Aug. 30 - Sept. 3 2010

Weekly News Archive

Broadcast Notes

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CHRISTIAN MEDIA
WORLDWATCH

MONDAY AUGUST 30, 2010

U.S. to sell Israel massive military fuel stocks worth $2 billion

On August 6, the US Defense Security Cooperation Agency (DSCA) informed Congress of the sale to Israel of 60 million gallons of unleaded gasoline, 284 million gallons of JP-8 aviation jet fuel and 100 million gallons of diesel fuel at an estimated cost of two billion dollars. The date is significant, DEBKAfile's intelligence sources find. Ten days earlier, the Japanese tanker M. Star was attacked in Omani waters of the Strait of Hormuz with 200,000 tons of oil.
Although American experts examined the vessel, they never attributed the damage to sabotage by Iran or al Qaeda, despite the latter's claim of responsibility on August 4. While Washington did its best to sweep the incident under the rug, Saudi intelligence were worried enough about the threat inching dangerously close to the Gulf's oil exporting lifeline to launch an independent investigation of the incident.
Their investigators discovered it was staged by a Saudi terrorist who operates out of Iran under the orders of the Revolutionary Guards. To Riyadh, the episode looked like a blunt warning from Tehran to Washington and its allies about the consequences - not just of a direct strike against Iran's nuclear facilities, but the possibility of sanctions upsetting the equilibrium of the Islamic regime.
Blockage of the Strait of Hormuz would cut off Israel's primary source of fuel. Therefore, our sources report, a series of accords, some of them secret, have been transacted to back up America's standing commitment to keep Israel supplied with its energy needs in the event of armed conflict or crisis on world fuel markets.
In its request to Congress to approve the sale, the DSCA noted:
"The proposed sale of the JP-B aviation fuel will enable Israel to maintain the operational capability of its aircraft inventory. The unleaded gasoline and diesel fuel will be used for ground forces' vehicles and other equipment used in keeping peace and security in the region. Israel will have no difficulty absorbing this additional fuel into its armed forces."
DEBKAfile adds: Israel is therefore ready and able to absorb this huge injection of military-purpose fuels . . . .
According to DEBKAfile's military experts, the shelf life of JP-8 jet fuel is not long - no more than six to eight months.
Also Saturday, the Kuwait al-Rai claimed that Israel is making its last preparations for an attack on the Hizballah missile stores located in Syria close to the Lebanese border, for which an IDF armored division has been called up.

Source: debka.com MORE

Note: see also Israel Prepping For War With Iran? - Jewish state orders military fuel from U.S. Defense Department LINK

Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu spells out essentials for peace deal

JERUSALEM -- Just ahead of renewed talks with the Palestinians, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Sunday restated what he said were essential components of a peace agreement, chief among them recognition of Israel as the Jewish homeland.
Netanyahu is to meet Palestinian president Mahmud Abbas in Washington on Thursday for the first direct negotiations since the Palestinians broke off talks in December 2008, when Israel staged a bloody offensive into the Gaza Strip.
Speaking to reporters at the start of the weekly cabinet meeting, Netanyahu said an agreement would have to be based "first of all on recognition of Israel as the national state of the Jewish people, an end to the conflict and an end to further demands on Israel."
The Palestinians object to endorsing Israel as essentially Jewish, as that would imply they were dropping their claim that refugees who fled or were expelled when Israel was created in 1948, and their descendants, should be able to reclaim former homes now within Israel.
Netanyahu said he would also be seeking "real security arrangements on the ground" that would prevent a recurrence in the West Bank of events that took place in the Gaza Strip after Israel pulled out in 2005 and in south Lebanon after the Israeli withdrawal in 2000.
The Islamist Hamas seized control in Gaza and used the coastal strip as a launching pad for attacks into Israel. Lebanon's Shiite Hezbollah fought a bloody war with the Jewish state in 2006.
Netanyahu plans to personally lead the talks and hopes to meet the Palestinian leader Abbas every two weeks, a senior Israeli official said on Friday.
Key to the discussions will be the future of a partial Israeli moratorium on settlement construction in the occupied West Bank, which is due to end on September 26.
Netanyahu faces strong pressure at home not to renew the freeze on new construction permits, while Abbas has warned that "if Israel resumes settlement activities, including in east Jerusalem, we cannot continue with negotiations."
The international community considers settlements in the West Bank, including Israeli-annexed east Jerusalem, to be illegal. They are home to about 500,000 Israelis.
Jordan's King Abdullah II and Israeli Defense Minister Ehud Barak met in Amman on Sunday for talks ahead of the Washington summit, the royal palace and Barak's office said.
Jordan and Egypt, both of which have peace treaties with Israel and share borders with it, have been invited to attend the formal launch of the Washington talks.
A statement from Barak's office quoted him as telling Abdullah that Jordan had a central role to play in regional peace efforts. [no further content]

Source: AFP / channelnewsasia.com MORE

Note: see these related stories:

Arab League Chief Doubts US-Led Talks Will Succeed - “The only reason [for hope] is the sincerity of President Obama and his wish to achieve something good in his presidency” - Amr Moussa said Obama had given the Palestinians assurances that Israel would stop settling new territory during talks that are due to last for one year LINK

Israel Won't Extend Settlement Freeze Ahead Of Direct Negotiations - Any decision to ultimately extend the settlement freeze may create a rift that could topple Netanyahu’s coalition government and force an early national election LINK

Iran develops primitive flying bombs for Israeli cities, nearby U.S. targets

After watching the performance of Iran's new, locally-produced Karrar bomber drone, DEBKAfile's military sources summed it up as a primitive copy of an obsolete unmanned US cruise missile from the 1950s that was derived from the V1 "buzz bomb" which the Germans fired against London at the end of World War II. Iranian president Mahmoud Ahmadinejad made a big production of unveiling the Karrar (Ambassador of Death) August 22 in a showy ceremony.
Even so, Western intelligence sources believe that mass-produced with extended range, large swarms of these flying bombs could cause death and destruction if released over densely populated Israeli areas and US military facilities and warships in the Persian Gulf, Iraq and Afghanistan.
They would be fired from automatic anti-air artillery or dropped from Iran's outdated F-4 Phantom warplanes. Neither the Israeli Arrow nor the US Patriot missile interceptors are designed for unsophisticated flying bombs. And, if the Iranian claims of its 1,000-kilometer range is exaggerated and it can only reach 400-600 kilometers - short of Israel - the experts believe the Ambassador of Death could be transferred to the Hizballah in Lebanon or fired from an Iranian vessel opposite the Israeli coast.
In any case, American targets around Iran's borders and coasts could be threatened.
Iran's development of this UAV and the possibility of it reaching terrorist hands in Lebanon have sent Israel Air force missile and air defense experts to the drawing board for solutions.
It is possible [they] may look at reviving the development of the US-Israeli Nautilus Tactical High Energy Laser, a project US and Israel armed forces abandoned in 2006 because of the prohibitive cost of development and inconclusive evidence of its effectiveness. However, its purpose as a weapon and radar guidance system capable of firing highly concentrated laser beams that can destroy low-flying missiles and artillery and mortar rounds, could work against the Iranian Karrar.
While no more than a primitive flying bomb, the Iranian UAV's effectiveness against urban and large targets is undeniable in the same way as small speedboats can menace a large aircraft carrier . . . .
Six months ago, US Defense Secretary Robert Gates commented: "Those Iranian drones are a concern because it is one of these areas where, if they chose to - in Iraq, in Afghanistan - they could create difficulties for us."

