The Eiffel Tower had to be closed tonight — during Easter weekend, one of its busiest periods — because of a phoned-in bomb threat. Al Qaeda has been threatening retaliation for French military action in Mali, so police in Paris took the threat seriously. However, no bomb was found, and eventually the alert was lifted.
In other news, the international soccer association FIFA is providing $4.5 million to Palestinians in Gaza to rebuild a stadium, create soccer fields, and build other football-related infrastructure.
To see the headlines and the articles, click “Continue reading” below.
Thanks to Fjordman, Insubria, JD, JP, Vlad Tepes, and all the other tipsters who sent these in.
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Caveat: Articles in the news feed are posted “as is”. Gates of Vienna cannot vouch for the authenticity or accuracy of the contents of any individual item posted here. We check each entry to make sure it is relatively interesting, not patently offensive, and at least superficially plausible. The link to the original is included with each item’s title. Further research and verification are left to the reader.
Bank Lobby: Cyprus Better Off Leaving the Euro
Philip Suttle, the chief economist of the IIF, the Washington-based lobby of the world’s biggest banks, has said Cyprus should leave the euro and devalue its currency. “It is the first case in which one can envisage a form of (euro) exit as a real possibility,” he said, AFP reports.
| — Hat tip: Fjordman | [Return to headlines] |
Cyprus President: Nation Will Not Leave Euro
Cyprus’ president has pledged to keep the nation in the euro, saying an EU bailout had “contained the financial crisis.” On Saturday depositors at the Bank of Cyprus are expected to discover how much they stand to lose.
President Nicos Anastasiades told a conference of civil servants in Nicosia on Friday that Cyprus “will not leave the euro.”
By accepting the tough bailout conditions set by the European Union, European Central Bank and International Monetary Fund earlier this week, his government had achieved the best possible outcome for the country under the circumstances, he said.
“We have averted the risk of bankruptcy,” Anastasiades said. “The situation, despite the tragedy of it all, is contained.”
However the president criticized the so-called troika of lenders for making “unprecedented demands that forced Cyprus to become an experiment.”
In order to secure the 10-billion-euro ($13 billion) bailout, Cyprus had to come up with 5.8 billion on its own, which is to be raised through a hefty levy on bank account deposits of 100,000 euros or more.
| — Hat tip: Fjordman | [Return to headlines] |
Cyprus: This is What it Feels Like to Have Your Life Savings Confiscated by the Global Elite
What would you do if you woke up one day and discovered that the banksters had “legally” stolen about 80 percent of your life savings? Most people seem to assume that most of the depositors that are getting ripped off in Cyprus are “Russian oligarchs” or “wealthy European tycoons”, but the truth is that they are only just part of the story. As you will see below, there are small businesses and aging retirees that have been absolutely devastated by the wealth confiscation that has taken place in Cyprus. Many businesses can no longer meet their payrolls or pay their bills because their funds have been frozen, and many retirees have seen retirement plans that they have been working toward for decades absolutely destroyed in a matter of days. Sometimes it can be hard to identify with events that are happening on the other side of the globe, but I want you to try to put yourself into their shoes for a few minutes. How would you feel if something like this happened to you?
For example, just consider the case of one 65-year-old retiree that has had his life savings totally wiped out by the “wealth tax” in Cyprus. His very sad story was recently featured by the Sydney Morning Herald…
“Very bad, very, very bad,” says 65-year-old John Demetriou, rubbing tears from his lined face with thick fingers. “I lost all my money.”
John now lives in the picturesque fishing village of Liopetri on Cyprus’ south coast. But for 35 years he lived at Bondi Junction and worked days, nights and weekends in Sydney markets selling jewellery and imitation jewellery.
He had left Cyprus in the early 1970s at the height of its war with Turkey, taking his wife and young children to safety in Australia. He built a life from nothing and, gradually, a substantial nest egg. He retired to Cyprus in 2007 with about $1 million, his life savings.
He planned to spend it on his grandchildren — some of whom live in Cyprus — putting them through university and setting them up. There would be medical bills; he has a heart condition. The interest was paying for a comfortable retirement, and trips back to Australia. He also toyed with the idea of buying a boat.
He wanted to leave any big purchases a few years, to be sure this was where he would spend his retirement. There was no hurry. But now it is all gone.
“If I made the decision to stay, I was going to build a house,” John says. “Unfortunately I didn’t make the decision yet.
“I went to sleep Friday as a rich man. I woke up a poor man.”
You can read the rest of the article right here.
| — Hat tip: JD | [Return to headlines] |
Destruction of Cyprus Economy Proceeding Ahead of Schedule
When I first heard about the Cyprus ritual execution bailout, I had thought that the widespread predictions that the island nation’s economy would contract by 20% to 30% over the next two years were off base.
I thought it would happen much faster, on the order of two to three months. An estimated 45% (mind you, 45%!) of the economy is banking, and almost all of that international banking. So if you generously assume 200% of the 900% of GDP was bona fide domestic assets (remember you have a lot of retirees), the other 7/9 goes poof. And that’s before you get to the fact that a lot of the services provided to foreign customers (the higher-end accounting and legal services) will have no future in a purely domestic banking business. So assume 90% of that 45% disappears in short order.
That much of an economy vaporizing is a state change. It’s not clear how Cyprus can regroup or recover even if the surplus international banking types could decamp. How do natives, whose money is presumably entirely in Cyprus (assuming it was not devastated by the hits to depositors at Laiki and Bank of Cyprus) emigrate with capital controls? How can they get their money out to make a new start somewhere else, if that’s their inclination? Again, while the Cypriot government initially said that capital controls would only be in place a matter of day, no expert believes that. They anticipate they’ll be in place for years to keep the remaining deposits from vanishing.
| — Hat tip: JD | [Return to headlines] |
ECB Man Says Cyprus is Model for Future Bailouts
ECB board member Klaas Knot told Dutch newspaper Het Financieele Dagblad the Cypriot bailout, which involves seizing savers’ money, is a model for future rescues. He said the “approach … has been on the table for a (long) time in Europe. This approach will be part of European liquidation policy.”
| — Hat tip: Fjordman | [Return to headlines] |
Greece: Government Prepares for Next Troika Visit
Fearing a worsening climate after the Cyprus bailout
(ANSAmed) — ATHENS — Greek Prime Minister Antonis Samaras met with Finance Minister Yannis Stournaras on Thursday as the government tries to wrap up several loose ends regarding structural reforms ahead of the troika’s return to Athens, which is scheduled for April 3 or 4, as daily Kathimerini reports.
Fearing a worsening climate in the eurozone after the tense negotiations over the Cyprus bailout, Samaras held the talks with the aim of finalizing Greece’s position on sackings and transfers in the civil service, how the emergency property tax will be levied, how the burden on loan holders can be alleviated and what kind of payment plan will be offered to Greeks who owe taxes. It is still not clear how many civil servants will lose their jobs by the end of 2014. The most recent proposal Athens made to the troika is for 5,000 public sector workers to be fired this year and next. Samaras and Stournaras are expecting the country’s lenders to approve the disbursal of the March bailout tranche of 2.8 billion euros in the next few days.
However, the coalition is also bracing itself for troika demands to address a potential fiscal shortfall. It is thought the lenders see the gap between revenues and spending reaching 2.4 billion euros this year and next. This is of concern to the government as the most recent bailout agreement Greece signed calls for automatic adjustments to be made.
| — Hat tip: Insubria | [Return to headlines] |
Homeland Security Buying Pricey Ammo as Department-Wide Cuts Take Hold
The Department of Homeland Security is spending more and more on pricey hollow-point bullets for law-enforcement officers — even as it plans to enforce furloughs and other cuts on Customs and Border Protection employees due to sequestration.
The Department of Homeland Security plans to buy more than 1.6 billion rounds over the next five years for training and on-duty purposes. They cite the numerous law enforcement agencies contained within the department with employees who carry weapons. But the purchases have led to criticism that the agency is spending money on bullets that can cost twice as much as regular ammo — and questions over whether those bullets are really needed for training purposes.
