MFS - The Other News

                    Morning Posting.

• Updated !Earthquakes in the last 24 hours in the world seismic activity situation Indonesia 5.9 - 5.5 ; Reunion 5.6 ; Taiwan 5.1 !More info here.

• Japan : For the most accurate info on the nuclear disaster go to : Paul Langley's Nuclear History Blog.Here.

• Flash - THE WHITE HOUSE TRAVEL OFFICE: Trip of the President to Honolulu, Hawaii.(DrudgeReport).December 17th, 2011 to January 2nd, 2012. Trip Overview: On Saturday, December 17th, 2011, the President will travel to Honolulu, Hawaii. He will return to Washington, DC on Monday, January 2nd, 2012. ......no public events are scheduled during the trip.Hmmm....Merry Christmas......'We feel your pain'.Read the full story here.

• Obama Tells Supporters He Needs Another Term So He Can Finish Implementing Obamacare.(CNSNews) — Speaking at a campaign fundraising event at the Gotham Bar and Grille in New York City on Wednesday, President Barack Obama told a group of supporters he needed to win reelection next year to make sure the health-care law he signed in 2010 will actually be fully implemented in 2014 as planned.“We still have a health care system that has to get more efficient and that has to improve its quality,” Obama said, according to a White House transcript. “And so we’re going to have to implement the Affordable Care Act in 2014, and that means I’ve got to win in 2012.”The law Obama signed mandates that by 2104 all must purchase a health-care plan that meets government requirements. The constitutionality of this mandate has been challenged in federal court and the Supreme Court has said it will hear the case in this session.Hmmm....."Corruptisima re publica plurimae leges" In the most corrupt state are the most laws.Read the full story here.

• John Boehner on Obama's claim to be pro-Israel.(IsraelMatzav).Here's US House Speaker John Boehner's (R-In) comment on President Obama's claim to be the most pro-Israel President evah. This is priceless.Read and see the full story here.

• Republicans Will Introduce Bill To Prevent IMF Bailout of Crumbling Eurozone.(TheHill).Conservatives say they will try to block the International Monetary Fund from bailing out Italy and Spain, which they say could leave U.S. taxpayers with a huge bill. Republicans on both sides of the Capitol complain that the Obama administration has refused to share details of what Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner is discussing with European leaders amid reports the IMF could intervene. Sen. Tom Coburn (R-Okla.) says he is planning legislation directing the U.S. government to veto an expanded role for the fund.Senate Republican Steering Committee Chairman Jim DeMint (R-S.C.) and Rep. Cathy McMorris Rodgers (Wash.), a member of the House Republican leadership, also have legislation to curb the proposed intervention.“I’m adamantly against the IMF being involved in this,” Coburn said.“We’re throwing good money after bad down a hole that I think is not a solvable problem,” he said.“Europe is going to default eventually, so why would you socialize their profligate spending,” he added.Coburn estimates the U.S. could be liable for as much as $176 billion if the IMF shores up Italy and Spain and the European Union collapses.President Obama this week said the U.S. “stands ready to do our part” to help resolve the crisis, and Geithner in October said using U.S. tax dollars through the IMF to shore up Europe’s efforts was appropriate.DeMint offered an amendment to the defense authorization bill instructing the U.S. executive director of the IMF to use the voice and vote of the United States to oppose funding of the European Financial Stability Facility, the bailout fund that would be used to stabilize countries at risk of default.But Coburn and other Republicans are skeptical their effort will be successful. They expect Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) to prevent the Senate from voting on legislation to block U.S. funds from being used in an IMF bailout.Even if it passes Congress, Coburn says President Obama would likely veto the legislation.IMF Managing Director Christine Lagarde announced Thursday that Group of 20 nations are prepared to fund a massive IMF intervention. “If circumstances require, the G-20 will commit the resources that are necessary for the IMF to play its systemic role,” she said, according to Bloomberg. “That gives you a range that is almost without a cap, without a limitation.” An IMF spokesman said Wednesday the fund is not in discussions with Italy about a bailout.Domenico Lombardi, a senior fellow at the Brookings Institution and a former board member of the IMF, said the advantage of bailing out Italy or Spain through the IMF instead of the European Central Bank is that doing so would allow European leaders to condition aid on the implementation of fiscal reforms.Lombardi said the IMF has the authority to attach strings to a possible bailout and monitor the actions of the recipient countries, which the central bank does not.“The EU system does not have ability to impose conditionality, but the IMF does,” he said.Lombardi said the Republican criticism has some validity because if the IMF loaned massive amounts to Italy and Spain and failed to prevent a default, the IMF, not the European Central Bank, would be liable. The U.S. is the biggest contributor to the IMF, kicking in about 17 percent of its budget. A European default could put U.S. taxpayers on the hook for 17 percent of the IMF’s liabilities.European leaders set a $1.3 trillion goal for an expanded bailout fund. If it failed to recoup its loans, U.S. taxpayers would face a liability of more than $200 billion.Read the full story here.

