MFS - The Other News

                         Afternoon Posting.

• HT:WorstPoliticalBlog.House GOP conservatives set to unveil $2.5 trillion in deep spending cuts.A number of the House GOP’s leading conservative members on Thursday will announce legislation that would cut $2.5 trillion over 10 years, which will be by far the most ambitious and far-reaching proposal by the new majority to cut federal government spending.Rep. Jim Jordan of Ohio, the chairman of the Republican Study Committee, will unveil the bill in a speech at the Heritage Foundation on Thursday morning.Jordan’s bill, which will have a companion bill introduced in the Senate by Sen. Jim DeMint, South Carolina Republican, would impose deep and broad cuts across the federal government. It includes both budget-wide cuts on non-defense discretionary spending back to 2006 levels and proposes the elimination or drastic reduction of more than 50 government programs.Jordan’s “Spending Reduction Act” would eliminate such things as the U.S. Agency for International Development and its $1.39 billion annual budget, the $445 million annual subsidy for the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, the $1.5 billion annual subsidy for Amtrak, $2.5 billion in high speed rail grants, the $150 million subsidy for the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority, and it would cut in half to $7.5 billion the federal travel budget.Read the full story here.

• Muslim Coalition for Peace-USA. Fifth column column developping in America?Training Summit for Muslim Peace Activists despite the climate of fear and hatred against Muslims.January 8, 2011 could very well turn out to be a milestone in the history of Muslim civil rights activism and inter-faith bridge building. On that cold blustery morning, Muslim Peace Coalition organized an initiative to educate the Muslim community and other members of the public on the methods needed to peacefully combat the growing Islamophobia. In spite of the inclement weather and the climate of fear and hatred against Muslims more than 150 community and youth leaders attended the day long peace leaders training retreat. During the training retreat the news of the Arizona massacre broke, underlining the spread of hatred that is threatening the unity of this nation and the urgent need to mobilize against it. The program was specifically designed to train the public on the proper techniques needed to successfully organize and mobilize for the April 9th mass anti war and anti-islamophobia rally. The event took place in the Islamic Center of Long Island and ran from 9 am till 6 PM. Representatives from various Muslim and non Muslim organizations were in attendance.The day commenced with a recitation from the Quran which called for the standing up for justice even if it means speaking out against yourself or your own kin. This was followed by the welcome address by Dr. Shaik Ubaid, the New York chapter co-chair of MPC who spoke about the reasons for the launch of the peace coalition and the goals of the training retreat . This was followed by a moving and informative talk regarding the history of peace movements in the United States given by Kathy Kelly. Kathy Kelly, who many consider to be the conscience of America had just returned from Afghanistan. Imam Abdul Malik Mujahid spoke about how wars are damaging America’s economy and international standing. He talked about the need to organize against war and terrorism. His comprehensive power point presentation also showed how involving the youth in peaceful methods to fight islamophobia will prevent their radicalization.The final session was a solidarity session where leaders of more than 25 inter-faith alliances, peace groups, churches and synagogues spoke against Islamophobia. They expressed solidarity with the Muslim community in the backdrop of Congressman King’s announced hearings. The national and local leaders of the peace and inter-faith groups urged a large turnout for the April 9th rally against war and Islamophobia. Hmmmm.......On what FBI figures is he basing on?The only rise in racial hatred is the increase of anti Jewish attacks!Who's Abdul Malik Mujahid ?"Mujahid", BTW, is Arabic for "one who makes jihad" or "one who fights in a war for Islam." And we have seen protests against the war in Vietnam,those were not Vietnamese protesting in the US Streets.Muslims protesting in the US streets against the war on the enemies of America won't be accepted like the Vietnam protests!Read the full  story here.