“Obviously you want to know how a hollow point is going to cycle through your weapon,” Scott McCurley, manager for Maryland-based Horst and McCann firing range and a former soldier for the U.S. Army, told FoxNews.com. “But I don’t think there’s much of a difference when training. One box of rounds per gun is enough. The cost outweighs the purpose.”
| — Hat tip: JD | [Return to headlines] |
Intelligence Insider: Obama Administration Agenda to “Kill U.S. Dollar”
Some might be surprised to learn that the fate of America’s economy has already been determined, verified and announced by the Obama White House. Yet, it has received scant attention from the corporate media. In 2011, economist Kyle Bass interviewed a senior member of the Obama administration about its planned solutions for fixing the US economy and trade deficit.
Among the questions he asked was about U.S. exports and wages, but the question itself was not nearly as important as the response he received from this senior administration official. In fact, this single, seven word response clarifies everything, explains everything, and leaves little else to discuss: “We’re just going to kill the dollar.”
There it is, the entire agenda in one short sentence. It explains everything we’ve been seeing domestically and globally. That one statement makes every other question irrelevant, or otherwise answers all economic questions and explains everything. Nothing else matters. I urge you to ponder that statement and all that it implies. Doing so will provide you with the clarity to understand not only what is taking place today, but what is yet to come.
By its very definition, to kill our national currency is an act of high treason by those engaged in this activity. It undermines the very sovereignty and survival of our nation, and will have a life-changing impact on every citizen in the U.S. It will also impact every nation and the people of every nation on the planet, as the USD is presently the world’s reserve currency. It is an act that should result in the filing of criminal charges against the conspirators, a trial of their peers and if convicted, a death sentence. It’s that serious…
The ultimate objective is to implement an international currency in tandem with a system of global governance. The problem is that most people are not thinking large enough, nor do they understand the magnitude of the lie. They are not seeing the larger picture as their focus is diverted elsewhere. For example, they focus on various tentacles of the octopus such as the gun confiscation initiative, the DHS armament acquisitions and economic woes as independent and unrelated events. They are not…
Simply put, the plan by the globalists, or the central bankers and those behind them, is to create this rush to the USD like passengers from sinking ships to lifeboats. Once the lifeboats are filled to capacity, they will be sunk, and the United States Dollar will be completely worthless. As in such a scenario, many will not make it. Many will die from what is coming. The level of evil behind this plan is incomprehensible to the normal human mind.
[Comment: A must read article for every American.]
| — Hat tip: JD | [Return to headlines] |
Is U.S. And U.K. The Next Cyprus?
While you were sleeping, leaders of the so-called “free world” have been actively transforming their financial systems and now it appears that everybody’s bank account is fair game.
Could the U.S. and the U.K. become the next Cyprus where private bank deposits are seized to recapitalize failed banks? According to a report written by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) and the Bank of England called: “Resolving Globally Active, Systemically Important, Financial Institutions,” the answer is yes.
| — Hat tip: JD | [Return to headlines] |
Italian Recession Over by End of 2013, OECD Says
‘Return to growth by end of year, beginning of 2014’
(ANSA) — Rome, March 28 — The Italian recession will be over by the end of the year, Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) Deputy Secretary-General Pier Carlo Padoan told ANSA in an interview on Thursday.
“There will be a return to positive growth between the end of this year and the beginning of the next,” Padoan said.
| — Hat tip: Insubria | [Return to headlines] |
Italy: VAT Refunds for Businesses in 2013 Equal 11 Billion Euros
Italy’s tax chief tells revenue service to speed up payments
(ANSA) — Rome, March 29 — Italy’s tax service said Friday it would be paying out 11 billion euros to businesses in VAT refunds in 2013 and instructed regional tax offices to speed up settlements.
In a letter, inland revenue chief Attilio Befera invited regional directors to “employ all available resources in the payment of refunds over the next four months” in line with government directives to accelerate rebates in order to “provide tangible support to companies in overcoming the difficult moment”. In particular the idea is to relieve the burden on businesses having to make advance tax payments, Befera said.
| — Hat tip: Insubria | [Return to headlines] |
Luxembourg: Cyprus Bailout Will See Money Flee Europe
Luxembourg finance minister Luc Frieden has told Der Spiegel that the Cypriot bailout, which involves seizing investors’ money in failed banks, could “destroy the trust of savers” in other euro-countries. “This will lead to a situation in which investors invest their money outside the eurozone,” he noted.
| — Hat tip: Fjordman | [Return to headlines] |
Slovenian Deficit 3.7% in 2012, 4.2% in 2013 With Bank Aid
Public debt reached 54.1% of GDP last year
(ANSAmed) — LJUBLJANA, MARCH 29 — Last year Slovenia cut its deficit to 3.7% of GDP, or 1.3 billion euros, in line with the forecast of the previous government under former Prime Minister Janez Jansa. Reports were from the government agency for statistical analysis, which noted that in 2011 Slovenia’s deficit had been 6.4% of gross domestic product, or 2.29 billion euros. Public debt rose to 54.1% of GDP, compared with 46.9% in 2011, while inflation was at 2%, with sharp price hikes for food, non-alcoholic beverages, tobacco, electricity and restaurants.
Government forecasts put 2013 deficit at 4.2% of GDP, or 1.49 billion euros. The estimate includes bank recapitalization totaling 420 euros in the first quarter. The government outlook is slightly more optimistic than that of the European Commission, which expects to see a deficit higher than 5% in 2013. The Slovenian statistics agency puts 2013 public debt at 59.2% of GDP.
| — Hat tip: Insubria | [Return to headlines] |
The Cyprus Deal and the Unraveling of Fractional-Reserve Banking
The “Cyprus deal” as it has been widely referred to in the media may mark the next to last act in the the slow motion collapse of fractional-reserve banking that began with the implosion of the savings-and-loan industry in the U.S. in the late 1980s. This trend continued with the currency crises in Russia, Mexico, East Asia and Argentina in the 1990s in which fractional-reserve banking played a decisive role. The unraveling of fractional-reserve banking became visible even to the average depositor during the financial meltdown of 2008 that ignited bank runs on some of the largest and most venerable financial institutions in the world. The final collapse was only averted by the multi-trillion dollar bailout of U.S. and foreign banks by the Federal Reserve.
Even more than the unprecedented financial crisis of 2008, however, recent events in Cyprus may have struck the mortal blow to fractional-reserve banking. For fractional reserve banking can only exist for as long as the depositors have complete confidence that regardless of the financial woes that befall the bank entrusted with their “deposits,” they will always be able to withdraw them on demand at par in currency, the ultimate cash of any banking system.
| — Hat tip: JD | [Return to headlines] |
UK: Teachers Threaten Gove With Strikes Over Pay and Pensions
Teachers have agreed plans to strike over pay and pensions the day after Michael Gove wrote to unions insisting the issues were ‘fixed’.
Both the Education Secretary and the teachers’ unions have refused to back down from the stalemate.
At the National Union of Teachers annual conference, general secretary Christine Blower said: ‘We are not rowing back… We have put these reasonable demands and we want to talk to him about them, not just have him send us a letter.’
Her comments in Liverpool yesterday came after Mr Gove wrote to unions saying he was willing to meet but the ‘direction of travel’ on key issues was ‘fixed’.
The unions put a list of demands to Mr Gove, calling on him to suspend the introduction of performance-related pay, due to be brought in later this year, and to publish an evaluation of the Teachers’ Pension Scheme.
| — Hat tip: JD | [Return to headlines] |
10 Reasons Why Nothing You Do on the Internet Will Ever be Private Again
The Internet is rapidly being transformed into a Big Brother control grid where privacy rights are being systematically strangled to death. The control freaks that run things have become absolutely obsessed with watching, tracking, monitoring and recording virtually everything that you do on the Internet. One thing that you can count on is that nothing you do on the Internet will ever be private again. In fact, if you are obsessed with privacy then the last place you want to be is on the Internet. Most Americans have absolutely no idea how far Internet surveillance has advanced in the past few years. At this point, it would be hard to imagine any place less private than the Internet. Do not ever put anything on the Internet that you would not want the authorities or your employer to hold you accountable for.