• Veena Malik : I didn’t pose naked for FHM, says Pakistani actress in hot water over nude photoshoot.(DailyMail).A controversial Pakistani actress has been forced to deny posing naked for the India edition of FHM sporting a tattoo of the initials 'ISI' her arm.Veena Malik appears topless on the front of the December issue of FHM India, sparking outrage among conservatives in Pakistan - both for her nudity and the reference to Pakistan's intelligence agency.But Miss Malik has strongly denied posing for the lads' mag, with the 33-year-old star insisting the picture had been 'morphed'.'I have never posed nude. I have never done anything like that ever. My manager and legal team is looking into the matter. We will take legal action against them,' Miss Malik told PTI, the Indian press agency.FHM India's editor, Kabeer Sharma, insisted however that nothing had been doctored, and claimed that the magazine could prove the photo's authenticity.Mr Sharma told the BBC: 'We have video footage of the shoot as well as emails from Veena about how she's looking forward to the cover.'The image was revealed on FHM India's website, Facebook page and Twitter account simultaneously today.The revealing picture shows shows Miss Malik nude, with her arms and one leg positioned to conceal her breasts and pubic area. On her arm are emblazoned the initials 'ISI' - the acronym for Pakistan's feared Inter-Services Intelligence agency - with the tag line, 'hand in the end of the world too?'Mr Sharma said the reference to Pakistani intelligence was meant to be light-hearted, saying: 'In India we joke about this... if anything goes wrong... we say the ISI must be behind this.'Miss Malik is no stranger to controversy. In January she attacked attacked hardline clerics in Pakistan who demand modest Muslims should be suitably covered at all times.'If a woman is cool with wearing a burqa, she should wear a burqa. If a woman, being a Muslim, wants to wear jeans, then she should wear jeans,' she said in an interview with The Australian newspaper.She also launched a stringent attack on honour killings, highlighting that women were always the target and not men.'Have you ever heard that they've thrown acid in a guy's face in Pakistan?,' she asked.After making her name has a star in 'Lollywood' movies - the term used to describe films made in Lahore - she found greater fame when she took part in Big Boss 4, the Indian version of Big Brother, last year.Dressed in shorts and seen hugging actor Ashmit Patel as well as swimming with Baywatch star Pamela Anderson, she was accused of behaving improperly by some Muslim clerics.Miss Malik has also been accused of being a porn star. However, her refreshingly outspoken views have won her many fans from Pakistan's younger and more liberal circles. Confronted about her 'immoral' behaviour by cleric Mufti Abdul Qawi on a TV talk show, she snapped back that the country had far more important things to consider - including the rape of children in mosques.'I’m a Muslim woman, and I know my limits,' she shouted back. The mufti appeared to be too astounded to respond.Hmmm......The 'djinis' did it?Read the full story here.