• Judge condemns 'enormous emotional pressure' put on Muslim women after rape case collapses.A judge today condemned the 'enormous emotional pressure' exerted on women in Muslim communities after a rape case collapsed at the eleventh hour when the wife of an Asian man refused to give evidence against him.The 35-year-old woman had accused her 34-year-old husband - a convicted sex offender - of raping her twice and was due to testify against him at a trial earlier this week.But prosecutors were forced to offer no evidence and the case collapsed when the women suddenly decided to retract the allegations.Judge Simon Newell said justice was being interfered with by locals from the woman’s predominantly Asian neighbourhood who wanted the charges dropped to protect the family’s honour.The husband, who cannot be named for legal reasons, has two previous convictions - one for assault causing actual bodily harm against his wife and another for a sexual offence against another woman.He has already been ordered to sign the sex offenders register until September 2014.'It seems to me there are persons who have an interest in this case, who are minded to express opinions and exert influences which are possibly inhibiting the police, the prosecuting authorities and the courts in carrying out their proper functions,' the judge said.'This will not be tolerated. It is for the courts to carry out judicial functions and it’s not for individuals or sections of the community to attempt to resolve these matters outside the court.'Burnley Crown Court was told that the husband, of Burnley, Lancs, denied both rape charges against him.Sara Dodd, prosecuting, said the alleged victim was at court, but did not wish to give evidence against her husband. She said the complainant had been put under 'enormous emotional pressure from her community' over the case.Miss Dodd said the Crown Prosecution Service would not be proceeding with the case against the husband as it would 'do more harm than good' to the alleged victim. Exact details of the allegations were not outlined in court.Salim Mulla, chairman of the Lancashire Council of Mosques, agreed.'The Asian community sometimes has a different way of working, trying to resolve the problems itself rather than leaving it to the police,' he said. 'But that doesn’t make it the right thing to do.'The abuse of any child or woman is not permitted by Islam. We will continue to speak about this issue and try to raise it in the community to stop it happening.'Councillor Mohammed Iqbal, Labour leader on Pendle Council, added: 'There is a small section who may think their cultural identity is higher than the law of the land, but it isn’t.'Mr Starmer the chief prosecutor in England and Wales publicly apologised to the woman and said that any moves to prosecute women who retract a rape allegation would now need his personal approval.'If the victim has decided to withdraw a rape allegation, we must explore the issues behind that, particularly if the victim is under pressure or frightened,' he added.Hmmmmm.....As often happens in such cases autorities won't act untill the victim is murdered.Read the full story here.

• Macy Gray asks fans if she should boycott Israel.JERUSALEM (Reuters) – Soul singer Macy Gray has asked her fans on Facebook whether she should cancel planned concerts in Tel Aviv because of the "disgusting" way the Israeli government treats Palestinians.International artists, entertainers and academics are under increasing pressure to boycott Israel because of Israeli actions in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.But Gray took the unusual step of asking Facebook followers what to do, in a posting that went up Monday."I'm getting alot of letters from activists urging/begging me to boycott by NOT performing in protest of Apartheid against the Palestinians," she wrote."What the Israeli government is doing to the Palestinians is disgusting, but I wana go. I gotta lotta fans there I dont want to cancel on and I dont know how my NOT going changes anything. What do you think? Stay or go?"After receiving almost 4,000 often impassioned messages in just four days, Gray has announced via Twitter that she would indeed sing in Tel Aviv next month.Hmmmm.....Asking such a question is........(Censored)Read the full story here.

• HT:TheDailyCaller.Oil to exceed $150 a barrel, ‘probably go over’ $200 warns investor.Oil has been steadily on the rise since the beginning of 2009. But could it reach mid-2008 levels or climb higher still?Jim Rogers, an American investor who co-founded the Quantum Fund with George Soros, told the BBC’s Justin Rowlatt on Wednesday the prices are certain to exceed those levels.“Well, the surprise is going to be how high the price of oil stays and how high it goes, because Justin [Rowlatt] we have had no major elephant [field] oil discoveries in over 40 years,” Rogers said. “The International Energy Agency is going around the world pleading with people to listen. Known reserves of oil are declining. It is not good news. Unless somebody discovers a lot of oil very quickly, prices are going to go much higher over the next decade.”How high will it go? Oil is currently trading at about $90 a barrel, and according to Rogers the price could double and then some.“Justin, the price of oil is going to make new highs,” Rogers said. “It will go over $150 a barrel. It will probably go over $200 a barrel.”Hmmmm.....Perhaps the President can put some extra environment taxes on the still remaining American oil wells?Read the full story here.