Basically, the Internet is creating a permanent dossier on each one of us, and we contribute to this process by freely posting gigantic volumes of information about ourselves on social media websites such as Facebook and Twitter. The Internet is the greatest tool for mass communication that the world has perhaps ever seen, and it gives average citizens the ability to communicate with each other like never before, but there is also a downside to using the Internet. Everything that we do on the Internet is being watched, monitored and recorded and there is no longer any such thing as Internet privacy. If you think that you still have any privacy on the Internet, then you are either ignorant of what is going on or you are being delusional.
The following are 10 reasons why nothing you do on the Internet will ever be private again…
#1 The Federal Government Can Now Retain Your Internet Activity For Five Years — Even If You Have No Links To Terrorism
In the past, the National Counterterrorism Center could only retain information about you for 180 days if you did not have any links to terrorism.
Well, that has now completely changed.
Attorney General Eric Holder has signed new guidelines which will now allow the National Counterterrorism Center to hold on to your private information (including your Internet activity) for five years…
#4 Government Agencies Are Watching You
The FBI, the CIA, the Department of Homeland Security, the U.S. military and the Federal Reserve have all announced plans to systematically monitor social media websites such as Facebook and Twitter.
[…]
#6 They Are Monitoring And Recording All Talk Radio (Including Internet Talk Radio)
As I have written about previously, the FBI has hired a company in Virginia to systematically record talk radio programs (including Internet talk radio programs) all over the United States. The goal of this effort is to collect “potential evidence”, whatever that means. The following comes from an article by Mark Weaver of WMAL.com…
| — Hat tip: JD | [Return to headlines] |
Arkansas Fusion Center Admits it Spies on “Antigovernment” Groups
The federal government and its “partners” on the state and local level are not utilizing the high-tech police state apparatus locked in place in the years following the 9/11 attacks to spy on al-Qaeda terrorists. It was built to keep tabs on Americans exercising their First Amendment rights, Americans the national security state considers an existential threat.
During an interview earlier this week, the director of the Arkansas State Fusion Center, Richard Davis, said the fusion center in Little Rock does not waste its time surveilling al-Qaeda and other supposed foreign terror threats.
“We focus a little more on that, domestic terrorism and certain groups that are anti-government,” Davis told nwahomepage.com. “We want to kind of take a look at that and receive that information.”
“I do what I do because of what happened on 9/11,” Davis added. “There’s this urge and this feeling inside that you want to do something, and this is a perfect opportunity for me.”
In other words, a “perfect opportunity” to violate the constitutional rights of millions of Americans.
Naturally, this comes as no surprise. In 2009, we reported on a Missouri fusion center report that described supporters of presidential candidates Ron Paul, Chuck Baldwin, and Bob Barr as “militia” influenced terrorists.
| — Hat tip: JD | [Return to headlines] |
Connecticut Baker Under Fire for Designing Pro 2nd Amendment Birthday Cake
Jennifer Montalto, owner of Jenny-Lu’s bakery in Middlebury, CT is receiving some backlash for baking a pro 2nd Amendment cake for a local Friends of NRA birthday dinner.
Elizabeth Mais wanted to order her husband Bill an AR-15 crafted cake for his 51st birthday, but she was turned down by a number of local bakers who didn’t approve of her idea. Determined to find someone to create the highly detailed dessert, Mais came across Montalto who said she had no problem creating the sporting rifle cake with a ‘Don’t Tread on Me’ flag draped on top. “I don’t think about politics when I’m doing my cakes,” she said Tuesday. “A friend contacted me about it because they couldn’t find anyone to make it… It was a challenge.”
After creating the cake Montalto received some hate online via Facebook and Yelp reviews (which have since been removed). She was labeled “insensitive” and guilty of “ridiculing the tragedy in Newtown.”
| — Hat tip: JD | [Return to headlines] |
Gun Owners: Fighting With an Unloaded Gun
Since the unspeakable horror in Newtown, CT, last December, the lackeys who serve the ruling elite have stepped up efforts to ban specific types of weapons. There has never been any question the desired goal is to disarm we the people because the Second Amendment is the only thing standing between us and those who wish to rule us with an iron fist.
Efforts to nullify the Second Amendment have been stepped up with the usual cast of clowns releasing more flatulence than a massive herd of cattle:
[…]
Since 2005, Dr. Edwin Vieira has been trying to educate gun onwers and lawmakers about the constitutional militia. I’ve been trying, but running into a brick wall from individuals who simply ignore the history of the militia and the true meaning of the Second Amendment. Responses I get from private militia members here and in other states is “we don’t need the stinking state”. Such geniuses. I hate to break it to you fellas, but as “private” militias, you have zero legal authority to do anything other than target practice.
Last summer I wrote four working papers and one bill for our state legislature. One of the working papers is to reconstitute the constitutional militia. They were given to members of the legislature. Did I get any support from the militia groups in Texas? Not one that I’m aware of; after all, “We don’t need the state.”
Our legislature is going to do nothing about a constitutional sound money bill, Agenda 21, revitalizing the constitutional militia or the Seventeenth Amendment. I sent every Republican (they control both houses) a letter directing them to those working papers and the one bill I wrote .I included Dr. Vieria’s nine page presentation to the Montana banking committee on a constitutional sound money bill…
If gun owners in this country don’t stand up as a whole and go after their state legislatures, we will continue to see this: Court deals blow to NRA, Second Amendment in gun case
If gun owners in this country really wanted to stop the constant attack on the Second Amendment, they would have rallies at their state capitol with thousands demanding their legislature revitalize the constitutional militia. If you don’t think that will do the trick, let me remind folks about how the patriots of Tennessee defeated the effort to enact a state sales tax:
Tennesseans stage tax revolt — Massive revolt at state Capitol stops new income-tax plan (June 2000)
“As protesters began to gather outside the legislative chambers Monday evening, several legislators were taken away by ambulance and hospitalized for blood pressure and heart problems as tensions rose and tempers flared. By Tuesday morning, tax protesters were brandishing signs reading, “Let’s send them all to the ER!”
| — Hat tip: JD | [Return to headlines] |
How Obama is Sidestepping Congress on Gun Control
Even the Democrats’ top man in the Senate, Harry Reid, recently admitted that even among Democrats in his chamber, the bill probably won’t have enough support to pass.
Still yet, a defiant President Obama is pressing forward with his gun control agenda with or without their help — via executive order.
According to a recent report published by The Hill, “The president has used his executive powers to bolster the national background check system, jump start government research on the causes of gun violence and create a million-dollar ad campaign…”
These steps have enabled federal law enforcement officials to have unprecedented access to many state records, previously locked away from their eyes due to the nation’s longstanding tradition of separation of powers — giving federal agents access to many state records that detail just who in our nation owns a firearm and how many.
Earlier this month, the DOJ announced a $20 million grant program aimed at incentivizing many of the red states who have previously refused to surrender their records to the NICS database.
| — Hat tip: JD | [Return to headlines] |
Obama’s No Purple Heart for Wounded Fort Hood Survivors Easter
A polluting-the-culture President Barack Hussein Obama, who has trademarked the American presidency as one dominated by golfing and holidaying, continues down the destructive path of gutting the American military.
While the mainstream media will show the simpering Obamas during an ‘Easter Egg’ roll featuring lessons in a White House ‘Yoga Garden’ this year, Obama has laid a deceit-laden egg on the military in time for Easter:
“Pentagon says survivors of the Fort Hood attack should not be eligible for the Purple Heart, arguing it would adversely affect the trial of Maj. Nidal Hasan by labeling the attack terrorism, a claim an attorney for the families called an “utter outrage”. (Fox News, March 30, 2013).
Americans waiting for the brutal kick that usually comes from the Commander in Chief during every national holiday, just got it through the country’s most precious resource next to its children. (The nation’s children having been kidnapped by Obama’s Common Core is another story).
| — Hat tip: JD | [Return to headlines] |
The Eiffel Tower was evacuated tonight following a telephoned terrorist bomb warning.
Some 1,500 people, including tourists and staff, were escorted out of France’s most famous landmark shortly after 7.30pm.
It follows threats from Al-Qaeda pledging ‘revenge’ for the French intervention in the African state of Mali to fight Islamic terrorists.
Police said an anonymous call had been received from a phone booth in a Paris suburb warning that explosives had been place around the tower.
The bomb warning said the blast would happen at 9.30pm, said police. But by 10pm there had been no explosion.
The tower was still shut, with trained sniffer dog teams searching for a possible bomb.
‘It may be that the tower does not reopen tonight,’ said a police spokesman.
‘Searches are carrying on, but no members of the public are being allowed anywhere near. There has been a full evacuation.’
| — Hat tip: Vlad Tepes | [Return to headlines] |
Nearly 70 years after the Holocaust, there is no more sensitive an issue in German life as the role of Jews.
With fewer than 200,000 Jews among Germany’s 82 million people, few Germans born after World War II know any Jews or much about them.
To help educate postwar generations, an exhibit at the Jewish Museum in Berlin features a Jewish man or woman seated inside a glass box for two hours a day through August to answer visitors’ questions about Jews and Jewish life.
The base of the box asks: ‘Are there still Jews in Germany?’
‘A lot of our visitors don’t know any Jews and have questions they want to ask,’ museum official Tina Luedecke said. ‘With this exhibition we offer an opportunity for those people to know more about Jews and Jewish life.’
But not everybody thinks putting a Jew on display is the best way to build understanding and mutual respect.
| — Hat tip: JD | [Return to headlines] |
Italy: Police Union Says Minister Should Quit in Aldovandri Case
Cancellieri ‘talking nonsense’ says COISP chief
(ANSA) — Rome, March 28 — The head of a police union whose members staged a controversial rally in Ferrara Wednesday in support of colleagues convicted in the 2005 death in custody of a young man on Thursday called for the resignation of Interior Minister Anna Maria Cancellieri for criticising the demo. COISP chief Franco Maccari claimed politicians who had slammed the rally were “hypocrites” and accused Cancellieri of “talking nonsense”.
“It’s time she went home,” Maccari said.
“We return to sender all the unfair and unfounded accusations directed yesterday at people doing their jobs and keeping faith with their roles,” said the official.
The mother of Federico Aldrovandi, the 18-year-old who died from police mistreatment on September 25, 2005, said earlier Thursday the family was suing Maccari and a Senator for defamation following the protest outside her office. The rally outside city offices where Patrizia Moretti works sparked a national outcry from fellow officers, government officials and civil society alike.
Two dozen COISP police union members staged the protest in solidarity with four officers convicted of Federico’s manslaughter and sentenced to three and a half years last June, reduced to six months. The teenager was stopped on his way home after spending Saturday night with friends and police found evidence he had been drinking heavily and had taken drugs.
They were found guilty of excessive force in restraining him by sitting on his chest. He choked to death.
| — Hat tip: Insubria | [Return to headlines] |
Italy: Call for Rebel Siena Councillors to be Reinstated by PD
Seven local pols who voted against 2011 budget ‘were right’
(ANSA) — Siena, March 28 — There were calls for the centre-left Democratic Party (PD) to reinstate seven ousted Siena councillors who voted against the approval of the city’s 2011 balance sheet after Italy’s Audit Court said Thursday that the budget contained “irregularities”.
“The PD has the obligation to reintegrate the local city councilors defined as dissidents that were unjustly suspended after having voted against the approval of those accounts,” said the Associazioni Confronti association, which the seven councillors belong to.
The seven rebelled against the party line by voting against the balance sheet’s approval and caused the city’s executive to collapse. A special commissioner was appointed to take over running the council.
| — Hat tip: Insubria | [Return to headlines] |
Italy: House Speaker Boldrini Rejects Battiato ‘Whores’ Comment
Singer-songwriter implies MPs should ‘open a brothel’
(ANSA) — Rome, March 26 — Newly-elected House Speaker Laura Boldrini on Tuesday rejected allegations by Italian singer-songwriter Franco Battiato that Italy’s parliament was full of “whores”.
“I find it hard to believe that a man of culture such as Battiato, who is also currently involved in governing the important region of Sicily, would have pronounced such vulgar words,” she said. Earlier in the day the Sicilian regional councillor for tourism told the European Parliament that some Italian MPs would be prepared to “do anything” and that it would be better “if they opened a brothel”. “As President of the Chamber of Deputies and as a woman I firmly reject his insult to the dignity of Parliament. Not even his prestige authorises him to use such indiscriminately offensive words. Criticism of the failings of politics and of the institutions can be harsh, but it must never overstep the limit that separates it from outrage,” concluded Boldrini. Photo: Franco Battiato
| — Hat tip: Insubria | [Return to headlines] |
Italy: Police Sweep Ischia Ahead of Merkel Visit
Bomb squads, sniffer dogs in action on famed Naples bay island
(ANSA) — Rome, March 29 — Italian police made a security sweep of the Naples bay island of Ischia Friday ahead of an annual Easter visit by German Chancellor Angela Merkel.
Bomb squads and sniffer dogs combed the picturesque ‘borgo’ (hamlet) of Sant’Angelo in the centre of the famed isle where Merkel and her husband, German quantum physicist Joachim Sauer, have been spending their spring break around Easter for years.
The chancellor is expected to arrive later Friday.
| — Hat tip: Insubria | [Return to headlines] |
Italy: Grillo Says M5S Plans to Slash Public Financing to the Press
Italy must address freedom of press
(ANSA) — Rome, March 29 — Anti-establishment 5-Star Movement leader Beppe Grillo said Friday his party plans to abolish public financing to the press, adding that any planned reforms need to take into account the fact that Italy is in 60th place in freedom of the press rankings.
“We will remove financing, both direct and indirect”, Grillo said. “We will never be able to carry out a democratic reform, or at least it will take us a lot longer, if we don’t understand why we are listed in position 60 in terms of freedom of the press”.
Grillo also slammed journalists for allegedly releasing the address of his family, who he said were “in danger”.
| — Hat tip: Insubria | [Return to headlines] |
Scotland: Christian Church Opens Doors to Muslims
On a bitterly cold and snowing afternoon in Aberdeen, the doors of St John’s Episcopal Church are open to hundreds of Muslim worshippers, arriving for daily prayers.
The familiar sounds of Christian hymns have been replaced with Islamic prayer in the chapel this Friday lunchtime and the church priest with the imam from the neighbouring mosque. Muslims from the Syed Shah Mustafa Jame Masjid mosque next door share this church with Christian worshippers up to five times a day…
| — Hat tip: JP | [Return to headlines] |
Ship Makers Take Cues From Sharks
Engineers continue to take cues from nature — in an attempt to improve energy-saving technology for ships, engineers in Hamburg are trying out a coating that is similar to sharkskin.
The sight of a shark brings out fear in most people. But there’s something to be admired in these elegant fish, which also have the reputation of being vicious predators. Engineers believe that sharkskin holds a secret that could help shipwrights create vessels that can save a lot of fuel.
| — Hat tip: Fjordman | [Return to headlines] |
Some 50% of Italians Ready to Vote Again
Survey says 35% would like PD-PdL to unite
(ANSA) — Rome, March 29 — Some 50% of Italians are ready to go back to the polls following inconclusive results to break the political stalemate by center-left leader Pier Luigi Bersani, according to the results of an SWG survey released Friday. Bersani told President Giorgio Napolitano on Thursday that his days of working to forge a government after the February 24-25 elections resulted in a hung parliament had “brought no resolution”.
The survey said that 35% of Italians would like to see Napolitano form an institutional government, or government of the president, that would have a limited mandate but could continue with economic and electoral reforms.
Slightly more than one Italian out of three (35%) believes that the best solution would a government formation composed of Bersani’s Democratic Party (PD) and ex-premier Silvio Berlusconi’s People of Freedom party (PdL).
Bersani has repeatedly rejected calls from the PdL for it to form a grand coalition government with it.
| — Hat tip: Insubria | [Return to headlines] |
by Norman Tebbit
As first the House of Commons and then The Lords packed up for the Easter recess, there cannot be much doubt which party leader has had the best of it since Christmas. Nigel Farage must be feeling pretty satisfied. The EU had a consistently (and deservedly) bad press both for its wilful extravagance and reckless spending, but the Cypriot crisis has underlined the arrogance and power of the mighty men (and women) at its heart.
Add to that the growing anger and worry of the British people, including many of recent immigrant stock, at the problems which have flowed from the previous government’s unlimited, uncounted uncontrolled immigration and our inability to do anything about it, all exacerbated by the Human Rights Act, the ECHR and the European Convention. The rise of Ukip in the polls and its performance at Eastleigh and Havering have spooked not only David Cameron, but Clegg and Miliband, into trying to get onto the Ukip bandwagon and push Farage off…
| — Hat tip: JP | [Return to headlines] |
UK: East London Mosque Opens Doors to Non-Muslims
The East London Mosque is opening its doors to non-Muslims in an attempt to promote a better understanding of Islam and what goes on inside the building.
Members of the local community are invited to take a look inside the mosque, observe prayers and ask questions about the religion, however challenging. There will be an exhibition about the way of life for Muslims in the UK, as well as information about culture and history. Dilowar Khan, executive director of the mosque, said there was plenty of work to be done to improve its reputation locally…
[JP note: See Andrew Gilligan on the ELM here blogs.telegraph.co.uk/news/andrewgilligan/100124465/east-london-mosque-have-a-happy-extremist-christmas/ ]
| — Hat tip: JP | [Return to headlines] |
UK: Nearly Half of All Parents Don’t Trust the Coalition With Their Child’s Education
Parents are concerned about the effect the Government is having on their child’s education, a poll suggests.
Around one in 12 (8 per cent) parents think that the coalition has had a positive impact on the education system since it took power, while almost half (44 per cent) said the impact has been negative.
The survey of around 2,000 adults, commissioned by the National Union of Teachers (NUT), indicates that the majority would entrust their child’s education to school leaders.
Asked who, other than themselves, they trust the most to educate their son or daughter, more than half (59 per cent) of those questioned said head teachers, followed by the local authority (16 per cent) and school governors (13 per cent).
[Commenter: Frankly, I don’t trust the current crop of teachers and their representatives with a child’s education either. Bunch of Trotskyists. — – shrappers , Derbyshire, 30/3/2013 22:13]
| — Hat tip: JD | [Return to headlines] |
UK: Philip Booth: Some Christian Objections to the NHS
Philip Booth is Editorial and Programme Director at the Institute of Economic Affairs and Professor of Insurance and Risk Management at Cass Business School.
Nigel Lawson once said that the NHS is the closest thing the English have to a religion. Of course, we also have the established church. And, indeed, the established church seems to see the NHS as part of its theology. Last week, Archbishop Welby, at his enthronement, said: “Slaves were freed, Factory Acts passed, and the NHS and social care established through Christ-liberated courage.” In their response to the Mid Staffordshire NHS scandal the local bishops of Lichfield and Stafford said: “We have now seen what many of us suspected — that the marketisation of the health service has gone too far…This Christian basis has been weakened in recent years and covering the bottom line has become all important.”…
| — Hat tip: JP | [Return to headlines] |
9 Injured in Anti-Gov’t Protests Across Egypt
CAIRO, March 29 (Xinhua) — At least nine people were injured in anti-government protests on Friday in Egypt’s capital Cairo and the costal city of Alexandria, a health ministry official told Xinhua. Eight people were injured in Alexandria while one was wounded in Cairo during the protests, Mohamed Sultan, head of Egypt’s Ambulance Authority, told Xinhua. “We deployed 35 ambulances in riotous governorates; 15 in Cairo ‘s Tahrir Square, 10 in Alexandria and 10 in Gharbiya’s city of Tanta,” Sultan added…
| — Hat tip: JP | [Return to headlines] |
British Women Raped by Libyan Soldiers
At least two British women have been raped by Libyan soldiers in the eastern city of Benghazi, officials confirmed on Friday.
The female British activists, two of whom are sisters, were taking part in an aid convoy bound for Gaza that intended to try to break the Israeli blockade. Libyan deputy prime minister Awad al-Barassi, who visited the women in the hospital, said the victims were travelling with two male companions when they were kidnapped on Tuesday on their way to the Benghazi airport after deciding to return to Britain…
| — Hat tip: JP | [Return to headlines] |
[WARNING: *** DISTURBING CONTENT ***]
Two British women aid workers were kidnapped and raped in front of their father after being stopped at an unofficial checkpoint in Libya.
The sisters were abducted when their vehicle was stopped on the outskirts of the eastern city of Benghazi.
They were taken by men in military uniforms to an isolated farm and subjected to a horrific sex attack in front of their father.
Witnesses said the young women, both Pakistan-born British citizens, were wearing veils and Free Palestine T-shirts. Libyan officials said four suspects have been arrested and security forces are trying to trace a fifth…
There were reports that two other members of the aid group were also assaulted by a different armed group and that two others are missing.
| — Hat tip: JD | [Return to headlines] |
Egypt: Protesters Close Tahrir Square Again, Gunshots Heard in Nearby Square
Protesters camping in Tahrir Square on Thursday intensified their presence in the area and attempted to close the Square for the second time today. Hundreds of shop owners and residents opened the square for traffic today in all directions except al-Qasr al-Aini Street which is still closed by concrete blocks.
Scores of protesters including masked men closed main roads leading in and out of the square. A state of panic dominated Talaat Harb Square in downtown Cairo after gunshots had been heard, the Middle East News Agency reported. The source of the gunshots has not been determined yet. Several shop owners in al-Bostan Street formed vigilante groups to protect their shops from any revengeful attack against them after they had opened the square earlier.
| — Hat tip: JP | [Return to headlines] |
Violent Clashes Injure Protesters in Several Egyptian Cities
Clashes have broken out in two cities in northern Egypt between opponents and supporters of Islamist President Mohammed Morsi. In Cairo, hundreds have rallied against the country’s under-fire prosecutor general.
At least 10 people were injured during clashes Friday, the state news agency MENA reported. In the Mediterranean city of Alexandria, nine people were hurt and hospitalized after fighting erupted in the Sidi Gaber district near offices of the Morsi-backing Muslim Brotherhood, MENA said quoting health ministry official Khaled al-Khatib.
Unidentified assailants threw stones and firebombs at the protesters, who hurled stones back. The clashes also halted train traffic for a few hours at a station near the site.
In the Nile River Delta city of Zagazig, 50 miles north of the capital Cairo, protesters fought with riot police after trying to set fire to a Brotherhood office.
More than 30 of the Brotherhood’s offices have been attacked across the country during anti-Morsi protests in recent weeks.
| — Hat tip: Fjordman | [Return to headlines] |
Football: FIFA Grants 4.5mln to Palestine for Stadium in Gaza
Investments for new soccer federation and Football Academy
(ANSAmed) — ROME — Football in Palestine will go through a re-birth this summer. The country has become part of the ‘Goal’ project of Fifa, the international association managing football worldwide which will grant an investment of 4.5 million dollars. Fifa said the plan provides for the completion of construction work of the headquarters of the Palestinian football federation (Pfa) in Al Ram, as well as the opening of a Football Academy of the soccer federation in Al Birreh and new artificial soccer fields in Tulkarem and Ram.
The projects also provides for the reconstruction of Gaza’s stadium, which was partly destroyed last November during an Israeli air raid, with an investment of 200,000 dollars. ‘A new era is beginning for the Palestinian football federation with its move to new general headquarters’, said its president Jibril Rajoub. ‘Fifa’s programme will be very important in improving our sport policies and in training the federation’s staff’.
‘One of our objectives is to change the way in which Palestinians are perceived worldwide, stressing our passion for football and sport in general’, said Pfa technical director Mazen Khatib. This goal is shared by Fifa president Sepp Blatter who wrote a tweet: ‘I hope that Fifa’s support can lead to an increasing development of Palestinian soccer towards a new era’.
Palestine became a member of Fifa in 1998 but has been allowed to host international matches only since 2008 as it did not have a stadium abiding by international standards before.
The Palestinian national football team passed the first qualifiers for the 2014 World Cup beating Afghanistan but subsequently lost to Thailand in the second leg of qualifications.
| — Hat tip: Insubria | [Return to headlines] |
Israel Overtakes America as the World’s Largest Jewish Population Centre for the First Time
Israel has become the world’s largest Jewish population centre, overtaking America for the first time.