• Senate Republicans to Force Approval of Keystone Pipeline.(BigGovernment).Republicans in the Senate, led by Sen. Dick Lugar, have introduced a bill that would force President Obama to act on initiating construction of the-1,700 mile Keystone XL crude oil pipeline from Canada. The project is expected to create approximately 20,000 jobs and increase energy security for the United States.Although President Obama has been openly mocking and denouncing Congress for failing to pass his jobs bill, his decision, through the State Department, to delay the Keystone XL project until after the November 2012 elections has led to criticism that the president is putting politics ahead of the best interests of the country. 37 Republican senators signed onto the bill that would require the administration to approve the pipeline project within 60 days, unless Mr. Obama declares the project is not in the national interest. The Keystone project has been interesting in that it has marked a division between two groups that have been very supportive of the president: environmentalists and Big Labor. Environmental groups, fearing oil spills and other ecological disasters, as well as celebrity “green” fans, have opposed the pipeline plan, while labor groups have supported it in the hopes of obtaining high-paying union jobs. In addition, none of the states involved in the pipeline’s path- Montana, South Dakota, Nebraska, Kansas, Oklahoma or Texas- supported Mr. Obama in the presidential election of 2008.While the Keystone project had already been found to be environmentally sound prior to the president’s delay of the pipeline’s construction, some rerouting of the pipeline was done in Nebraska, for example, and approved by that state’s legislature quickly so as not to prevent the project from moving forward. Sen. Mike Johanns (R-Nebraska) is supporting the bill to force implementation of the pipeline. “This bill respects the Nebraska process to protect the Sand Hills while providing a commonsense approach to bring friendly oil and jobs to the U.S. without unnecessary delay,” he said.
  If the pipeline project is not implemented, Canada has said that it will sell its oil to China.
  If Mr. Obama’s motivation is political, the environmentalists appear to have his attention. However, the president is likely not only deferring to warnings about the immediate environment of the pipeline, but also the larger “green” issue that allowing the project to move forward would further cement the United State’s commitment to fossil fuels, an image that this liberal president would likely find distasteful.Let’s hope Sen. Lugar and his colleagues prevail on this issue.Read the full story here.

• New Gun Company Advertisement Compares Obama to Hitler, Stalin.(CBS).WASHINGTON, D.C. — A gun company advertisement that warns of impending gun control compares President Obama to Adolf Hitler and Joseph Stalin.The USAAmmo ad shows side-by-side pictures of Obama with Hitler, Stalin and other dictators who committed atrocities across the world. The ad, which is also accompanied by a video, warns that gun control is imminent and foreshadows that the U.S. could face millions in casualties if they are not allowed to defend themselves.USAAmmo states that “tyranny is knocking down the doors of American cities daily” and that Obama, Attorney General Eric Holder and other gun control advocates “are secretly conspiring American Citizens of the right to bear arms.”Trace Williams, director of operations for USAAmmo, defended the ad that was emailed Monday. He told CBS Washington that “Obama and his various czars are infringing on the rights of Americans to own guns.”“He’s anti-gun and he’s obviously a socialist cramming health care down American’s throats,” Williams said. “That is exactly how those people in that ad rose to power.”Williams told CBS Washington that he doesn’t regret comparing Obama to those dictators and that his company has received “unbelievable support” since the ad was put out.“Just look at history. Obama’s socialist agenda is geared toward depriving American citizens of their God-given rights.” He also added that sales have gone “through the roof.”Hmmm......."Clinging to their Ammo?"Read the full story here.

• Boehner calls on Obama to help Congress alter automatic cuts.(TheHill).House Speaker John Boehner (R-Ohio) on Thursday called on President Obama to intercede in the growing push to change the automatic spending cuts to military and domestic programs triggered by the congressional supercommittee’s failure to strike a deficit-reduction deal.The $1.2 trillion in across-the-board cuts will take effect in 2013, and Republican leaders, along with some Democrats, have said they want to change them to protect the military. Obama has threatened to veto any effort to undo the trigger, known as sequestration, although the White House is still pushing for a broad deficit pact. “I really believe that the president of the United States has a responsibility here as well,” Boehner told reporters. “He’s the commander in chief, he knows what those cuts will mean to the military and so I frankly believe the Congress still must work with the president to find a solution to our long-term debt.” Defense Secretary Leon Panetta has sounded repeated warnings about the negative impact the Pentagon cuts would have on the military.The Speaker is in a difficult position when it comes to the automatic cuts. He negotiated the August agreement that put them in place, and he said last month that he felt “morally bound” to stick to the trigger, which was created as an incentive for the supercommittee to come to a deal. But with concerns mounting within his own party, he has opened the door to changing the cuts so long as the minimum of $1.2 trillion in budget savings is maintained. “No one really wants to go there,” Boehner said, referring to sequestration. He also signaled Thursday that he had not given up on a grand bargain to reduce the long-term debt. “There are a lot of members who are concerned about the defense cuts, but understand there are a lot of other cuts that would be involved in the sequester,” Boehner said when asked about Cantor’s bid. “So I understand the concern, but the president is the commander in chief. The president, I think, understands pretty clearly that these cuts do serious harm to our ability to defend our country and our allies about the world. So I believe there’s a role that he has to play in this process as well.”Republicans previously have criticized the president for a lack of involvement in the supercommittee process. Hmmm....Not going to happen he wants the US to loose it's superpower status.Read the full story here.