• Customer who complained about being short-changed by seven cents is beaten to death by Muslim store owners.A customer who complained about being short-changed by seven cents was beaten to death by the store owners, it has been alleged.The savage attack, in Miami, Florida, was carried out in front of an off-duty prison officer who had tried to halt the row at the store.As the officer led Akil Larue Oliver away from the dispute with brothers Nabil and Ragheb Sulaiman they apparently attacked him.Nabil smashed him over the head with a bottle while his older brother hit him with an iron crowbar.The blow proved fatal and 34-year-old Mr Oliver died at the scene.Nabil, 19, was due to surrender his passport this week ahead of his trial on charges of aggravated assault.But he has fled the U.S. and is believed to have returned to the Middle East.His brother, 24, remains in prison awaiting trial on charges of second degree murder.Relatives of the victim as well as Miami officials have expressed outrage that the suspect was able to flee the country.'I stand with the family and the community in expressing my outrage at the fact that Nabil Sulaiman was allowed to flee the country,' Miami County Commissioner Dennis Moss said.'The family and the community have gone through enough as a result of this tragic event, and having one of the defendants not answer to the allegations in this case, just adds insult to injury.'Hmmmm.....Where do they think they are In the Taliban region?Read the full story here.

• Man arrested after 'burning Koran in city centre'.A man has been arrested after a Koran was allegedly burned during an anti-Islamic rant.Police confirmed a man had been held. He had reportedly been standing in Carlisle city centre yesterday, loudly making pronouncements against the Muslim religion in front of a large crowd.The man is then alleged to have set fire to the Koran he was holding before discarding it on the floor and hurrying away.Officers arrived at the scene a short time later and are now investigating.A spokesman for Cumbria Police confirmed that a 32-year-old man has been arrested.He added: 'Just after midday on Wednesday, police received reports that a Koran was being burned by a man in Carlisle city centre.'Police have seized the remains of the book and a 32-year-old male has been arrested on suspicion of using racially aggravated threatening words or behaviour.'The man remains in police custody where he is helping officers with their inquiries.'The incident came as the first Muslim woman Cabinet minister, Baroness Warsi, is to say in a speech that that Islamophobia is seen as normal and acceptable at dinner parties.Pastor Jones' son, Pastor Luke Jones, expressed surprise that his father's visit had been banned.'We don't think it benefits England - it's pretty ridiculous. 'In England you have got radical Muslims demonstrating in the streets and calling for the death of British soldiers, and nobody really does anything about that. 'I would call that hate speech.'Our protests are against a book, the Koran - people are not our target. We should all be able to voice our opinion in a peaceful way.'You are controlling what people say - how far do you let that go?'Hmmmmm.....It's only Islamophobia if you don't know why you fear Islam?Read the full story here.

• Mass grave in Southeast Turkey yields more human bones.More human bones were unearthed Thursday in ongoing excavations in the Mutki district of Bitlis province.The excavations started Jan. 5 when the skeletons of 12 people were unearthed from an area used as a dumping yard for a gendarmerie station, but the dig was then put on hold because of the risk of a methane gas explosion. The skeletons are believed to be of people who were on their way to join the outlawed Kurdistan Workers’ Party, or PKK, when they were allegedly executed by Turkish soldiers.On Wednesday afternoon, new bones started to emerge from the soil at a location where the search party expected to find the remains of eight more people. Four heavy digging vehicles are being used for the excavations while the bones are being sent to the Forensic Medicine Institute for identification.The Human Rights Association, or İHD, is helping the relatives of the missing to organize their efforts. Speaking Jan. 7 to the Hürriyet Daily News and Economic Review, İHD Bitlis branch head Hasan Ceylan said dozens more mass graves existed in Bitlis alone, adding that there were hundreds more throughout Southeast Anatolia.Hmmmm.....Turkey's "solution" to the PKK?Read the full story here.