The total Jewish population of six million in the country carries added significance, as this was the number of Jews killed in the Holocaust.
Census statistics revealed that Israel’s total population has reached eight million, with the surge in the Jewish community thought to have been fuelled by returning members of the diaspora.
| — Hat tip: JD | [Return to headlines] |
“Final” Psy-Op vs. Syria Begins
Out of time, out of legitimacy, and out of options, the West is attempting once again to prop up its faltering terrorist proxies with another psychological operation aimed at breaking the will of the Syrian people, despite the West’s multiplying tactical and political shortcomings. It began with a suspicious CBS News/AP report titled, “AP: “Master plan” underway to help Syria rebels take Damascus with U.S.-approved airlifts of heavy weapons,” which claims to divulge a “covert” plan by the West to flood Syria’s northern and southern borders with increased weapons and fighters for a “final” push to take the capital…
In actuality, the so-called “Syrian Observatory for Human Rights” is a single opposition propagandists, Rami Abdel Rahman, based in a comfortable countryside home in the UK, disingenuously masquerading as a human rights organization. When not feeding the biased-hungry Western media, Rami Abdel Rahman can be found scurrying in and out of the Foreign and Commonwealth Office in London to meet with Britain’s Foreign Secretary, William Hague.
While the West now openly admits it is working directly with Saudi Arabia, Qatar, and NATO-member Turkey to supply thousands of tons of weapons to militants in Syria, it cannot explain how else Al Qaeda’s Al Nusra front has become the best armed and most well equipped front in the conflict — unless these thousands of tons of weaponry were sent directly to them, as was intended to begin with, according to Seymour Hersh’s 2007 article, “The Redirection: Is the Administration’s new policy benefiting our enemies in the war on terrorism?”
| — Hat tip: JD | [Return to headlines] |
Aqaba Oil Terminal to Find New Life With EPC Agreement
Project to maximize capacity and efficiency
(ANSA) — Rome, March 28 — An engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) agreement signed on Thursday between Jordan’s Aqaba Development Corporation (ADC) and Turkish company BETA Inc. is set to start work on revamping Aqaba’s oil terminal, supplying over 90% of Jordan’s crude oil and petroleum products.
According to the agreement, BETA will install and upgrade oil-pump capacity, renew the existing loading arms and implement new ones to handle crude oil, petroleum products, various chemical liquids and liquid petroleum gas (LPG).
In addition, the project foresees the enhancement of safety measures and will enable night operations.
The oil terminal will remain operational during the project execution to avoid any oil-supply shortages to Jordan and will be managed by ADC, the operational arm of the liberalized duty-free area known as ASEZA (Aqaba Special Economic Zone) where the terminal is located.
“This agreement came after intensive studies and planning due to the priority and critical importance of the Aqaba Oil Terminal to the economy of the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan, and due to the Kingdom’s crucial need for multiple energy sources,” Professor Dr. Kamel Mahadin, Chief Commissioner of ASEZA, said.
“The implementation of the project will be according to the best international practice of safety and environmental standards,” Mahadin added. Jordan’s ADC will manage and supervise the project to assure the work flow complies with international standards.
“The signing of this $28 million agreement is part of ADC’s strategic plans in cooperation with ASEZA to rehabilitate and construct an integrated port community with 28 terminals — a core part of Aqaba’s development,” His Excellency Ghassan A.
Ghanem, ADC CEO told ANSA.
| — Hat tip: Insubria | [Return to headlines] |
Tens of thousands of Islamic activists prayed on the streets of the Bangladeshi capital today during a rally calling for the introduction of blaspemy laws and the restoration of a caretaker government.
Members of the Islami Andolan Bangladesh are demanding the arrest of ‘atheist bloggers who insulted Islam’ and to pass laws punishing those who ‘insulted Islam in the parliament’.
They have announced plans to ‘lay siege’ to the office of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina on April 25 if their demands are not met.
They include the restoration of the phrase ‘absolute trust and faith upon Almighty Allah’ in basic principles of the constitution; passing laws to punish atheists; holding of national elections under an impartial government; ensuring good governance and justice, uprooting terrorism and corruption; and establishing Islamic rule for a prosperous and welfare state.
According to www.thedailystar.net, the party’s Amir Mufti Syed Muhammad Rezaul Karimalso told the rally: ‘The incumbent and previous governments have nurtured corruption, violence, nepotism and other different evil practices during last few decades.
| — Hat tip: JD | [Return to headlines] |
Jennifer Lopez was dropped from performing in front of tens of millions of viewers at the Indian Premier League opening ceremony after her camp demanded she have her own plane.
Her manager Benny Medina reportedly asked organisers to make a private plane available to the superstar and pay for hotel rooms for her extensive entourage, including stylists and a personal chef.
Sources told NY Post that the Pepsi IPL booked rapper Pitbull after refusing to meet her diva-like demands.
It quoted a source who said the list of demands was ‘outrageous’.
| — Hat tip: JD | [Return to headlines] |
School Blast Leaves 7 Kids Injured in Pakistan’s Karachi
ISLAMABAD, March 30 (Xinhua) — Seven children were injured in hand grenade attack at a school in Pakistan’s southern port city of Karachi on Saturday morning, local media reported. Samaa TV said that the incident happened at about 11:20 a.m. ( local time) when some unknown gunmen hurled hand grenade at a school located in Baldia Town area of Karachi, and fled to an unidentified location…
| — Hat tip: JP | [Return to headlines] |
Japanese Study Highlights Threat From China
Tensions in Northeast Asia have rarely been higher. A report by Japan’s National Institute for Defense Studies has identified Beijing as the biggest threat to its national interests.
The vast technological advances in the areas of defense and security have led to a worrying proliferation in Northeast Asia of advanced missile systems, better-equipped surface, air and naval assets and states armed with nuclear weapons.
Since 1996, it has been the task of The National Institute for Defense Studies, a think-tank affiliated with Japan’s Ministry of Defense, to monitor threats posed by neighbors.
The institute’s latest report, released on March 29, made sobering reading when it was unveiled.
The study, for the first time examined the security and foreign policies of India and Australia as they increasingly become enmeshed in the military affairs of the region, but inevitably it was China and North Korea that attract the greatest attention and concern.
| — Hat tip: Fjordman | [Return to headlines] |
Liberia: Christianity Not an Imposition
The Minister of Information, Cultural Affairs and Tourism, Lewis G. Brown, has called on Liberians to do away with divisiveness and unite in building a strong nation. Minister Brown specifically denounced those Liberian Christians calling for the legislation of state religion describing the campaign as unhealthy for the national reconciliation process in the country…
| — Hat tip: JP | [Return to headlines] |
Nigeria: Put Back the Sword — Our Father is Abraham
In the Shakespearean masterpiece, Julius Caesar, the Plebeians, the poor people were used as the door mat of the great power play. When the conspirators led by Brutus and Caius Cassius stabbed Caesar at the capitol and gave the reasons for their actions, accusing Emperor Caesar of inordinate ambitions, the plebeians shouted, good for him and they gave their full support to the conspirators. When Mark Anthony, the true friend of Caesar came to address the plebeians at the permission of the leaders of the coup, in no time he swayed the emotions of the people against the conspirators with his powerful speech of “I have come to bury Caesar not to praise him” fame…
| — Hat tip: JP | [Return to headlines] |
Suspected Separatists Kill 8 in Italian-Owned Kenya Casino
Police kill six of the machete-wielding raiders
(ANSA) — Rome, March 28 — Eight people were killed when 50 machete-wielding suspected separatists struck an Italian-owned casino popular with tourists and local Italian residents in the coastal Kenyan town of Malindi early on Thursday morning, police said.
Officers shot dead six of the attackers, allegedly members of banned coastal separatist group Mombasa Republican Council (MRC). Two policeman were also killed, police told Reuters news agency in Mombasa.
The MRC is thought to have targeted the Italian-owned casino to steal cash to fund their activities.
| — Hat tip: Insubria | [Return to headlines] |
MEXICO CITY, March 29 (Xinhua) — Seven people, including three women, were killed and another two people were injured late Thursday when a man burst into a bar in northern Mexico and opened fire, local police said Friday. Eyewitnesses said the suspect entered the Mogabi Bar in downtown Chihuahua, capital of the state of the same name, wearing a hood and bullet-proof vest, and carrying a shotgun, and began shooting at the patrons…
| — Hat tip: JP | [Return to headlines] |
Deforestation in Brazil’s Amazon Up 26 Pct
RIO DE JANEIRO, March 28 (Xinhua) — The area of deforestation in Brazil’s Amazon rain forest from August 2012 to February 2013 increased by 26.6 percent year-on-year, an official institute said Thursday. According to the satellite detection system, Deter, of the National Space Research Institute (INPE), 1,695 square km of forest — or an area larger than Sao Paulo, South America’s largest city — were destroyed in the six-month period, compared with the 1,339 square km destroyed during the same period a year ago…
| — Hat tip: JP | [Return to headlines] |
Mexico: Growing Population of Muslims Calling Tijuana Home
TIJUANA, Mexico — Mexico is a predominantly Catholic country, but the border city of Tijuana has always hosted a more diverse population of worshipers. In the last few years, one of the largest religions in the world has begun making inroads and building a presence there…
| — Hat tip: JP | [Return to headlines] |
Demographics Force US Immigration Reform
Once an issue that polarized the US, immigration reform now enjoys growing bipartisan support. Democrats and Republicans are negotiating a path to legalization, and perhaps citizenship, for 11 million illegal immigrants.
With Congress on recess for spring break, US President Barack Obama has pushed the House and Senate to finish the job of drafting comprehensive immigration reform by April, calling on both political parties to capitalize on recent bipartisan progress toward a deal.
“We are making progress. But we’ve go to finish the job, because this issue is not new,” the president said recently during a citizenship ceremony at the White House for 28 new Americans. “Everybody pretty much knows what’s broken; everybody knows how to fix it.”
After years of polarization over how to deal with America’s 11 million unauthorized immigrants, support for a bipartisan deal has gained momentum since President Obama’s victory in the November presidential election.
Republican Senator Rand Paul — a key figure in the conservative Tea Party movement — has spoken out in favor of legalization, revealing a potential game-changing shift within the Republican Party in favor of immigration reform.
“Prudence, compassion and thrift all point us toward the same goal: bringing these workers out of the shadows and into becoming and being taxpaying members of society,” Paul told the US Hispanic Chamber of Commerce.
| — Hat tip: Fjordman | [Return to headlines] |
Here’s How Mexico Treats ‘Undesirable’ Foreigners
American politicians in both parties are stampeding all over themselves to pander to Mexico and adopt mass illegal alien amnesty schemes. But while the Mexican government lobbies for more “humane” treatment of illegal border crossers from their country into ours, Mexico remains notoriously restrictionist toward “undesirable” foreigners who break their laws or threaten their security.
Despite widely touted immigration “reforms” adopted in 2011, Mexico still puts Mexico first — as any country that is serious about protecting its sovereignty should and would.
Article 33 of Mexico’s constitution establishes the right of the president to detain and deport “any foreigner” and prohibits foreigners from participating “in any way” in the political affairs of the country…
While amnesty advocates and civil liberties zealots in the U.S. decry “police state” tactics against illegal aliens, Mexico fiercely maintains laws against illegal border crossings; “verification visits” to enforce visa conditions; requirements that foreigners produce proof of legal status on demand; and enforcement and cooperation between and among immigration officials and law enforcement authorities at all levels in Mexico. Native-born Mexicans are also empowered to make citizens arrests of illegal aliens and turn them in to authorities.
| — Hat tip: JD | [Return to headlines] |
Immigration Accelerating Unemployment Among Black Americans
Little spoken about and never addressed in the ongoing legal and illegal immigration debate: all immigrants displace black and Hispanic Americans from jobs. That joblessness throws blacks into welfare, food stamp lines and hopeless poverty conditions.
Roy Beck, president of www.NumbersUSA.org , addressed this predicament. Joblessness among blacks and Hispanic Americans remains at an all time high. Nonetheless, our intrepid Congress imports 100,000 legal immigrants carrying green cards into the USA every 30 days — without pause.
| — Hat tip: JD | [Return to headlines] |
Language Exam to Obtain Spanish Citizenship
Oath to king and Constitution among stricter rules introduced
(ANSAmed) — MADRID, MARCH 29 — Foreigners looking to acquire Spanish nationality will have to undergo an “official examination” to show they have sufficient knowledge of the Spanish language, and could be deprived of it should they be found to be a threat to national security or public order. The stricter citizenship rules form part of a draft law to reform the country’s naturalization process. Media reports say that other forms of expulsion will remain, such as on charges of “fraudulent conduct”, providing false information or falsifying personal data to obtain citizenship. A solemn oath will have to be sworn — of loyalty to the king and obedience to the constitution and Spanish laws — in front of a notary public. Spanish citizenship is granted by the justice ministry after completion of the requisite procedures and checks by the competent authority. The last Spanish census showed the presence of 5.2 million foreigners, equal to 11.96% of a population of 46.8 million inhabitants. Compared with ten years before, the number of foreigners had risen by 234%, with 3.5 million new entrances, while the number of Spanish citizens had risen by 5.8%, or 2.2 million.
| — Hat tip: Insubria | [Return to headlines] |
Rights Groups Criticize EU Immigration Policy
European Union immigration policy aims for many refugees to be intercepted in third countries — with devastating consequences, human rights advocates say. They are targeting the topic at the World Social Forum in Tunis.
Many North African countries have bilateral agreements with Europe that require them to act against illegal immigration into the EU. Such measures have simply outsourced the problem of human rights violations, according to Amadou M’Bow of the Mauritanian Human Rights Association.
M’Bow claims that the EU, through its immigration policy, is promoting inequality, pointing out that while Europeans can freely travel the world, the situation is very different for people originating south of the Mediterranean.
| — Hat tip: Fjordman | [Return to headlines] |
Spain Seeks to Adopt Tougher Citizenship Rules for Immigrants
MADRID, March 29 (Xinhua) — Foreigners looking to acquire Spanish nationality will soon have to undergo an “official examination” to show they have sufficient knowledge of the Spanish language and culture to ensure they are able to integrate into society. That is the outline of the projected law to modify the way in which people can acquire Spanish nationality, something which around 100,000 people per year look to do, under the current rules which require, “good civil conduct and a sufficient grade of integration into Spanish society.”…
| — Hat tip: JP | [Return to headlines] |
Many Christians doubt David Cameron’s sincerity in pledging to protect their freedoms, former Archbishop of Canterbury George Carey says today.
In an article for the Daily Mail, Lord Carey squarely accuses ministers of ‘aiding and abetting’ discrimination against Christians.
He says he believes there is an ‘aggressive secularist and relativist approach’ behind the Government plans to legalise gay marriage and says the Prime Minister has ‘done more than any other recent political leader’ to ‘feed’ Christian anxieties.
As a dramatic new poll released on the eve of Easter Sunday revealed that more than two-thirds of Christians feel they are now part of a ‘persecuted minority’, Lord Carey insists the Government must do more to demonstrate its commitment to pledges to stand up for faith.
| — Hat tip: JD | [Return to headlines] |
David Cameron ‘Feeds Fears of Christian Persecution’, Former Archbishop of Canterbury Says
Lord Carey, the former Archbishop of Canterbury, has attacked David Cameron for doing more than any other recent political leader to feed Christian anxieties that they are part of a persecuted minority.
Lord Carey said it was a ‘‘bit rich’’ to hear Mr Cameron tell religious leaders to face down aggressive secularisation when the Coalition seem to be ‘‘aiding and abetting’’ such a practice. In an article for the Daily Mail he wrote: ‘‘I like David Cameron and believe he is genuinely sincere in his desire to make Britain a generous nation where we care for one another and where people of faith may exercise their beliefs fully…
| — Hat tip: JP | [Return to headlines] |
Lord Carey Attacks David Cameron on Religion
Former Archbishop of Canterbury Lord Carey questions the PM’s support for Christians, as a poll suggests many feel “persecuted”.