• The upmarket Manhattan block that grinds to a halt at prayer time... as Muslim taxi drivers illegally park outside Islamic center.(DailyMail).With a sea of yellow stretching into the distance, it looks like the taxi queue at a busy airport.But this picture was actually taken outside a Mosque during a prayer service - with 200 Muslim cabbies illegally parked.Residents of the wealthy Upper West Side of Manhattan are outraged that their streets are being taken over multiple times each day for the 45-minute service.The taxi drivers are double and triple parking in a huge line that forces traffic into the oncoming lane.The situation has flared up and on one occasion a cop telling a taxi driver to move on was swarmed by other hacks - and had to call for reinforcements.When several other police cars arrived the taxi driver was handcuffed and led away.Muslims have been parking illegally at the Islamic Cultural Centre for four years but the row has blown up because a road that connects to it that has been closed for the whole time has now reopened.Prayers take place five times a day but the busiest is on Fridays at lunchtime when up to 300 worshippers - and 200 taxi drivers - are in attendance.Most of the taxi drivers appear unrepentant with one claiming: 'I have to pray. I have no choice but to break the rules.'Cabbie Abdoulaye Diallo, a 30-year-old immigrant from Guinea, told DNA info that he had got several $75 fines for parking illegally outside the mosque but he did not care.He said: 'For me, my prayer is more important, because that's what I'm going to take with me the day I die'.Residents however are increasingly anxious that they cannot cross the road safely.'It's an accident waiting to happen, said James Beale, the resident manager at a Trump tower block that is next to the mosque.'It's a very dangerous situation. It's like all the rules of the road are thrown aside,' he told DNA info.Abdur Rahman, an assistant imam at the mosque, said it had told worshippers to respect the parking rules but they had failed to do so.But he also claimed that the parking rules should be more flexible to accommodate worshippers' needs.Hmmm....What if an emergency vehicle needs to get there?Blocking emergency crews is an criminal offence.Sec. 42.02. RIOT. (a) For the purpose of this section, "riot" means the assemblage of seven or more persons resulting in conduct which:(2) substantially obstructs law enforcement or other governmental functions or services; Read and see the full story here.

• UK - Police arrest 20 protesters 'from banned group Muslims Against Crusades' outside U.S. embassy in London.(DailyMail).More than 20 protesters were arrested outside the U.S. embassy in London today on suspicion of representing the recently-banned extremist group Muslims Against Crusades.Activists said demonstrations over the use of American drones in Pakistan had been organised by a group calling itself United Ummah.But Scotland Yard intervened this afternoon after members were linked to the banned group involved in the burning of poppies on Armistice Day last year.Muslims Against Crusades (Mac) joined the likes of Al Qaeda on a list of terrorist organisations banned in the UK after an announcement by Home Secretary Theresa May last month.The move to proscribe the group led to it cancelling its 'Hell for Heroes' demonstration against Remembrance commemorations, which was due to take place outside the Royal Albert Hall, where poppies were burned last year.A handful of protesters remain at the scene in central London this afternoon.A Scotland Yard spokesman said that in addition to the arrests surrounding the banned group, two others had been made for obstruction and violent disorder.'They are all in custody at central London police stations,' a spokesman said. 'A small number of people remain at the demonstration.'The demonstration began at noon outside the embassy which has seen a string of clashes between protesters in recent years.Read and see the full story here.