• Home price drops exceed Great Depression: Zillow.(Reuters) - Home prices fell for the 53rd consecutive month in November, taking the decline past that of the Great Depression for the first time in the prolonged housing slump, according to Zillow.Home prices have fallen 26 percent since their peak in 2006, exceeding the 25.9 percent drop registered in the five years between 1928 and 1933, the housing data company said in a report on Monday. Prices fell 0.8 percent over the month.It is a dubious milestone for the U.S. housing market which has failed to gain much traction despite a host of government programs to reduce delinquencies and encourage demand with temporary tax credits and lower interest rates. Many economists expect further price drops, even if there are some anecdotal signs of growing demand, such as in pending home sales data."For the next six to nine months, the larger factors affecting the housing market that will produce more home price declines will be the excess inventory of homes, high negative equity and foreclosure rates, and weakened demand due to elevated employment, Stan Humphries, Zillow's chief economist, said in a blog post.Declines are accelerating, and it will take a while before falling unemployment and other signs of economic improvement support the market, Zillow said.Home prices fell at a 0.78 percent pace in November, the fastest since February 2009, the company said.Hmmm...."Change you can see"?Read the full story here.

• Egypt Islamic authority halts dialogue with Vatican.CAIRO Jan 20 (Reuters) - Egypt's highest Islamic authority, al-Azhar, said on Thursday it was freezing all dialogue with the Roman Catholic Church over what it called Pope Benedict's repeated insults towards Islam.Benedict this month condemned attacks on churches that killed dozens of people in Egypt, Iraq and Nigeria, saying they showed the need to adopt effective measures to protect religious minorities.His remarks followed a New Year bombing outside a church in the Egyptian city of Alexandria that left 23 people dead and dozens injured and prompted demonstrations by both Christians and Muslims against sectarian violence.The pope urged Christian communities to persevere in a non-violent manner in the face of what he described as "a strategy of violence that has Christians as a target".Al-Azhar's "Islamic Research Council reviewed in an emergency meeting on Thursday the repeatedly insulting remarks issued by the Vatican Pope towards Islam and his statement that Muslims are discriminating against others who live with them in the Middle East," Cairo-based al-Azhar said in a statement."The council decided to freeze dialogue between al-Azhar and the Vatican for an indefinite period," it added.Egypt's government last week dismissed the pope's remarks as "unacceptable interference" and summoned its Vatican ambassador back to Cairo for consultation.Hmmmm.....So much for the whole charade of "Interfaith Dialog"?Read the full story here.