Source: debka.com MORE

Obama marks symbolic end of Iraq combat operations

WASHINGTON -- President Barack Obama marks the symbolic date of the end of US combat operations in Iraq on Tuesday, seven years after an invasion he opposed and at a time when the country still seems far from being stabilised.
Speaking from the Oval Office, Obama will address Americans in a nationally televised speech at 8 pm (midnight GMT). Before that he will go to a military base in Texas to meet soldiers who have recently returned from Iraq.
The size of the US force in Iraq has dropped below a symbolic threshold of 50,000 troops. Starting Monday, their mission will be to "advise and support" the Iraqi army.
Under a timetable set by Obama when he took office, all US troops are supposed to be out by the end of 2011, although officials have said a small residual military presence is likely to remain indefinitely.
Iraqi officials, worried about a surge in attacks and a five-month-old political impasse that has blocked the formation of a new government, have expressed concern that the US military may be moving to the exits too quickly.
Just last week, 53 people were killed and hundreds were wounded by a dozen coordinated car bombings in 10 cities and towns across the country, the latest in a rash of attacks during the Muslim holy month of Ramadan.
Iraq's top army officer told AFP earlier this month that he feared worsening security problems after the Americans leave, and said they should stay until the Iraqi military is fully ready - in 2020.
But the White House has insisted that the Iraqis are capable of providing for their own security now, and the top US general said only a "complete failure" of the local security forces could lead to a resumption of US combat operations.
Obama assured Americans in an interview on NBC television Sunday that the timing was right for a drawdown.
"What you've seen is lower and lower levels of violence. The Iraqi security forces are functioning at least as well if not better than any of us had anticipated," Obama said.
Alluding to the Iraqi's failure to form a new government, Obama said the political difficulties were "natural in a fledgling democracy. But we are confident that that will get done."

Source: AFP / channelnewsasia.com MORE

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U.S.-Israeli group to start drilling for gas, oil off coast

JERUSALEM -- A US-Israeli exploration group said on Sunday it will begin drilling for natural gas at a new site off Israel’s Mediterranean coast in October and that there was a small possibility of reaching oil under the gas. The main objective in drilling at the Leviathan prospect is to recover commercial amounts of natural gas. Noble Energy, which leads the group and owns 40 percent of Leviathan, has said the well has gross unrisked mean resources of 16 trillion cubic feet of gas [453 billion cubic meters] and has a 50 percent geologic chance of success. MORE

[Governor Jan Brewer] condemns report to U.N. mentioning Arizona law

PHOENIX -- Arizona Governor Jan Brewer demanded Friday that a reference to the state's controversial immigration law be removed from a State Department report to the United Nations' human rights commissioner. The U.S. included its legal challenge to the law on a list of ways the federal government is protecting human rights. In a letter to Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, Brewer says it is "downright offensive" that a state law would be included in the report, which was drafted as part of a UN review of human rights in all member nations every four years. "The idea of our own American government submitting the duly enacted laws of a state of the United States to 'review' by the United Nations is internationalism run amok and unconstitutional," Brewer wrote. MORE

Don't agree with Obama? ... Get ready for IRS probe
Private group told review under way since work may 'contradict' president

The Internal Revenue Service has delayed approval of tax-exempt status for a private organization and is reviewing its educational work, telling a lawyer for the foundation that it must be examined by Washington because its activities may "contradict the administration's public policies." The allegation is contained in a federal lawsuit filed in the Eastern District of Pennsylvania by Z Street, a Merion Station, Pennsylvania, group that educates on the statehood and status of Israel. "Not only is it patently un-American but it is also a clear violation of the First Amendment for a government agency to penalize an organization because of its political position on Israel or anything else," said Z Street president Lori Lowenthal Marcus, a former First Amendment lawyer. "This situation is the same as if the government denied a driver's license to people because they were Republicans or Democrats. It goes against everything for which our country stands." Contacted by World Net Daily, IRS officials declined to comment on the publicly filed lawsuit or even say whether they would respond ... MORE

Report: Food Prices Already Starting to Skyrocket

Experts warn that overall food-price inflation is inevitable, as Wal-Mart reportedly has already hiked prices amid a recent jump in wheat prices and the failure of the Russian harvest. The most immediate impact will be felt in the price of bread and bakery products but other food items which make use of grain will also rise, according to analysis from Verdict research. This includes some meat products where grain is used as animal feed. Meanwhile, a recent JPMorgan survey of supermarket pricing in Virginia showed a 5.8 percent increase in average prices at Wal-Mart, which represents the most significant sequential increase since the inception of the study in January 2009, the Business Insider reported. The survey compared a 31 item like-kind basket at a Wal-Mart Supercenter, Kroger, Safeway, Harris Teeter, and Whole Foods, the Business Insider reported. Should wheat prices remain elevated for the next few months, shelf prices for many products could go up by 6.7 percent within a year, Verdict reported. MORE

Anti-dengue mosquitoes set for release, environmentalists worry (Malaysia)

KUALA LUMPUR -- Malaysia is considering releasing genetically modified mosquitoes designed to combat dengue fever, in a landmark field trial that has come in for criticism from environmentalists. In the first experiment of its kind in Asia, 2,000-3,000 male Aedes aegypti mosquitoes would be released in two states in October or November. The insects in the study have been engineered so that their offspring quickly die, curbing the growth of the population in a technique researchers hope could eventually eradicate the dengue mosquito altogether . . . But environmentalists are not convinced, and are concerned the genetically modified (GM) mosquito could fail to prevent dengue and could also have unintended consequences. “Once you release these GM mosquitoes into the environment, you have no control and it can create more problems than solving them,” said Gurmit Singh, head of the Centre for Environment, Technology and Development. “There are a lot of risks involved,” he told AFP. MORE

California [pre-school] students get tracking devices

RICHMOND, CALIFORNIA -- California officials are outfitting pre-schoolers in Contra Costa County with tracking devices they say will save staff time and money. The system was introduced Tuesday. When at the school, students will wear a jersey that has a small radio frequency tag. The tag will send signals to sensors that help track children's whereabouts, attendance and even whether they've eaten or not. School officials say it will free up teachers and administrators who previously had to note on paper files when a child was absent or had eaten. Sung Kim of the county's employment and human services department said the system could save thousands of hours of staff time and pay for itself within a year. It cost $50,000 and was paid by a federal grant. [no further content] LINK

U.S. paying millions to fund mosques around world

State Department lists 29 projects under 'cultural preservation'
The State Department is funding the construction of mosques around the world as part of the U.S. government's outreach programs to Muslims. Six million dollars in taxpayer funds will be used this year to restore dozens of Islamic cultural sites and mosques around the world as part of State's Ambassador Fund for Cultural Preservation . . . The U.S. government also helps to fund the restoration of Christian and Buddhist sites. MORE

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MORE NEWS & COMMENTARY
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Note: Views expressed in the commentaries on this website are those of individual authors and not necessarily those of Christian Media Daily or our host - Christian Media Network. Quotes are obviously the opinion of the source. A quote is just a quote and these are offered without comment. Use of a news story or commentary is not an endorsement of the source website.

Opinion: UNDER SIEGE IN AMERICA (Jonathan Emord)

As an attorney who represents businesses and interacts frequently with entrepreneurs, I hear repeatedly concerns that investigators for various federal and state agencies have become emboldened and are endeavoring to put them out of business. This widely expressed sentiment is not paranoia. It is a justified fear, and it is giving rise to a bunker mentality highly destructive to free enterprise. Many executives are holding onto their cash, hunkering down, and avoiding making moves to expand their businesses, hire more employees, or undertake new ventures because they greatly fear an unpredictable regulatory future . . . .
The greatest uncertainty they fear is the unleashed regulator, unleashed by the Obama Administration with instructions to seek and destroy. They believe the new army of regulators coming out of the Obama Administration regard industry as exploitative and evil . . . .
When law and law enforcement become unpredictable, entrepreneurs look for places to hide . . . .

In the United States, we have enjoyed a very long period of stable governance. Transitions of power from one party to another have occurred without violent revolution. Police, while on occasion corrupt, are by and large law abiding. The military remains under civilian control . . . .

Rangers in the West whose cattle have traversed rights of way over federal lands for in excess of a century, have suddenly come to realize that they are being held guilty for the first time of trespass on those federal lands and ordered to pay huge fines . . . .