• General Motors Bailing Out Volt Owners?Did they buy back the 116 Volts from the government fleet?(Heritage).It’s been a mixed day in the world of the American auto industry. While Ford Motor posted huge sales for November — propelled by a strong demand for SUVs — General Motors has been forced to make the unusual offer of buying back cars from consumers.Tom Krisher at the Associated Press reports that GM is taking action in response to news that its highly touted electric Chevy Volts have been found to catch fire:In an exclusive interview with The Associated Press, CEO Dan Akerson insisted that the cars are safe, but said the company will purchase the Volts because it wants to keep customers happy. Three fires have broken out in Volts after side-impact crash tests done by the federal government.Akerson said that if necessary, GM will recall the more than 6,000 Volts now on the road in the U.S. and repair them once the company and federal safety regulators figure out what caused the fires.“If we find that is the solution, we will retrofit every one of them,” Akerson said. “We’ll make it right.”The big problems with the Volt could spell trouble for electric cars as a whole. Jordan Weissmann at The Atlantic explains:It’s an unpleasant story for GM. But it’s also bad news for the rest of the electric car movement. The Volt is no ordinary sedan. It’s a standard bearer. When GM was seeking a bailout from Congress, it trotted out the plug-in hybrid electric Volt as proof that the company was changing its truck-obsessed ways. Since then, executives have taken to calling it GM’s “moonshot.” Fewer than 6,000 have been sold. But the company already has plans to use the Volt’s engineering on other models, such as a new Cadillac.The Volt has been something of a linchpin in the Obama Administration’s “alternative energy” drive. In the President’s stimulus bill, a hefty $7,500 tax subsidy was offered to Volt buyers, bringing down the cost of the $41,000 vehicle, all at taxpayers’ expense. And the same federal government that bailed out GM and became a part owner also became a customer, buying 116 Volts for its government fleet. The President’s Secretary of Energy, Steven Chu, spelled out the vehicle’s importance to the Administration’s agenda:Diversifying our transportation fleet with hybrids, electric vehicles and other alternative-fuel vehicles is a critical element in President Obama’s long-term plan to break our dependence on foreign oil and invest in America’s growing clean energy economy.The trouble is, American consumers don’t seem to be turned on by the notion of hybrid and electric vehicles. Ford’s strong vehicle sales in November were propelled by a 43.1 percent increase in sales of Ford-brand SUVs, as well as increased sales of midsize and fullsize cars. Among the weakest performers were the fuel efficient compact Focus and subcompact Fiesta. Chrysler, too, saw an incredibly strong month of sales–its numbers were driven in large part by Jeep SUVs and the Dodge Durango SUV. And those purchases of less fuel efficient vehicles come as gas prices are still well above $3 per gallon.But for the Obama Administration’s Environmental Protection Agency, the reality of consumer demand doesn’t matter. Under a new rule, automakers would be required to double current fleet-wide fuel economy by 2025. That would require a crackdown on the internal combustion engine, increased production of electric, fuel-cell, and hybrid models, dangerously lighter vehicles, and nearly $3,000 in added costs per vehicle. In other words, the EPA wants to force the auto industry to make Americans spend more money to buy vehicles that today they’re choosing not to buy.Read the full story here.

• Al-Qaeda Leader Ayman Al-Zawahiri Announces That Al-Qaeda Kidnapped U.S. Citizen Warren Weinstein, Sets Demands For His Release.(CNN).Islamabad, Pakistan (CNN) -- Al Qaeda leader Ayman al-Zawahiri has claimed responsibility for the capture in August of a 70-year-old U.S. citizen in Pakistan, according to a number of radical websites known for carrying militants' messages.In the eighth episode of a series called "A Message of hope and glad tidings to our people in Egypt," the speaker sent a "message of support and encouragement" to members of al Qaeda and the Taliban as well as to "our female oppressed prisoners.""We did not forget you and we will not forget you, God willing, and therefore in order to release you, we have been successful, thanks to God almighty, to capture an American Jew called Warren Weinstein," he said.He described the captive as "a former employee and a current contractor working with the U.S. government in its aid program to Pakistan, which aims to fight the jihad in Pakistan and Afghanistan, and just like the Americans arrest any suspect linked to al Qaeda and the Taliban, even if they were far related."The speaker then listed eight demands that he said, if met, would result in Weinstein's release. They included the lifting of the blockade on movement of people and trade between Egypt and Gaza; an end to bombing by the United States and its allies in Pakistan, Afghanistan, Yemen, Somalia and Gaza; the release of anyone arrested on charges of belonging to al Qaeda and the Taliban; the release of all prisoners in Guantanamo and American secret prisons and the closure of Guantanamo and the other prisons; the release of terrorists convicted in the 1993 bombing of the World Trade Center; and the release of relatives of Osama bin Laden, the founder of al Qaeda who was killed in May in Pakistan."Your government is torturing our prisoners, and we have never tortured your prisoner," he added. "Your government signed the Geneva Conventions, and then threw it in the rubbish bin, and even though we did not sign the Geneva Conventions, we are honoring your prisoner."The speaker said Weinstein's fate lies with U.S. President Barack Obama. "I warn you of Obama's lies and deceit because he hopes that this man gets killed so he doesn't have to worry about his problem. Obama is a liar. He lies, lies and will lie. He may say to you, 'I sought the release of your relative but al Qaeda got stubborn,' so do not believe him. And he may say to you, 'I tried to contact them, but they did not answer,' so do not believe him. He may tell you, 'I do everything in my power to release your relative,' but again do not believe him."He urged Weinstein's relatives to pressure Obama to accede to his demands "if you want to bring back your relative."A U.S. official said the circumstances surrounding Weinstein's disappearance have been murky, but added, "It's entirely possible that al Qaeda or one of its militant allies may be holding Mr. Weinstein and the statement by Zawahiri supports this conclusion."Weinstein was abducted from his home in Lahore on August 13. As his three security guards prepared for the meal before the Ramadan fast, three men knocked at the front gate and offered food for the meal -- a traditional practice among Muslims during the holy month of Ramadan, Lahore police said.Read the full story here.More here.