• Prosecutors Describe Philadelphia Abortion Clinic As ‘House of Horrors’.Philadelphia (AP) - A doctor accused of running a filthy "abortion mill" for decades in an impoverished Philadelphia neighborhood delivered babies alive, killed them with scissors and allowed a woman who had survived 20 years in a refugee camp to be overmedicated and die at his clinic, prosecutors said.Dr. Kermit Gosnell, 69, was charged Wednesday with eight counts of murder for the deaths of seven babies and one patient. Nine employees also were charged, including four with murder.Prosecutors described the clinic as a "house of horrors" where Gosnell kept baby body parts on the shelves, allowed a 15-year-old high school student to perform intravenous anesthesia on patients and had his licensed cosmetologist wife do late-term abortions. A family practice physician, Gosnell has no certification in gynecology or obstetrics.Four months after Karnamaya Mongar reached the United States after spending nearly two decades in camps in Nepal she was dead at Gosnell's clinic. The 41-year-old mother of three died of cardiac arrest when she was given too much Demerol and other drugs, prosecutors said."Pennsylvania is not a third-world country. There were several oversight agencies that stumbled upon and should have shut down Kermit Gosnell long ago. But none of them did, even after Karnamaya Mongar's death," city prosecutors charged in a nearly 300-page grand jury report."By day it was a prescription mill; by night it was an abortion mill," the grand jury report said.Oddly, Gosnell also kept jars of severed feet on his shelves, Williams said. Gosnell also had a taste for macabre jokes, once muttering that a nearly six-pound baby born alive to a 17-year-old who was seven-and-a-half months pregnant could "walk me to the bus stop," the report said.Gosnell typically worked weeknights, arriving hours after his unskilled staff administered anesthesia and drugs to induce labor. He then "forced the live birth of viable babies in the sixth, seventh, eighth month of pregnancy and then killed those babies by cutting into the back of the neck with scissors and severing their spinal cord," Williams said.In addition to the two women who died, scores more were injured from perforated bowels, cervixes and uteruses, authorities said. Some were left sterile at the clinic, which had no trained nurses or medical staff other than Gosnell, they said.The grand jury spent a year investigating Gosnell's practice. According to the report, Gosnell had no nurses on hand to monitor the women's medication or recovery, no hospital on standby for emergencies and few if any medical records because Gosnell destroyed them. His staff testified about "scores of gruesome killings" of infants born alive."These killings became so routine that no one could put an exact number on them," the grand jury report said. "They were considered 'standard procedure.'"Authorities charged that Gosnell deliberately hired unqualified staff so he could pay them low wages. He sent his six children to private schools - one is now a doctor and another a professor - and has a beach house at the New Jersey shore, prosecutors said.Besides the five charged with murder, five other clinic employees, including Gosnell's wife, were charged with conspiracy, drug and other crimes. Pearl Gosnell, the doctor's third wife, performed extremely late-term abortions on Sundays when the clinic was otherwise closed, the report said. All 10 charged were in custody.Gosnell earned his medical degree from Thomas Jefferson University in Philadelphia and is board certified in family practice. He started, but did not finish, a residency in obstetrics-gynecology, authorities said.Hmmm.....The "Doctor Mengele"from Philadelphia?No punishment is harsh enough for this "Person".Read the full story here.

• OH Boy!It's a miracle: Bishop spots 300-year-old stolen picture of Christ on wall of Boy George's home while watching TV.Boy George went a long way to redeeming his sins today by returning a precious painting to its rightful home - in a church the other side of Europe.The members of the Orthodox Church of Cyprus are sure to remember the Culture Club frontman in their prayers after he gave back a 300-year-old icon of Christ he'd picked up from an art dealer.Incredibly, the church bishop had seen the battered painting hanging from the wall of the singer's home while watching a documentary on him on Dutch TV.George, who of course has famously sung about miracles and churches with 'poisoned minds', had bought the 300-year-old piece in 1985 without knowing it had been snatched from a church during the 1974 Turkish invasion.But Bishop Porfyrios, the Cyprus Orthodox Church’s representative in Brussels, made contact with him after spotting it above his fireplace at the gothic mansion in Hampstead, north London.Today, the 49-year-old singer handed it over to the cleric at nearby St Anagyre church.The singer told the BBC: ‘I’m happy it is going back to its original, rightful home. I’ve always been a friend of Cyprus and have looked after the icon for 26 years.’In return, the bishop gave him a modern version of the Jesus Christ Pantokrator painting as a token of gratitude and ‘with the wish that others soon follow his example'.Thousands of religious artefacts went missing from northern Cyprus following Turkey’s 1974 invasion, which left the island’s Greek and Turkish speakers divided by partition.Many relics have since appeared on the international art market and the Cyprus Church has been actively seeking to repatriate them.Bishop Porfyrios, who caught only a glimpse of the gold-leaf image during the show he watched, delved deeper and discovered it had been plundered from the church of St Charalambous in Neo Chorio, near Kithrea.After verifying this with the priest from St Charalambous, he contacted the singer and told him about the icon’s provenance and he was happy to return it to its original owners without payment.Hmmmmm......."God works in Mysterious ways"?Read the full story here.

• HT:BigPeace.Full Text of US-China Joint Statement…With Some Snarky Comments.Here’s the full statement released at the close of President Hu’s visit to Washington, along with some snarky editorial comments. It’s long on claims of progress, short on actual solutions to festering problems. I’ve put in bold those passages was are particularly interesting, vague, or ridiculous.Specifically, the United States and China agreed to advance cooperation to: counter violent extremism; prevent the proliferation of nuclear weapons, other weapons of mass destruction, and their means of delivery; strengthen nuclear security [Hello? North Korea anyone?]Hmmmm.....Or the Middle East?Read the full story here.