Folks who own cherry orchards come to find out from professors at the university that certain kinds of tart cherries contain high levels of antioxidants and other bio-chemicals that are effective in reducing the symptoms of arthritis. They give that information, including the studies, to customers who buy cherry juice. Agents of the Food and Drug Administration visit them unannounced, inspect their farms, demand their literature, and inform them that they must stop telling people of the effects of cherries and cherry juice on arthritis or their cherries will be deemed unapproved new drugs. The farmers can then be charged with selling unapproved drugs, sentenced to jail terms, and lose their farms.

Dairy farmers who harvest fresh milk from healthy cows and share it with neighbors or make it available to health food stores come to realize that several federal and state agencies, doing the bidding for large milk processors, will prosecute them because their milk is not pasteurized, without regard to the fact that the milk is healthy and contaminant free. [see other examples of government intrusion at source website] . . . .

Economic and civil liberties cannot prosper, let alone survive, in an environment of unstable law and law enforcement. Unless we reestablish constitutional government in the United States, replete with governors accountable to the people and possessed of limited powers and meaningful protection for economic and civil liberties, we are not that far from witnessing our nation devolve into the anarchic decay, rife corruption, and official lawlessness that is so common in third world countries. [emphasis added]

Source: newswithviews.com MORE

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ADDITIONAL NEWS & ANALYSIS
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Day 132: 'We’re seeing way more dispersant than ever before' LINK
Large, thick oil plumes, freshly sprayed with poison! ... Today, Project Gulf Impact is out on the waters in and around Orange Beach Alabama ... What they have found is exactly the opposite of what BP and the federal government have told the American people ... Not only did they find oil, but they apparently found what looks to be freshly sprayed dispersant, still in powder form ... Why is this toxic dispersant still being sprayed? ... Warnings from scientists and independent journalists have indicated that Corexit could effect the gulf for at least twenty years

When University Scientists Found Underwater Oil Plumes, the Government Said Shut Up, Don't Tell Anyone ... and Then Tried to Discredit Them LINK

University of South Florida says government tried to squelch their oil plume findings LINK
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Al-Qaeda in Iraq takes credit for latest deadly attacks in at least 14 cities and towns LINK

AP: U.S. wasted billions in rebuilding Iraq LINK
Many facilities constructed with American money incomplete or unused

Seven U.S. soldiers killed in Afghan bomb attacks LINK

Russian expert: Attack on Iran’s nuclear sites unlikely LINK

Beck rally calls U.S. to turn back to faith LINK
'It has nothing to do with politics; it has everything to do with God'

[analysis]: Glenn Beck calls for national revival LINK

Crowd estimates at Glenn Beck's 'Restoring Honor' rally depend dramatically on who you ask LINK

Left Admits: Racism Charges Against Tea Parties A Tactic, Not A Truth LINK

Obama's city of Chicago praised by Homeland Security Chief For Its Over 10,000 Spy Cameras LINK

Corruption Investigators: Blago Investigation Cut Short to Protect Obama LINK

9/11 Mosque Imam Boasts:'Obama's historic speech in Egypt came from me' LINK

U.S. Retail Spaces Lead Drop in U.S. Commercial Property LINK

Credit card debt drops to lowest level in 8 years LINK

Cash-Poor Governments Across U.S. Begin Ditching Public Hospitals LINK

Top economists: The second Great Depression has arrived LINK

[Red Flag - source site]
Gerald Celente: Double Dip Depression Will Lead Us Into War LINK

Market Strategist Charles Nenner: Dow Could Fall To 5000 In Next 24 Months (Video) LINK

Strategist: Dow Faces Bouncy Ride to 5,000 LINK

[analysis]: Stock markets face a 'bloodbath', warns SocGen strategist Albert Edwards LINK

Democrats raise prospect of 'tweaking' Social Security LINK

Confirmed oil find in central Israel LINK

Putin opens new oil pipeline sending Russian oil to China LINK

EPA Denies Bid to Ban Lead in Hunting Ammunition LINK

Pakistan floodwaters ebb ... hunger and disease remain LINK

Indonesian volcano [Mount Sinabung] erupts again, spewing hot ash LINK
Its first eruption in 400 years

[analysis]: A gospel choir's heresy LINK
What is wrong with this country? ... A gospel tribute CD to President Obama

Mexican Supreme Court Imposes Homosexual 'Marriage' on Entire Country LINK
Court's president warns that decision "breaks with the harmony of the federal system" of Mexico

U.S. reports Nationwide shortage of anesthesia drugs LINK

More college students [diagnosed as] mentally ill LINK
The number of college students with severe mental illness, including those on psychiatric medications, is rising

Medicare Expands Coverage to Help Smokers Quit LINK

FDA: Obamacare’s Calorie-Count Mandate Now In Effect ... But Not Enforceable LINK

Appeals Court Rejects Autism Vaccine Link LINK

[analysis]: WHY IS AN EPIDEMIC OF BLOOD-SUCKING BED BUGS SWEEPING THE NATION? LINK
It's confirmed: bed bugs are back. Here's what you can do about them

[analysis]: Doctor urges fast food restaurants to hand out pharma drugs [statins] like ketchup packets (UK) LINK

Typhoid Fears Spur Recall of Frozen Mamey Fruit Bars LINK [scroll down]

HEALTH HIGHLIGHTS: AUGUST 27, 2010 LINK

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"I predict future happiness for Americans if they can prevent the government from wasting the labors of the people under the pretense of taking care of them."
Thomas Jefferson
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CHRISTIAN MEDIA
WORLDWATCH

TUESDAY AUGUST 31, 2010
- no news edition -

CHRISTIAN MEDIA
WORLDWATCH

WEDNESDAY SEPTEMBER 1, 2010

Obama readies bold Mid East peace bid

WASHINGTON -- President Barack Obama steps into Middle East peace efforts on Wednesday in a bid to relaunch direct Palestinian-Israeli negotiations after four Jewish settlers were gunned down in the West Bank.
The fresh violence blamed on the Islamist movement Hamas and continued deadlock over Israeli settlements threatened to curtail the latest efforts by Obama, who made Middle East peace a priority early in his presidency . . . .
In a clear and bloody message from Hamas, a staunch opponent of the talks, its militants gunned down four Israelis near a Jewish settlement in the Palestinian West Bank on Tuesday in an attack strongly condemned by Abbas and the White House.
But Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu pledged to keep the talks on track after a 20-month hiatus while stressing Israel's security demands.
"I will set clearly the security needs that are required precisely to address these kind of terror," Netanyahu said. "We will not let the blood of Israeli civilians go unpunished."
And the host of the talks, US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, offered fresh security assurances to the Israelis as she met with Netanyahu late Tuesday.
"It is one of the reasons why the prime minister is here today, to engage in direct negotiations with those Palestinians who themselves have rejected a path of violence in favor of a path of peace," she said.
"We pledge to do all we can always to protect and defend the state of Israel and to provide security to the Israeli people."
Netanyahu's spokesman Mark Regev said Israel was "committed to peace" and the attack would not prevent the talks from going ahead.
"We are committed to moving forward and committed to a historic peace arrangement with the Palestinians," he added.
Obama is hosting separate meetings not only with Abbas and Netanyahu, but also with key regional powerbrokers King Abdullah II of Jordan and Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak at the White House before dining with the five leaders and diplomatic Quartet representative Tony Blair.
The meetings are designed to help launch direct talks between the Israeli and Palestinian leaders at the State Department on Thursday . . . .
Huge issues - many unresolved since Israel's founding in 1948 - remain on the table, including the status of Jerusalem, which both sides claim as their capital, and the fate of Palestinian refugees chased from their lands.
Continued Jewish settlements in Palestinian territories are seen as a major hurdle to the peace process, with a 10-month Israeli freeze due to expire on September 26.
Obama's Middle East envoy George Mitchell, briefing journalists ahead of the talks, said the president's one-year timeframe to seal a deal was "realistic" despite the scale of the task.
"We believe these negotiations can be completed within one year," Mitchell said. "We will engage with perseverance and patience to try to bring them to a successful conclusion."
But Abbas has threatened to walk out of talks if settlement construction resumes, and Netanyahu has vowed not to extend the moratorium. The attack near the Kiryat Arba settlement underscored the massive importance of the issue.
Netanyahu, a hawk who only last year recognized the internationally-backed principle of a two-state solution, said on Sunday he hoped to reach "a peace based on recognition, security, stability and economic prosperity between the two peoples that will endure for us and our children."
Abbas, meanwhile, has urged "Israel not to miss this historic opportunity for peace," saying "if there is only a one percent chance of achieving peace we will strive for it."
Israeli President Shimon Peres insisted Netanyahu was "aware of the greatness of his mission" during his US visit and was "well prepared to meet the chance."
But Peres said any future Palestinian state must be demilitarized.