• 'Here lies a man who wanted to destroy Israel'.(IsraelMatzav).I assume that most of you are at least somewhat familiar with the Purim story in which the villain, Haman, suffered his downfall very suddenly but with God's hand clearly behind it. Haman was a conceited individual who felt that no one could touch him - in fact, he tried to set himself up as a God. We have an early Purim story tonight.Nearly three weeks ago, Hassan Moghadam, the architect of Iran's program to shoot nuclear-armed missiles at Israel, was killed in an explosion outside Tehran. The picture at left is from his funeral (yes, that's Ayatollah Ali Khameni in front) and that's only because I could not find a picture of his tombstone, which reads as follows: “Here lies the man who wanted to destroy Israel” – Major General Hassan Moqaddam, head of the IRGC’s Self-Sufficiency and Industrial Research Center, who was killed in the explosion at an IRGC missile base made a request in his will that his headstone be inscribed as follows: Here lies the man who wanted to destroy Israel.Hmmm.....Perhaps a new trend in Iran?Read the full story here.

• Head of Syria’s main opposition says group plans to cut ties with Iran, Hamas, Hezbollah.(AlArabiya).A Syria run by the country’s main opposition group would cut ties to Iran, Hezbollah and Hamas, the group’s leader told the Wall Street Journal in an article published Friday.This would remove a crucial Iranian military ally believed to play a key role in supplying Hezbollah in Lebanon and the Palestinian Hamas, potentially leading to a dramatic reordering of regional power.The interview with Burhan Ghalioun, president of the Syrian National Council, came eight months into an increasingly violent uprising against Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, with rebels seeking international support.“There will be no special relationship with Iran,” Ghalioun, a 66-year-old university professor, told the Journal in an interview at his home in Paris.“Breaking the exceptional relationship means breaking the strategic, military alliance,” he said, adding that “after the fall of the Syrian regime, (Hezbollah) won’t be the same.”He also called for more robust international support for the rebels, including the possible establishment of a no-fly zone. “Our main objective is finding mechanisms to protect civilians and stop the killing machine,” Ghalioun said.“We say it is imperative to use forceful measures to force the regime to respect human rights.”The rebels may well fail to topple the 40-year-old Assad regime established by Bashar’s father Hafez, but a reorientation of Syria away from Iran and towards the West would have major implications across the region.Ghalioun said an opposition-run Syria would be committed to recovering the Golan Heights, a strategic plateau captured by Israel in the 1967 war, but would pursue its return through negotiations rather than armed conflict.He also said it would work to normalize relations with neighboring Lebanon after decades of tense relations.Hmmmm.....Oooooh look a herd of Unicorns.Read the full story here.