• HT:Challahhuakbar.Inside Look @ The Israel Haters of the University of Toronto.Last night, I went to the University of Toronto’s George Ignatieff Theatre, plunked down my $5, and, along with about 130 other interested observers, walked into a 2-hour panel discussion called “Exposing Israeli Apartheid and the Violation of Palestinian Rights: A public forum on the second anniversary of the Gaza massacre.”Speakers included Khaled Mouammar (head of the defunded and marginalized Canadian Arab Federation); gay activist Tim McCaskell; and Jenny Peto, who, by this point, really needs no introduction. The Toronto Star‘s Antonia Zerbisias was originally on the speaker’s list, but withdrew for mysterious reasons, and was replaced by an earnest U of T undergrad named Vivien Douglas from “Students Against Israeli Apartheid” (not to be confused with McCaskell’s group, “Queers Against Israeli Apartheid”; or Peto’s “Coalition Against Israeli Apartheid”).Perhaps more interesting than the speakers themselves was the crowd — which was disproportionately female, almost entirely white, and (by my casual observation of whose arm was wrapped around whom) heavily populated by lesbians.In fact, self-delusion is a pronounced strain among radical anti-Israel types more generally. Every speaker last night spoke of the anti-Israel BDS movement — “boycott, divestment and sanctions” — as a sort of tidal wave that was gaining strength every day, and which would ultimately destroy Zionist apartheid. Vivien Douglas in particular spoke of the “huge progressions and successes” of the movement — then added that she did “not have enough time to list them.”Actually, she did have time — because the movement has been a complete failure. Not a single major Canadian institution of any type has boycotted Israel. In fact, BDS supporters can’t even successfully sanction a single Israeli store or product because (as happened in Toronto last year in response to an attempted Israeli wine boycott), pro-Israel types flood in and buy up the product in question. The Israeli economy is booming compared to those of other nations, and every mainstream Canadian politician has declared himself Israel’s friend.Hmmmm....Missed the Bay removing all the Ahava products last week?Read the full story here.

• Islamic cleric : PM go and 'let the Muslims take over'.ISLAMIC preacher Ibrahim Siddiq-Conlon points heavenwards to emphasise his message for the governments of Australia -- there is no God but Allah and only his laws should be obeyed. "My attack is on the Prime Minister of Australia," he said yesterday. "I hate the parliament in Canberra. I want to go straight for the jugular vein and advise the parliament that they have no right to legislate. They should immediately step down and let the Muslims take over."An Australian-born convert to Islam, Siddiq-Conlon is the self-anointed leader of a group called Sharia4Australia, which is pushing for the introduction of sharia courts as a first step towards achieving Islamic law."One day Australia will live under sharia; it's inevitable," he said. "If they (Australians) don't accept it, that's not our problem. We hope, and our objective is to have a peaceful transition, but when you look at history that has never been the case. There's always been a fight. It is inevitable that one day there will be a struggle for Islam in Australia."A masters graduate in architecture from the University of Technology Sydney, Siddiq-Conlon formed Sharia4Australia last year. He said he had three objectives. The first is to persuade Muslims they must hate "taghoot", the worship of any God other than Allah, which includes democracy."They must hate it, speak out against it. And, if that doesn't work, take action against it."His other objectives are to advise elected governments they have no authority to rule, and to educate non-Muslims on the benefits of sharia, including punishments such as stoning adulterers and severing the hands of thieves."If chopping off the hands is the punishment given by the sharia court then we say glad tidings, because chopping off the hands -- when you understand what is sharia -- is a mercy to that person."Why is it a mercy getting your hands chopped off? Because it can be expiation for your sins. It is better to get punished in this life than to go underground into the grave or into the hellfire for eternity."The pro-democracy case will be argued by an Australian army veteran, self-described "concerned Aussie" and senior member of the pro-gun Firearms Forum, Jack Zedee. "The issue with Mr Conlon and Sharia4Australia is they are preaching hatred. His views horrify me," Mr Zedee told The Australian.Police and private security are expected at the debate, after both sides claimed to have received death threats. Mallah said he had tried to cancel the event but the debaters insisted on proceeding.Siddiq-Conlon shrugs off concerns his campaign will damage the moderate Muslim community. "If it causes a backlash against the Muslims, I can't help that. This is a necessary debate."Hmmmmm.....Wooow what happened to the part"We don't want to take over your country"?Read the full story here.