Source: AFP / channelnewsasia.com MORE

Note: see these related items:

Envoy: US To Have 'Active' Role In Mid East Peace Talks - "That does not mean that the United States must be physically represented in every single meeting ... We recognise the value of direct, bilateral discussion between the parties and, in fact, will encourage that between the two leaders on a regular basis ... We will operate in a manner that is reasonable and sensible in the circumstances which exist, but the guiding principle will be an active and sustained United States presence" LINK

US Does Not See Hamas Joining Peace Talks Yet - "We do not expect Hamas to play a role in this immediate process," Mitchell told journalists Tuesday ... But he added the United States would "welcome the full participation by Hamas and all relevant parties once they comply with the basic requirements of democracy and non-violence that are, of course, a prerequisite to engage in these serious types of discussions" LINK

US Seeks Israeli Peace Talks With Syria, Lebanon - "With respect to Syria, our efforts continue to try to engage Israel and Syria in discussions and negotiations that would lead to peace there and also Israel and Lebanon," Mitchell said LINK

Commentary: Obama 'Blackmailing' Israel Amid U.S. Summit? - If Israel and the Palestinian Authority fail to reach an agreement within the next year, the Obama administration could support a United Nations resolution that would unilaterally recognize a Palestinian state, senior PA officials said ... LINK

U.S. Intel: Tehran pushes Hizballah hard to attack Israel

Western intelligence and Persian Gulf sources report that on August 30, Hizballah put its forces on a state of war alert and issued a partial call-up of reservists. According to DEBKAfile's military sources, Hizballah appears to be preparing a major attack on Israel straight after the ceremonial start of Israeli-Palestinian peace talks in Washington Thursday September 2. A second target date is the Jewish New Year festival starting on September 8. The pressure from Tehran for the Lebanese Shiite terrorists to strike Israel has intensified in the wake of the example the Palestinian Hamas gave Tuesday night August 31 in the drive-by murder of four Israeli civilians on a road near Hebron.
A large-scale attack appears to be in the works judging by the heavy influx of armed Hizballah units to southern Lebanon in the last few days. Our military sources report that they include special units trained especially for deep-strike incursions into northern Israel in response to Israeli counter-attacks.
Our intelligence sources report that the Iranian al Qods commander of Tehran's networks and surrogates in Iraq, the Gaza Strip and the Palestinian Authority has spent the last ten days in Damascus. He arrived there on August 19 in the party of General Mohammad Ali Jafari, Revolutionary Guards (IRGC) chief and stayed on after his boss left the Syrian capital, apparently assigned to oversee an important terrorist or military operation against Israel.
Hizballah's own direct commander on behalf of the IRGC, Hassan Mahdavi is reported by Western intelligence sources monitoring events in Lebanon as leaning hard on Hizballah's secretary-general Hassan Nasrallah to strike IDF forces within a few days in response to US sponsorship of direct Israeli-Palestinian talks. The terrorist chief is reported to be on the verge of a decision about what target to attack and when.
Reluctant to leave the field to the Palestinian Hamas, Nasrallah is additionally badgered by a flock of IRGC officers visiting Beirut and trying to persuade Lebanese Parliament Speaker Nabih Beri to allow his rival Shiite Amal organization to join Hizballah for the first time in a strike against Israel. They want all the Shiite streams in Lebanon to show the flag in unison as a gesture of welcome in advance of Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's forthcoming state visit to Lebanon.
The date of his visit is a closely-kept secret both by Tehran and Beirut. DEBKAfile's sources disclose that it is scheduled for September 10-12 when Israel is celebrating Rosh Hashana. [no further content]

Source: debka.com LINK

Legal Group Seeks to Compel California to Defend Proposition 8

SAN FRANCISCO (AP) -- A conservative legal group is trying to force Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger and Attorney General Jerry Brown to defend California's gay marriage ban in court.
The Pacific Justice Institute petitioned the 3rd District Court of Appeal in Sacramento on Monday for an emergency order that would require the two officials to appeal a ruling that overturned Proposition 8.
Chief U.S. District Judge Vaughn Walker struck down the voter-approved measure as unconstitutional last month.
Its sponsors have appealed. But doubts have been raised about whether they have authority to do so because as ordinary citizens they are not responsible for enforcing marriage laws.
The state has until September 11 to challenge Walker's ruling in the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals. Both Brown and Schwarzenegger, who also refused to support Proposition 8 in Walker's court, have said they do not plan to.
The institute is arguing that as the state's chief law enforcement officer, Brown does not have discretion to defend only laws with which he personally agrees.
And because the California Constitution gives the governor final say when he and the attorney general disagree on legal matters, Schwarzenegger must be compelled to file an appeal to preserve Proposition 8 as well, the group's lawsuit states.
"To allow an elected official to trump the will of the people by mere inaction and the lack of fulfillment of their duty to do their job would be an egregious violation of public trust," Pacific Legal Institute Brad Dacus said Tuesday . . . .
Brown has said both in legal filings and public statements that he has sworn to uphold the state and federal constitutions and therefore can not defend Proposition 8 because he thinks it is an unconstitutional violation of gay Californians' civil rights.
"The attorney general does not believe that he can be forced to prosecute an appeal of a decision with which he agrees," Brown spokeswoman Christine Gasparac said Tuesday . . . .
The appeals court has scheduled oral arguments for the second week in December. But both Walker and the lawyers who persuaded him to invalidate the gay marriage ban on behalf of two same-sex couples and the city of San Francisco have said that measure's backers may not have legal standing to ask the court to overturn Walker.
Theodore Boutrous Jr., a member of the legal team that represented the two couples, said it is unlikely the state court would order the governor and attorney general to take action because California, like the federal government, requires its executive and judicial branches to operate independently.
"It's certainly a novel idea," Boutrous said of the Pacific Justice Institute petition. "It seems like it would raise serious separation of powers issues, among other things. We will be interested to see how it plays out."

Source: cnsnews.com MORE

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Israel: Palestinian state must be 'demilitarised'

JERUSALEM (AFP) -- As Israel’s prime minister flew to Washington for new Middle East peace talks, President Shimon Peres insisted on Tuesday that any future Palestinian state must be demilitarised. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu headed to the United States “determined to represent his people to implement a widely agreed solution here, namely to have a two-state solution, a Palestinian demilitarised, united, democratic country on the side of Israel,” Peres said. “All other solutions are dangerous,” he told participants at a World Jewish Congress gathering in Jerusalem. Israel has also insisted it would retain control of the borders of a future Palestinian state, while the Palestinians are demanding full sovereignty. “I am impressed that Prime Minister Netanyahu is aware of the greatness of his mission, and I think he is well prepared to meet the chance,” said Peres, a Nobel Peace Prize laureate. Netanyahu and Palestinian president Mahmud Abbas are this week to formally relaunch direct negotiations that collapsed in December 2008 when Israel launched a devastating military offensive in the Hamas-run Gaza Strip. Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak and Jordan’s King Abdullah II are to attend the Washington summit hosted by US President Barack Obama. [no further content] LINK

Peres: Answering call for peace 'most important task of our time'

JERUSALEM -- Israeli Premier Benjamin Netanyahu left for peace talks in Washington on "the most important task of our time," answering the call of peace, Israeli President Shimon Peres said Tuesday. Addressing the opening of a World Jewish Congress session in Jerusalem, hours after Netanyahu flew to the US for the relaunch of direct Israel-Palestinian peace talks, Peres said he had the impression the Israeli leader was aware of the enormity of the task before him, and was prepared. The 87-year-old president, one of the architects of the Israeli- Palestinian peace process, said the solution to the conflict was "two states for two peoples, and the establishment of a democratic, demilitarized Palestinian state" alongside Israel. "The other solutions are dangerous," he said. Direct Israeli-Palestinian peace talks, the first face-to-face negotiations in almost two years, kick off in Washington Thursday. [no further content] LINK

Hebron area sealed off after deadly attack

HEBRON -- Israeli forces on Wednesday sealed off parts of the West Bank while Palestinian security officials said they arrested about 50 people after four settlers were gunned down just ahead of Middle East peace talks. And furious settlers vowed to flout a moratorium on settlement construction in protest against the attack as tensions rose ahead of a Washington summit hosted by US President Barack Obama to relaunch talks last suspended in 2008. Israeli soldiers carried out house-to-house searches in villages in the Hebron area, near the Kiryat Arba settlement where the two couples, including a pregnant woman, were killed on Tuesday evening. Access routes to the city of Hebron were closed by military roadblocks. MORE

Note: see also Hamas Claims West Bank Killings As Direct Peace Talks Set To Resume LINK

[Governor Pawlenty] directs state to decline health reform (Minnesota)

CHICAGO -- Minnesota Governor Tim Pawlenty directed state agencies on Tuesday to decline all discretionary participation in federal healthcare reform, throwing up roadblocks to President Barack Obama's goal of providing health insurance to all Americans. "Obamacare is an intrusion by the federal government into personal health care matters and it's an explosion of federal spending that does nothing to make healthcare more affordable," the Republican governor said in a statement. Since Obama signed the landmark reforms into law in March nearly half of the states have mounted a fight against it. Pawlenty, a potential candidate for president, said he signed an executive order prohibiting Minnesota's executive departments from submitting applications to the U.S. government for program grants and demonstration projects under the healthcare reform plan that are not required by law or approved by his office. "The office of the governor will evaluate federal funding opportunities on the basis of whether they will support existing state initiatives or programs, or whether such federal funding opportunities create new encroachments by the federal government under the recently passed federal legislation," the statement said . . . Earlier this month a U.S. judge allowed Virginia's lawsuit against the healthcare plan, which says that the federal government cannot compel a person to purchase health insurance, to proceed. Arguments on the merits of the case are set for October 18. Before then, arguments over the Obama administration's motion to dismiss a lawsuit by 20 other states are set for September. Also in August, Missouri voters approved a measure that would forbid the federal government from penalizing people who do not buy health insurance. MORE

Hints Of Change In The World Monetary System

NEW YORK -- Ever since its inception 66 years ago, the International Monetary Fund has fancied itself at the center of the global economy. But only now does the prospect of a multilateral monetary authority providing stability to the international financial system seem even remotely possible. That's because for the first time in decades there are legitimate uncertainties surrounding the one institution that does play that role: the U.S. dollar. In that context, a couple of recent IMF-related announcements are more important than they normally would be ... [further content requires subscription] LINK

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Commentary: Obama Rebuffs Defense Establishment's Hunger for Conflict with Iran (Gareth Porter)
Obama's refusal in a White House briefing this month to announce a "red line" in regard to Iran's nuclear program is a promising sign

Excerpt:
United States President Barack Obama's refusal in a White House briefing this month to announce a "red line" in regard to Iran's nuclear program represented another in a series of rebuffs of pressure from Defense Secretary Robert Gates for a statement that the US will not accept its existing stocks of low enriched uranium.
The Obama rebuff climaxed a months-long internal debate between Obama and Gates over the "breakout capability" issue that surfaced in the news media last April.
Gates has been arguing that Iran could turn its existing stock of low-enriched uranium (LEU) into a capability to build a nuclear weapon secretly by using covert enrichment sites and undeclared sources of uranium.
That Gates argument implies that the only way to prevent Iran having enough bomb-grade uranium for nuclear weapons is to insist that Iran must give up most of its existing stock of LEU, which could be converted into enough bomb-grade uranium for one bomb.
But Obama has publicly rejected the idea that Iran's existing stock of LEU represents a breakout capability on more than one occasion. He has stated that Iran would have to make an overt move to have a "breakout capability" that would signal its intention to have a nuclear weapon ...

Source: Inter Press Service / alternet.org MORE

Opinion: ANTI-MUSLIM HATE CRIMES? (Gary Bauer)

The talk shows this morning devoted a lot of time to the terrible attack on a Muslim cab driver in New York City, which New York police have branded a hate crime. Left-wing talking heads couldn’t help but insist that the debate over the Ground Zero mosque has led to an atmosphere of hate where bigots now felt free to attack Muslims. But this story shows how warped their perceptions of America are.
According to the New York Post, Ahmed Sharif, the stabbed Muslim cab driver, opposes the Ground Zero mosque! But wait … there’s more. His alleged attacker was a volunteer for an organization that defines its purpose as bringing together “diverse groups to forge a common ground for global social justice,” and which publicly endorsed the Ground Zero mosque.
As one liberal commentator said of the Duke lacrosse rape case, “The narrative was right, but the facts were wrong.” The media has picked up the narrative of Muslims as victims of an intolerant America and run wild with it today. But, the media have been doing that ever since the 9/11 attacks.
In a column today, Jonah Goldberg notes that hate crimes against Muslims did spike dramatically in 2001 – increasing by 1,600%. But the numbers did not suggest a pandemic of anti-Islamic violence was sweeping the nation. In 2000, there were 28 anti-Islamic hate crimes. In 2001, there were 481, “the year a bunch of Muslim terrorists murdered 3,000 Americans in the name of Islam,” writes Goldberg.
He continues, “In 2001, there were twice as many anti-Jewish incidents as anti-Muslim ones, according to the FBI. In 2002 and pretty much every year since, anti-Jewish incidents have outstripped anti-Muslim incidents by at least 6-to-1. Why aren’t we talking about the anti-Jewish climate in America?”

Source: Our American Values newsletter LINK

[Editor's Note: Read the related commentary Who Is Michael Enright? LINK, for yet another twist to this story.]

Opinion: TRUE CULTURE CHANGE COMES WHEN HEARTS ARE CHANGED (Marsha West)

If I’ve said it once I’ve said it a thousand times: America has lost its moral compass. Our country has fallen into the pit of depravity and if we’re going to emerge from this seemingly bottomless pit we’ve dug for ourselves and win the culture war, Americans have got to get busy.

The ability to dig ourselves out depends on two factors. Firstly, parents must instill in their children Judeo-Christian values (rooted in the Bible) on a variety of moral issues, from premarital sex and bearing babies out of wedlock, to abortion, gambling, alcohol, drug use, homosexuality and finally pornography. The Bible speaks to every one of these subjects.
Secondly, parents must deal with what’s going on in the government-run institutions-of-liberal-indoctrination (public schools). Liberal teachers are stealthily implanting in student’s minds the idea of rejecting conservative parent’s values and adopting a Marxist/socialist “progressive” worldview.
Children are no longer taught to develop critical thinking skills nor are they learning how to make their own decisions. In our politically correct world many educators deem it more important to fill our younger generation’s minds with homosexual propaganda than to teach them U. S. history! . . . .
For over 50 years people of faith have allowed secular humanists to infuse their anti-God agenda into our public education system. Make no mistake. Elitist humanists are more determined than ever before to see society dominated by them and their progressive ideology . . . .

The Christian’s job is not to insure that people understand the message we bring. No. Believers are simply to deliver the message! The Holy Spirit is the One who changes hearts and minds and brings fallen men to faith so that they may believe in the Lord Jesus Christ and be saved.

Society will not change its wicked ways until Christians change. Americans were looking for change when we decided to clean house and oust conservative politicians. We elected a stealthy band of liberal Robin Hoods and we got way more change than we bargained for . . . .

Christians also must get back to the basics. What this entails is reading/studying the Bible and sharing [our] faith. As for pastors, they need to stand up and preach the Word of God and all it contains instead of some watered-down message that’s designed to make people feel good about themselves. (Hebrews 4:12) America will not experience an authentic revival until God’s Word is taught chapter and verse.

Source: newswithviews.com MORE

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ADDITIONAL NEWS & ANALYSIS
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Day 134: Risks remain with Gulf well cap coming off LINK
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Obama: Iraqis must urgently form new government LINK

Gates: All Is Not Well as Combat Role Ends LINK

Fact Check: Is Iraq Combat Really Over for U.S.? LINK

Obama renews vow to hand over Afghan security LINK

Petraeus: Taliban footprint 'spreading' LINK
'It would become harder before it got easier ... That's the nature of these endeavours'

2010 Already Deadliest Year for U.S. in Nine-Year Afghan War LINK

Arizona Border Sheriff: 'I Have About As Much Regard for the U.N. as I Do the Vermin' LINK

Problem bank list climbs to 829 LINK

Obama: Restoring U.S. economy 'most urgent task' LINK

U.S. Federal Reserve Allows China To Buy 10% Of Morgan Stanley Shares LINK

[analysis]: HIDDEN CORPORATE SCANDAL: CEOs WHO LAID OFF THE MOST WORKERS RAKE IN THE MOST TREASURE LINK

Leviathan Oil Field Said Could Sustain Israel For Decades (Followup) LINK

Hurricane Earl batters Caribbean, threatens East Coast LINK
Storm sparks flooding, damages homes, knocks out power on islands

California Rejects Ban on Plastic Shopping Bags LINK

[analysis]: Inside The Great Reptilian Conspiracy: From Queen Elizabeth to Barack Obama ... They Live! [or not!] LINK
A look at one of the more fascinating alternate universes of belief

Government Study Withheld for Year: 70 Percent of Parents and 54 Percent of Teens Say Sex Before Marriage is Wrong LINK

Sebelius: Time for 're-education' on Obamacare LINK
HHS boss suggests remedy for nationwide opposition to health-care law

HEALTH HIGHLIGHTS: AUGUST 31, 2010 LINK

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For the word of God is quick, and powerful, and sharper than any two edged sword, piercing even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit, and of the joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart.
Hebrews 4:12 KJV
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CHRISTIAN MEDIA
WORLDWATCH

THURSDAY SEPTEMBER 2, 2010
- no news edition -

CHRISTIAN MEDIA
WORLDWATCH

FRIDAY SEPTEMBER 3, 2010

Israeli, Palestinian leaders to resolve issues in a year

WASHINGTON -- The Israeli and Palestinian leaders have pledged to work towards a resolution of all the core issues of disagreement within a year with the aim of establishing a Palestinian state living peacefully alongside Israel.
They have agreed to develop a framework for a permanent peace deal during talks held in Washington, and also to meet for direct talks every two weeks in the region.
US Secretary of State Hilary Clinton has said core issues between the Israelis and Palestinians could be resolved within one year.
"If you move forward in good faith and do not waiver in your commitment to succeed on behalf of your people, we can resolve all of the core issues within one year," Mrs Clinton said.
The two sides will next meet at the Egyptian resort of Sharm el-Sheik on September 14 and 15 and there will be other meetings also involving the US and other members of the Quartet.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said: "Just as you expect us to be ready to recognise a Palestinian state as the nation state of the Palestinian people, we expect you to be prepared to recognise Israel as the nation state of the Jewish people".
Following an attack earlier in the week in which four Israeli settlers were shot dead in a random attack, Palestinian leader Abbas acknowledged Israeli concerns over security, but also called for action from the Israelis.
"Once again, we want to state our commitment to follow [through] on all our engagements, including security and ending incitement, and we call on the Israeli government to move forward with its commitment to end all settlement activities and completely lift the embargo over the Gaza Strip and end all form of incitement," he said.
Council on Foreign Relations' Robert Danin, said: ""There may be some room there for creative diplomacy to try to bridge those two positions.
"If so, then it would be a very important sign of progress and show that the United States is able to finesse difficult issues. It will build a level of trust and optimism between the two sides".
Beyond this first challenge, the two sides will be working to agree on how they will pursue peace.
"The purpose of a framework agreement will be to establish the fundamental compromises necessary to enable them to flesh out and complete a comprehensive treaty that will end the conflict and establish a lasting peace between Israel and the Palestinians," US Middle East envoy George Mitchell said . . . .
Prime Minister Netanyahu indicated that broader regional tensions also needed to be considered.
".. and we've had the rise of Iran and its proxies and the rise of missile warfare. And so, a peace agreement must take into account security [arrangements] against these real threats that have been directed against my country," he said.

Source: channelnewsasia.com MORE

Note: see also Op Ed: A Peace Plan Within Our Grasp - Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak: "For an Israeli-Palestinian peace to succeed, it must also be embedded in a broader regional peace between Israel and the Arab world ... As someone who has witnessed both the ravages of war and the hope for peace, I appeal to all sides to make this new round of negotiations the one that succeeds" LINK

Palestinian Leader Rebuffs Netanyahu's Call for A 'Jewish State'

(CNS News) -- Behind the polite talk at Thursday’s re-launch of direct Israeli-Palestinian negotiations at the State Department was a deep gulf on what Israel calls a make-or-break issue: Palestinian recognition of Israel as a Jewish state.
Addressing Palestinian leader Mahmoud Abbas directly in English, Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu identified what he called “two pillars of peace that I think will enable us to resolve all the outstanding issues … legitimacy and security.”
“Just as you expect us to be ready to recognize a Palestinian state as the nation-state of the Palestinian people, we expect you to be prepared to recognize Israel as the nation-state of the Jewish people,” Netanyahu said, adding that the more than one million non-Jews living in Israel enjoy full civil rights.
“I think this mutual recognition between us is indispensable to clarifying to our two people – our two peoples – that the conflict between us is over.”
Abbas’ response, when Secretary of State Hillary Clinton turned the floor over to him minutes later, was that the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) had already recognized Israel – in September 1993, when his predecessor, Yasser Arafat, and then Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin had signed “a document of mutual recognition.”
“And in this document, we give enough to show that our intentions are good, our intentions with respect to recognizing the state of Israel,” he added, speaking in Arabic through a translator.
Left unsaid was the fact that neither in 1993 nor since then has the PLO agreed to recognize Israel specifically as a Jewish state.
On the contrary, Abbas and other Palestinian leaders have repeatedly rejected this Israeli requirement.
“Palestinians reject the demand to recognize Israel as a Jewish state,” PLO Executive Committee member Wassel Abu Yousef told reporters in Ramallah less than a fortnight ago, after Netanyahu told his cabinet that “recognition of Israel as the national state of the Jewish people” was a necessary component of a peaceful settlement to the conflict.
At a landmark convention in Bethlehem last year, Abbas’ Fatah faction of the PLO adopted a platform rejecting recognition of Israel as a Jewish state . . . .
Asked at a press briefing Thursday about the Jewish state dispute, U.S. Mideast peace envoy George Mitchell acknowledged that differences between the sides were “many,” “deep” and “serious” and that both sides would need to be willing to make “difficult concessions.”
But he said he believed Netanyahu and Abbas were “committed to doing what it takes to achieve the right result.”

Source: cnsnews.com MORE

Iran's revenge: Syria and Hizballah join to sink Israeli warships

Tehran and its extremist and terrorist allies, having failed to abort Barack Obama's initiative for direct Israel-Palestinian diplomacy, have hit back with two belligerent steps. DEBKAfile's military sources disclose that Syria and the Lebanese Hizballah have set up a joint military command for sinking Israeli warships, and Hamas has brought all 13 Palestinian rejectionist organizations under one roof for a sustained bid to intensify terror operations against Israel.
At a news conference in Gaza early Friday, September 3 - shortly after the Washington talks were rated positive - a Hamas military arm spokesman announced the creation of a single command encompassing all 13 Palestinian rejectionist groups operating out of the Gaza Strip and Damascus for a concerted campaign of terror against Israel.
In answer to a question, Abu Obeida said the new policy of expanded attacks may well rain missiles on Tel Aviv. "From now on, everything is open," the Hamas spokesman said . . . .
Syrian President Bashar Assad and Hizballah leader Hassan Nasrallah decided to expand the secret military cooperation pact they recently concluded - to which no Israeli political or military leader has so far responded - to the Mediterranean Sea, where their operational and intelligence assets will together seek out and try and sink Israeli missile ships and submarines.
To this end, they have earmarked marine units and their Iranian- and Russian-made shore-to-ship missile force - the largest of its kind in the world - as well as Syrian assault helicopters flown by crews trained to strike seaborne targets. The Hizballah marine unit was trained and equipped by Iranian Revolutionary Guards marine instructors.
The Mediterranean coastal strip from Syrian Latakia in the north, running through the Lebanese ports of Tripoli, Sidon and Tyre and down south to the Gaza Strip, have been declared a joint sea front dedicated to attacking Israeli targets.
High-ranking Israeli military sources told DEBKAfile Thursday night that while it was hard to imagine Syria or Hizballah managing to hit Israeli submarines, they are quite capable of fomenting violence on the sea and attacking Israeli naval craft and bases. Their joint command means they are sharing intelligence on Israeli naval activity and monitoring the movements of vessels while still in Israeli territorial waters and before they take up stations opposite the Lebanese or Syrian coasts.

Source: debka.com MORE

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Hamas leader rejects compromise, peace with Israel

GAZA CITY -- The top Hamas leader in the Gaza Strip rejected compromise with Israel in a fiery speech Wednesday, a day after gunmen killed four Israelis. In an address to Hamas members, Gaza strongman Mahmoud Zahar said the movement would resist peace efforts and criticized the Palestinian president for joining the negotiations. "Today marks the start of direct negotiations between someone who has no right to represent the Palestinian people and the brutal occupier, to provide a cover for Judaizing Jerusalem and stealing the land," Zahar said . . . Hamas leaders have sharply criticized Abbas in recent days for agreeing to resume negotiations with Israel. "The enemy of the Palestinian people is the Zionist enemy," Zahar said. Zahar rejected the idea of compromise with Israel, saying that "liberating" all the land between the Mediterranean and the Jordan River - a reference to Israel's destruction - is a moral and religious duty. He said Palestinians must not abandon armed resistance against Israeli occupation. Despite Zahar's tough words, it's unclear whether the militants will try to derail the negotiations with more attacks or whether the shooting was an isolated incident. Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak wrote in an op-ed piece in The New York Times on Tuesday that reconciliation between Hamas and Abbas' Fatah movement is "critical to achieving a two-state solution" and renewed an offer of Egyptian mediation. Hamas expert Khaled Hroub said the group would keep acting as a spoiler if it is not accommodated. "You have to engage with Hamas - not because you like or dislike them," Hroub said. "Because, pragmatically these are the people who can deliver." MORE

IDF warns of wave of violence as Hamas vows to sink peace talks

The Israel Defense Forces on Thursday warned of a possible wave of attacks as Hamas militants try to sabotage Israeli-Palestinian peace talks, which formally opened in Washington on Wednesday. The warning follows two drive-by shootings on Israeli targets in the West Bank this week, which killed four Israeli civilians and wounded two more. Hamas militants claimed responsibility for both attacks. "There may be more attacks," Brig. Gen Nitzan Alon told Army Radio. "The capability exists on the ground." Alon said the military had received no specific intelligence about the attacks on Tuesday and Wednesday – but that the army had expected attempts to disrupt the talks. "We knew opposition elements like Hamas would try to carry out attacks to try and disrupt the diplomatic process," Alon said. Hamas on Thursday vowed more violence: "Operations of resistance will continue and the measures by the occupation and Fatah will not block them," said Hamas spokesman Sami Abu Zuhri. MORE

EU presses China on observing Iran sanctions

BEIJING -- The European Union’s foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton said on Thursday she had pressed China to ensure that Chinese companies did not fill the void left by other firms leaving Iran due to UN sanctions. US officials said in July that Chinese companies had been pursuing trade with Iran despite the threat of US sanctions and a June United Nations Security Council resolution imposing more punitive measures on Tehran over its nuclear program. Robert Einhorn, special adviser for non-proliferation and arms control at the US state department, said at the time that China should not “backfill” by doing more deals with Iran while “responsible countries are distancing themselves from Iran.” Ashton, speaking to reporters at the end of an official visit to China, said she told Chinese Foreign Minister Yang Jiechi that observing sanctions placed on Iran was vital. “We expected that we would all work together in a way that would be effective but that we would stand together,” she said. “My message was meant to be very clear – that we would expect that we wouldn’t see ‘backfill’.” Ashton added it was “too early to tell” if China was indeed “backfilling.” MORE

Followup story
Feds Sue Arizona Sheriff in Civil Rights Probe

PHOENIX (AP) -- The U.S. Justice Department sued Sheriff Joe Arpaio on Thursday, saying the Arizona lawman refused for more than a year to turn over records in an investigation into allegations his department discriminates against Hispanics. The lawsuit calls Arpaio and his office's defiance "unprecedented," and said the federal government has been trying since March 2009 to get officials to comply with its probe of alleged discrimination, unconstitutional searches and seizures, and having English-only policies in his jails that discriminates against people with limited English skills. Arpaio had been given until August 17 to hand over documents it first asked for 15 months ago . . . Arpaio's office had said it has fully cooperated in the jail inquiry but won't hand over additional documents into the examination of the alleged unconstitutional searches because federal authorities haven't said exactly what they were investigating. MORE

Eligibility Alert: Judge to Lakin: Find another defense
Rules that officer challenging Obama's eligibility can't see evidence

FORT MEADE, MARYLAND -- A career officer in the U.S. Army acting as a judge in the prosecution of Lieutenant Colonel Terrence Lakin today ruled that the military is no place for Barak Obama's presidential eligibility to be evaluated. Army Colonel Denise R. Lind today ruled in a hearing regarding the evidence to be allowed in the scheduled October court-martial of Lakin that he will be denied access to any of Obama's records as well as any testimony from those who may have access to the records. With her decision, Lind mirrored a number of federal judges who have ruled on civil lawsuits over Obama's eligibility. They have without exception denied the plaintiffs' access to any requested documentation regarding the president's eligibility. Lind ruled that it was "not relevant" for the military to be considering such claims, that the laws allegedly violated by Lakin were legitimate on their face and that the chain of command led up to the Pentagon, and that should have been sufficient for Lakin . . . [Judge Lind] said opening up such evidence could be an "embarrassment" to the president, and it's up to Congress to call for impeachment of a sitting president. MORE

Fears grow over global food supply

Wheat prices rose further on Friday in the wake of Russia’s decision to extend its grain export ban by 12 months, raising fears about a return to the food shortages and riots of 2007-08. In Mozambique, where a 30 per cent rise in bread prices triggered riots on Wednesday and Thursday, the government said seven people had been killed and 288 wounded. Vladimir Putin’s announcement on Thursday extended an export ban first introduced last month until late December 2011, sending wheat and other cereals prices to a near two-year high. It came as the UN’s Food and Agriculture Organisation called an emergency meeting to discuss the wheat shortage . . . Russia is traditionally the world’s fourth-largest wheat exporter, and the export ban has already forced importers in the Middle East and North Africa, the biggest buyers, to seek supplies in Europe and the US. Mr Putin said Moscow could “only consider lifting the export ban after next year’s crop has been harvested and we have clarity on the grain balances”. MORE

Note: see also Commentary: Doomsday Scenario: Food Prices To Shoot Through The Roof LINK

Principal threatens to fire teachers who help Christian club (Virginia)
Earns warning from civil rights organization

A principal who reportedly threatened to fire any teacher who helped with the organization of a campus Fellowship of Christian Athletes (FCA) club is getting a warning letter from a civil rights organization. The Rutherford Institute, a Virginia-based civil liberties group, sent the letter to Don Curtis, principal of Wilson Middle School in Fishersville, Virginia. "By intimidating teachers, through threat of termination, into refusing to provide the same types of administrative assistance to the FCA as are made available to other student groups, Principal Curtis has pitted himself in direct opposition to the spirit of the First Amendment," said Rutherford President John W. Whitehead. "School administrators need to act immediately to correct the erroneous impression conveyed by the principal's e-mail that religion has no place in the public schools," he said. MORE