Former Archbishop of Canterbury Lord Carey has launched a scathing attack on Prime Minister David Cameron. In an article for the Daily Mail, Lord Carey says many Christians doubt the PM’s “sincerity” when he pledges to protect their religious freedoms and accuses ministers of “aiding and abetting” discrimination against believers. He points to Government plans to legalise gay marriage as evidence of an “aggressive secularist and relativist approach” and argues that Mr Cameron has fed Christian “anxieties” more than “any other recent political leader”…
| — Hat tip: JP | [Return to headlines] |
More Dishonest Coverage From Pro-Homosexual Media
A big news story came out of Tuesday’s March for Marriage demonstration in Washington, D.C. But it didn’t make “news” in the major media. As one who covered the event, it was significant that there were so many members of minority groups. This was not a mostly white crowd. In addition to the presence of black, Hispanic and Asian supporters of traditional marriage, there were some notable Democrats, such as New York State Senator Ruben Diaz, and he let people know he was several minorities in one.
“I’m Puerto Rican,” he said. “I’m black, with kinky hair. I am a Democrat and I am a senator. I’m against abortion. I’m against same-sex marriage, and I won the last election with 89 percent of the vote.”
J.C. Derrick of World magazine has a good analysis [url] of how the major media, led by The Washington Post, virtually ignored the March for Marriage. But unless you actually see what happened on the ground, as the thousands of traditional marriage supporters held their demonstration, you would miss the true significance of how dishonest the media’s coverage of this issue has become.
The March for Marriage went by the Supreme Court before returning to the National Mall location where the rally was held. The group has posted a video of excerpts of the major speeches…
But the omissions and distortions don’t end there. On the NBC Nightly News on Tuesday night, host Brian Williams claimed that a majority of Americans now support homosexual marriage. But the Reuters Corporation recently released the results of a huge poll finding only 41 percent of America supports it.
| — Hat tip: JD | [Return to headlines] |
North Dakota Gov Faces Death Threats After Signing Abortion Ban
The governor of North Dakota is facing death threats following his signing of a bill that would ban abortions after 6 weeks of pregnancy and another to stop abortions on disabled babies.
| — Hat tip: JD | [Return to headlines] |
Planned Parenthood Lobbies for ‘Post-Birth Abortion’ (Video)
Lawmakers told mother’s ‘choice’ to let babies die on table
[WARNING: *** Disturbing Content ***]
A lobbyist for a regional division of Planned Parenthood, the largest abortion business in the United States, says a doctor and a mother should be allowed to decide to kill a newborn who survives an abortion.
The stunning position echoed statements made by Barack Obama while he was in the state Senate in Illinois, and repeatedly opposed a proposed law that would have obligated physicians to provide care to a baby surviving the abortion procedure.
The Planned Parenthood comments came at a recent Florida legislative hearing from Alisa LaPoit Snow, who was opposing a proposal that would require a doctor to provide care to an infant whom an abortion failed to kill.
Lawmakers were stunned, asking the same question over and over.
“So, it is just really hard for me to even ask you this question because I’m almost in disbelief,” said Rep. Jim Boyd. “If a baby is born on a table as a result of a botched abortion, what would Planned Parenthood want to have happen to that child that is struggling for life?”
Snow’s response?
“We believe that any decision that’s made should be left up to the woman, her family, and the physician.”
The same, or very similar, questions followed several times, as if the lawmakers could not believe the position advocated.
“You stated that a baby born alive on a table as a result of a botched abortion that that decision should be left to the doctor and the family. Is that what you’re saying?” wondered Rep. Jose Oliva.
Snow didn’t change her response.
“That decision should be between the patient and the health care provider,” she said.
When one lawmaker suggested at that point the “patient” also would include the newborn, Snow responded, “That’s a very good question. … I would be glad to have some more conversations with you about this.”
| — Hat tip: JD | [Return to headlines] |
The Left Goes After Dr. Carson
BALTIMORE — Dr. Benjamin Carson, the famed Johns Hopkins neurosurgeon, apologized Friday for his “choice of words” and use of examples in discussing gay marriage on Fox News earlier in the week.
During Sean Hannity’s show on Tuesday, when asked about the matter before the Supreme Court, Carson said, “Marriage is between a man and a woman. No group, be they gays, be they NAMBLA, be they people who believe in bestiality, it doesn’t matter what they are. They don’t get to change the definition.”
The comparison of gays to members of the North American Boy/Man Love Association and those who engage in bestiality set off a backlash of criticism in the media, online and on campus. There is now a petition circulating at Johns Hopkins Medical to have Carson removed as commencement speaker in May at the School of Medicine…
“I think people have completely taken the wrong meaning out of what I was saying,” the 61-year-old surgeon said in a telephone interview Friday. “First of all, I certainly believe gay people should have all the rights that anybody else has. What I was basically saying is that as far as marriage is concerned that has traditionally been between a man and a woman and nobody should be able to change that.”
“Now perhaps the examples were not the best choice of words, and I certainly apologize if I offended anyone,” he added. “But the point that I was making was that no group of individuals, whoever they are, whatever their belief systems, gets to change traditional definitions. The reason I believe the way I do, I will readily confess, is because I am a Christian who believes in The Bible.”
| — Hat tip: JD | [Return to headlines] |
UK: BBC Accused of Provoking Christians With Mary Magdalene Documentary
A Bishop last night accused the BBC of deliberately provoking Christians by screening a documentary on Good Friday suggesting that Jesus had a sexual relationship with Mary Magdalene.
The Rt Rev Michael Nazir-Ali, the former bishop of Rochester, said the programme, presented by Melvyn Bragg would be “hugely offensive” to devout Christians because it amounted to the “sexualisation of Christ”. He said it was all the more upsetting because it is being screened at midday on Good Friday — the moment the Bible says Jesus was put on the cross.
Last night one Christian group issued an alert to its supporters urging them to contact the BBC’s complaints line. Lord Bragg, who describes himself as “no longer a believer”, argues that Mary’s close relationship with Jesus was effectively airbrushed out of the accepted Biblical account by “misogynist” Romans…
| — Hat tip: JP | [Return to headlines] |
UK: We Must Stop Britain Turning Into a Land Without Memory
by Charles Moore
It may enrage some historians, but Education Secretary Michael Gove is right that children should learn things by heart
Four centuries ago, John Donne wrote a poem called “Good Friday, 1613. Riding Westward”. Because of the call of pleasure or business, the author is riding to the west, away from Jesus, who will rise (there is a pun on “sun” and “son”) in the east. He knows he should not be doing this, but he is “almost glad” to be facing the wrong way because the day of Christ’s suffering is something he cannot bear to see.
Donne is conscious that Jesus sees him, though, from the Cross. He asks Jesus to punish him for turning his back on him, and so improve him that he may become the image of Christ, fit to look upon: “Restore thine image, so much, by thy grace, / That thou may’st know me, and I’ll turn my face.” In honour of this poem, which I have always admired, I decided to mark its 400 years by riding westward on Good Friday yesterday. It was penitentially cold, and my horse, probably not out of piety, was anxious to turn back and gallop east, in the direction of his stable. I had to struggle to keep him going forward…
[Reader comment by Simon Coulter on 30 March 2013 at about 10 am.]
Of course Britain is to turn into a land without memory. Removing our collective identity is part of the way a nation state is destroyed — and that is well in progress with immigration, swamping and race replacement alongside other measures to diminish our Christian traditions and ensure we are led like lambs to the slaughter to our future as 12 autonomous regions of the European Union’s intended future superstate.
| — Hat tip: JP | [Return to headlines] |
Do Muslims Really Understand Islam?
The total number of the Muslim population is around 1.6 billion or about 25 percent of the world population. Generally speaking, most of the Arab population is Muslims, but not every Muslim is an Arab. For example, Pakistan and Bangladesh are not Arab countries, but they have more Muslims than all 22 Arab countries combined…
| — Hat tip: JP | [Return to headlines] |
I shall be enjoying my Chocolate Spring Ovoids that have nothing whatsoever to do with Christianity.
@ Ship Makers Take Cues From Sharks.
Sailfish ( Istiophorus ) are faster ( about 30 – 35% faster than sharks ) so it would make sense to imitate them and not sharks!