• Iran: We have reserve nuke facility.Tehran says it would be able to continue uranium enrichment even if attacked militarily.Iran will be able to carry out uranium enrichment even in the case of a military attack on its nuclear facilities, the country's nuclear envoy said in Moscow on Thursday. "We are faced with a very serious threat and so we have had to take measures to protect our facilities. We have provided for another facility in Fardo near Qom," Ali Asghar Soltanieh, envoy to the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), told reporters."It is, so to speak, a reserve facility, so that if a site is attacked, we can continue the enrichment process," he said.Earlier this week, Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad said that Tehran is making steady progress in its nuclear program, and warned that not even 100,000 UN Security Council resolutions will derail his country's nuclear ambitions.The semiofficial Fars news agency quoted Ahmadinejad as saying "Iran is making progress in nuclear energy" while the US and its allies "only issue resolutions." "Let them issue 100,000 resolutions," he said. "It's not important. Let them say what they want to."Hmmmm.....I thought i would never say this,but for once i believe him.Better prepare for a Nuclear Iran in 2011 if not stopped soon!Read the full story here.

• Sales Restrictions on Handgun Ammunition Thrown Out in California.Fresno, Calif. (AP) - A trial court judge in central California has thrown out key sections of a state law restricting handgun ammunition sales, barring authorities from registering bullet buyers' thumbprints on the grounds that it would be unconstitutional.Gun rights supporters applauded Tuesday's ruling in Fresno County Superior Court, saying the law would have created uncertainty by forcing local sheriffs and firearms shops to decide for themselves what caliber of bullets were covered under the regulations.The statute also would have compelled customers to buy their handgun ammunition in face-to-face transactions, which they said would not have prevented a tragedy like the Jan. 8 shooting rampage in Arizona that killed six people and wounded 13 others, including U.S. Rep. Gabrielle Giffords.Authorities said shooting suspect Jared Loughner legally purchased 9 mm ammunition the morning he opened fire at Giffords' district meet-and -greet outside a supermarket on the northern outskirts of Tucson.Parts of the law may still be implemented, and California's newly elected attorney general Kamala Harris is considering an appeal, spokesman Jim Finefrock said Wednesday."This was just going to cost police and shell ammunition sellers money. It really wasn't going to stop violent crime or criminals from getting ammunition," said attorney Chuck Michel, who brought the case on behalf of the California Rifle and Pistol Association Foundation with partial funding from the National Rifle Association. "All this was going to do was impose a tremendous and expensive burden on law enforcement."Bauer, who sells about 10,000 boxes of ammunition a year to the thousands of hunters who travel to central California for dove, deer and duck seasons, said he doesn't keep records differentiating whether the ammunition he sells is used in long guns or handguns."Good old California was just a little too energetic and liberal in thinking that this would have made a difference in catching criminals," said Bauer, a co-plaintiff. "It's great that the judge saw that the law was defective and threw it out.”Read the full story here.

• HT:Memri.Clinton: Chinese Companies Don't Abide by Sanctions On Iran.U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said that some Chinese companies are not adhering to the sanctions regime on Iran because of its nuclear activities and that the U.S. is taking up the issue with the Chinese leadership. Clinton's statement coincided with Chinese President Hu's visit in Washington yesterday. [Staff comments: In a joint press conference at the White House yesterday, President Obama said that he raised the issue of sanctions on Iran during his meeting with Hu and that the U.S. might opt for additional unilateral sanctions.]Source.