• US Senate OK's sanctions on Iran central bank.(YNet).WASHINGTON – The US Senate unanimously approved tougher sanctions against Iran on Thursday, voting to penalize foreign financial institutions that do business with Iran's central bank, the main conduit for its oil revenues. The Senate acted despite warnings from Obama administration officials who said threatening US allies might not be the best way to get their cooperation in action against Iran.Administration officials said they were indeed looking to sanction Iran's central bank, but in a calibrated manner, to avoid roiling oil markets or antagonizing allies. The United States already bars its own banks from dealing with the Iranian central bank, so US sanctions would operate by dissuading other foreign banks from doing so by threatening to cut them off from the US financial system.The Senate voted 100-0 for an amendment sponsored by Senator Robert Menendez, a Democrat, and Senator Mark Kirk, a Republican, that would allow the US president to sanction foreign banks found to have carried out a "significant financial transaction with the Central Bank of Iran." "We seek to break the stable financial intermediary in between Iranian oil contracts and the outside world, so that it will just be easier to buy oil from elsewhere," Kirk said in debate this week.On Nov. 21, the United States, Britain and Canada announced new sanctions on Iran's energy and financial sectors, but the Obama administration stopped short of targeting Iran's central bank, a step that US officials said could send oil prices skyrocketing and jeopardized global economic recovery."The Obama administration strongly supports increasing the pressure on Iran, and that includes properly designed and targeted sanctions against the central bank of Iran, appropriately timed as part of a carefully phased and sustainable policy toward bringing about Iranian compliance with its obligations," US Undersecretary of State Wendy Sherman told the Senate Foreign Relations Committee earlier on Thursday, several hours before the Senate vote. While the Obama administration steps carefully, some countries in Europe are seeking to push forward a Europe-wide boycott of Iranian crude imports. EU foreign ministers in Brussels failed on Thursday to move forward with a plan backed by France and Britain to ban shipments, but agreed to examine expanding sanctions.In a statement following the meeting, US Deputy Secretary of State William J. Burns noted: "Iran’s continued noncompliance with its international obligations related to its nuclear program, as well as its continued support for terrorist organizations, are of grave concern to our two countries and the entire international community."Continued efforts by the international community are critical to bringing about change in Iranian behavior and preventing Iran from developing a nuclear weapons capability," the statement read.Read the full story here.

• Jewish cemetery in Kosovo capital desecrated.(YNet).Police in Kosovo are investigating who sprayed swastikas on dozens of tombstones in a Jewish cemetery recently restored by American and Kosovan students, a spokesman said Thursday.Brahim Sadrija said police had sealed off the cemetery in the capital, Kosovo, and are looking for clues. The vandalism is believed to have happened Tuesday.Sadrija said he could not disclose more details pending the ongoing investigation.In June, a group of students from Dartmouth College in New Hampshire and their peers from the American University in Kosovo restored the neglected cemetery by clearing debris from around the graves and cutting overgrown grass.Rabbi Edward S. Boraz of the college's Roth Center for Jewish Life held a dedication ceremony at the memorial site, with students taking turns to read out the names of Jewish families from the region who perished during World War II. On Thursday the hate graffiti "Jud Raus" - a misspelling of the German "Juden Raus," which means "Jews out" - could still be seen at the foot of a memorial.President Atifete Jahjaga and Prime Minister Hashim Thaci condemned the act."The damaging of cemeteries presents an act in complete contradiction with the traditions and values of the people of Kosovo, based on tolerance and full respect for all the dead and all the monuments," Jahjaga said in a statement.Thaci described the desecration as "a cowardly act."The condemnations follow that of US Ambassador to Kosovo, Christopher Dell, who urged authorities to find out who committed the vandalism."The hateful act was an offense not only against the families of persons buried there and of the Jewish community in Kosovo and beyond, but also an offense against Kosovo's multiethnic state and society," Dell said in a statement."The act is one of contempt for the most basic norms of tolerance, coexistence, and respect, and cannot be tolerated."Some 300 Kosovo Jews died at Bergen-Belsen concentration camp in Germany during World War II. After the war, Kosovo's small Jewish community dwindled. The few that remained left for Israel and Serbia during and after the 1998-99 Kosovo war.In a statement sent to The Associated Press an American Jewish group branded the desecration of the cemetery as "a heinous act.""Holocaust survivors are shocked to learn that a sacred resting place of our martyrs has been profaned by vandals using graphic symbols of Nazi hate," Elan Steinberg, vice president of the American Gathering of Holocaust Survivors and their Descendants said.Kosovo, a former Serbian province, seceded from Serbia in 2008 but Belgrade has vowed never to accept the independence of the majority ethnic Albanian territory.Kosovo is overwhelmingly Muslim, but has a Roman Catholic minority.Read the full story here.

• