’t it then be equally unacceptable when it is being done by Muslims to Christians?

Apparently not. Johnnie Carson, Obama’s Chicago-born man in Africa, and the Assistant Secretary of State for African Affairs at subcommittee hearings chaired by Senator Coons, dismissed the idea of designating Boko Haram a terrorist organization and claimed falsely, that despite Boko Haram’s repeated statements about its goals and its very name, that this conflict was not driven by religion, but by social inequities.

— Hat tip: JD

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Greece to Complete Anti-Migrant Wall ‘Very Shortly’

BRUSSELS — Greece has said it will quickly finish construction of a controversial wall designed to keep out migrants, claiming that the thousands of people coming into the country each year threaten “social peace.” “The construction will begin very shortly and will also be completely very shortly,” the country’s citizen protection minister Micalis Chrisochoidis said during a visit to Brussels on Monday (2 April).

The three-metre-high barrier is to block a 12.5km-long strip of land between Turkey and Greece. The rest of the border between the two countries is formed by the Evros river. Athens says almost 130,000 immigrants entered Greece via the land crossing last year.

— Hat tip: Fjordman

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Obama to Relax Rules for Illegal Immigrants to Become Citizens

On Monday, the Department of Homeland Security will post for public comment an administrative change intended to reduce the time illegal immigrants would have to spend away from their families while applying for legal status, officials said. The current system requires the applicant to first leave the U.S. to seek a legal visa, but under the proposed change illegal immigrants could claim the time apart from a spouse, child or parent would create “extreme hardship” and allow them to remain in the U.S. as they begin the process.

Once approved, the person would be required to briefly leave the country to pick up the legal visa abroad.

Currently, families are often separated for several months as they await resolution of their applications. The change could reduce that time apart to one week in some cases, officials said. The White House hopes the new procedures could be in place by the end of the year.

— Hat tip: JD

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In the Shadow of the Sword, By Tom Holland [Book Review]

This is a book of extraordinary richness. I found myself amused, diverted and enchanted by turn. For Tom Holland has an enviable gift for summoning up the colour, the individuals and animation of the past, without sacrificing factual integrity. He writes with a contagious conviction that history is not only a fascinating tale in itself but is a well-honed instrument with which we can understand our neighbours and our own times, maybe even ourselves. He is also a divertingly inventive writer with a wicked wit — there’s something of both Gibbon and Tom Wolfe in his writing. Thus Theoderic… “for all the sheen of his classical education… had been given to murdering courtiers with his own hands, and sporting a moustache.” I also relished the description of a shaman “vomiting up revelations”.

He possesses a falcon eye for detail, whether it’s the royal Sassanian battle flag as it advances north towards its doom into the steppes of Central Asia, or the reported vision of the Avar Khan who knew Constantinople would survive his assault after he saw its walls defended by the Virgin Mary “a woman alone in decorous dress”, or how Rabbinical scholars recommended anointing the scalp with the blood of a dead rooster as a cure against migraine. We catch a glimpse of a workaholic Byzantine Emperor burning the midnight oil in the recesses of his administrative palace just as we witness the repulsive retching death spasms suffered by the victims of the 6th-century bubonic plague. But Holland can also do the far horizons in a few telling brush strokes, skillfully colouring in our mental map of ‘barbarian Western Europe’ with Ostrogoths, Vandals, Franks and Visigoths.

The ostensible subject at the heart of In the Shadow of the Sword is the sudden and totally unexpected rise of the Arab Empire of the Caliphate in the seventh century. Holland charts its emergence out of the two Empires that preceded it: the Byzantine Empire of the eastern Mediterranean and the Sassanian Empire of Persia and Mesopatamia. To disentangle the nature of these two very particular states, Holland looks back over the centuries to identify their different spiritual legacies and political dynamics. But the core of the narrative starts in 480 AD and takes us on a roller-coaster of an adventure, ending with the mutually assured destruction of each others territory by Heraclius and Khusrow, which allows for the sudden emergence of an Arab Empire in around 650 AD. Over the next hundred years the Caliphate expands its dominions, indulges in civil war and gradually defines itself around a new culture. Holland’s end date is around 750 AD — with the failure of the last great Arab attempt to storm Constantinople, the fall of the Ummayad dynasty (centred on Damascus) and the emergence of the Abbasid Caliphs of Baghdad. This is an understandable end-date for another reason, for this is when paper replaced parchment and when the first great Arab chronicles were penned, not to mention the vast corpus of Hadith sayings and Koranic exegesis by a new class of literate Muslim jurists.

But running like a stream of molten lava beneath the narrative of Holland’s history is an even more intriguing story. This is a history of the history as it were, telling how the warrior-dominated Empires of Antiquity were transformed into the first monotheistic states; how the old inclusive conquest states, with their comparatively simple desire for submission and tribute were replaced by states which imposed systems of total belief and demanded exclusive loyalty. As Holland reveals this was a slow, incremental achievement by literate and inventive clerics, teachers and jurists. On the one hand they are heroes, proving to the world that the pen is mightier than the sword, building a world dominated by passionate beliefs, schools, hospices and hospitals (rather than theatres, fora and amphitheatres) but they are also the villains, the crabby, jealous, legalistic men who forge prisons from the bricks of religion. We observe the Eastern Roman Empire morphing itself into Byzantium, first with the closure of the last pagan temples and schools of philosophy, then with a slow tightening of the definitions of Christian Orthodoxy, which will progressively condemn Jews and Samaritans before advancing to exclude the so-called Arian, Monophysite or Nestorian churches. In the same period the Talmudic schools of Mesopotamia create modern Judaism and Sassanian Iran becomes the homeland of a national, priest-ridden Zoroastrian orthodoxy. Many of its rituals, the habit of five daily prayers, of an obsessive dental hygiene and intolerance of dissent (which led to the martyrdom of such a God-loving individual as the prophet Mani) will be grafted into early Islam. This is wonderful, hard-hitting analysis, elegantly tied into the unfolding narrative of events, with each religious establishment exposed in all its glory and treacherous realpolitik.

Holland has also set himself a third task, as judge of the traditional Muslim narrative. He explains that the traditional story of Islamic origins and the life of the Prophet was only written down a hundred years after the events occurred, and was edited by writers whose primary motivation was theological, and who needed to ground their own political and legal innovations by creating retrospective case history. This is true enough, and as he also demonstrates this happened all over the ancient world, but the craft of the historian is to surely sift and winnow, not to throw the baby out with the bath-water. But instead of interpreting the traditions, Holland follows the brilliant, challenging ideas that Patricia Crone threw into the goldfish bowl of Islamic scholarship a few decades ago to stir things. In essence the full deconstructionist interpretation of nascent Islam denies the existence of pre-Islamic Mecca, tries to divide the Prophet Muhammad into two characters (along the obvious fault line of the different tone of the revelations from Mecca and Medina) and imagines early Islam as a Jewish-Christian heresy aspiring to conquer the Holy Land. They also tend to site non-Muslim sources in preference to anything that can be seen to have been composed in Abbasid Baghdad. But interestingly enough, Holland’s vivid selection of non-Muslim texts all prove broadly supportive of the traditional narrative of events — even the most remarkable chance find of them all, a humble receipt for sheep paid over to a very early Arab military detachment operating in Egypt.

Despite this, Holland keeps rigidly to the deconstructionist interpretation, indeed pushes out the boundaries with some rather wild suggestions, such as placing the original homeland of Islam in a base-camp on the desert borders of Palestine, not to mention the creation of Mecca by an Ummayyad Caliph. I was intrigued to read these suggestions, but ultimately unconvinced. Take the issue of Mecca as an example. We know that the ritual actions of the Meccan Haj are pagan in origin, and can usefully be compared to the survival of other pagan rituals in this period, such as at Harran. No-one interested in creating a brand new, pure Islamic cult centre in the middle of the Arabian desert would have instituted ritual actions connected with the annual commemoration of the death and rebirth of the great Goddess! And of course the geographical location of Mecca allows us to understand the many Ethiopian and Red Sea influences that have been discerned in the language of the Koran. Even with these slight flaws In the Shadow of the Sword remains a spell-bindingly brilliant multiple portrait of the triumph of monotheism in the ancient world.

Barnaby Rogerson’s latest book is ‘The Heirs Of The Prophet Muhammad: And The Roots Of The Sunni-Shia Schism’

— Hat tip: JP

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