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Commentary: THE NEW SOYLENT GREEN ECONOMY (Danny Weil)
‘Dead janitors’ or ‘dead peasants’ insurance: corporations buy secret non-disclosed life insurance policies on their workers when workers ‘give up the ghost’

Excerpt:
There is nothing that is sacred under the organized system of greed known as capitalism. Everything produced and sold under the ruthless arrangement that puts profits before people must be commodified and cannibalized quickly, and at any cost. Take life insurance, a commodity peddled by hucksters for more than a century. The insurance has now taken a new twist. Companies are purchasing insurance policies that will pay them a secret, windfall benefit when you die and you might not even know it. The money will not go to your loved ones but to the corporation. The commodification of death under capitalism goes unbridled. One lives to survive, not survive to live and the legal ownership of life goes on unabated.
These life insurance policies, are often nicknamed ‘dead janitors’ or ‘dead peasants’ insurance, and they have increased in popularity after many states cleared the way for them by relaxing insurance regulations and passing new ones favorable to the body snatchers. The practice accelerated during the Reagan years. Congress recently tried to crack down on the practices, but they faced the howls of the insurance industry - which earlier this year managed to derail reforms intended to stop or regulate them through multi-million dollar lobbying efforts, perhaps paid for with death peasant’s insurance benefits.
This dirty little secret may not have been on your radar screen, but it certainly is firmly locked into the rifle [sights] of companies that want you dead so they can collect insurance benefits on your corpse without your knowledge.

Source: dailycensored.com (8-19-10) MORE

Opinion: THE EVOLUTION OF REVOLUTION (Timothy Baldwin)

In recent years throughout the States of America, there has been what is referred to as the State Nullification Movement. This movement is based upon the concepts expressed in the Virginia and Kentucky Resolutions of 1798 and 1799, drafted and advocated by founding fathers Thomas Jefferson and James Madison.

Nullification’s idea is this: the United States Constitution is a union of sovereign States, as confirmed by the Declaration of Independence and Treaty of Paris of 1783 and as reflected in the Constitution of (for) the United States of America (Constitution, tenth amendment); the federal government is a creation of the sovereign will of the States and has limited power and function based upon the Constitution creating the union; any powers exercised by the federal government beyond that delegation are a nullity; and the States, as having their own powers delegated to them by the people of those States, have the power and duty to resist federal encroachments.

This concept has picked up momentum as of late, particularly because people throughout the States are fed up and see no other effective method of preserving their lives, fortunes and sacred honor, but what many in this movement may not realize is that the Nullification Movement is merely a step in the process to a greater movement: the State Independence Movement . . . .

. . . As soon as a law was passed that became collectively opposed, the first line of defense was the “State Nullification Movement.” This movement is reflected in Virginia’s nullification declaration of the Stamp Act [see source website for text] . . . .
In essence, this is the same declaration which has been made by over a majority of the States in America today concerning federal usurpations . . . .

The federal government today operates in a manner not unlike Great Britain’s government from 1765 to 1783. The efforts of the States to declare their rights are fundamentally rejected, regardless of an occasional victory obtained by the States to block the federal government from encroachment. The constitution of the federal government demands submission and declares ultimate sovereignty over the states in all matters whatsoever. Thus, the real struggle of sovereignty, power and independence continues and has yet to be truly decided. Ultimately, this decision cannot and will not be made by any court, especially the United States Supreme Court.
Those political questions can only be answered by the people of a body-politic: “all power whatever in the State [belong] to the people thereof.”

Time will eventually prove that the State Nullification Movement was but a wheel turning in the evolutionary process of revolution . . . .
Natural laws being what they are, this pressure from the top down will only intensify the speed [at] which the process of revolution takes place. To many, it is long overdue. [emphasis added]

Source: newswithviews.com (8-22-10) MORE

[Editor's comment: If you put these two commentary pieces together, you get the question: What is government? - and the answer: It's people!]

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ADDITIONAL NEWS & ANALYSIS
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Two Israelis wounded in new Hamas attack in West Bank LINK

[analysis]: Hamas' new methods: Multiple small attacks by unknown imported terrorists LINK

Intel Report Confirmed 18 Freed Gitmo Detainees Returned to Terror - Including in Afghanistan - Before Obama Ordered Closing of Prison LINK

Tensions between Turkey and Kurds said are threatening to explode like never before LINK

'Son of Hamas' warns U.S. fatally falling for lies LINK
'Peaceful' Muslims following Quran's dictate to establish 'global Islamic state' ... "They are required by the Quran to establish this global Islamic state on the rubble of every civilization, every constitution, every government ... This is not a doctrine of some freak Muslim," Yousef observed... "It's the doctrine, the requirement, of the god of Islam himself and his prophet, whom they praise every day"

What Matt Simmons said about the gulf oil spill before his death (Interview) LINK

Risk-Taking Rises as Oil Rigs in Gulf Drill Deeper LINK

Arizona Now Has [30] National Guard Troops LINK
And 15 billboard signs warning citizens about drug cartels operating on public lands

Signs in Arizona warn of smuggler dangers LINK
Drivers advised to travel north

Nevada Test Site Gets New Name LINK
The new name, the Nevada National Security Site, is meant to reflect the change from nuclear explosions to counter terrorism experiments ... "This is the only place in the United States you can test chemical weapons ... You can do it out in the open ... It's one of the places you can do some great work in the tunnels that are available there, find out what some of the bad guys might try and do," said Nevada Senator Harry Reid

Army study: Radioactive residue is not a hazard (Hawaii) LINK
The Army studied the potential health risk posed by residual Depleted Uranium in areas where past and current weapons firing has taken place

Discounts Spur Surprising August Retail Sales Gains LINK

Private employers in U.S. unexpectedly cut 10,000 jobs in August LINK

Construction Spending in U.S. Falls Twice as Much as Forecast LINK

Homelessness Up 50% In New York City LINK

The Most Fiscally Irresponsible Government in U.S. History LINK

Bernanke Urges Solution to Too-Big-to-Fail Problem LINK

[analysis]: IMF Eliminates Borrowing Cap On Rescue Facility In Anticipation Of Europe Crisis 2.0 LINK
US prepares to print fresh trillions in "rescue" linen

Ron Paul questions whether there's gold at Fort Knox, New York Fed LINK

Collapse of banking giant Lehman Brothers blamed on U.S. government LINK

GM sales down 24.9% due to cash-for-clunkers hangover LINK

[Red Flag - source site]
[analysis]: Google Plans To Kill Web In Internet Takeover Agenda (8-19-10) LINK

Indonesian volcano spews new burst of ash LINK

Kentucky farmer's corn pops in the field LINK

Stephen Hawking: God was not needed to create the Universe LINK
The Big Bang was the result of the inevitable laws of physics and did not need God to spark the creation of the Universe, Stephen Hawking has concluded ... “Because there is a law such as gravity, the Universe can and will create itself from nothing ... Spontaneous creation is the reason there is something rather than nothing, why the Universe exists, why we exist”
[Editor's comment: And where did the law of gravity come from? ... And how and why are the laws of physics 'inevitable'? ... The laws of physics (in our limited understanding of them) certainly do not explain spontaneous creation out of nothing ... That cannot occur naturally, it is supernatural ... This man calls himself a scientist, then he makes this leap of 'faith' to make these unsupportable, untestable claims?!]

Sex toys on display at World Youth Conference LINK
Bowl of condoms, wooden phallus, pornographic photos at U.N. event

Court Won't Force California Officials to Defend Proposition 8 (Followup) LINK

Pentagon shifts $1 billion from WMD-defense efforts to vaccine development LINK

Oregon Children Least Likely To Be Hospitalized For Asthma LINK [scroll down]

HEALTH HIGHLIGHTS: SEPTEMBER 2, 2010 LINK

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Sir Winston Churchill
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Worldwatch was edited this week by Editor Robert Ellis with help from Claire Mason and Trucker Tom.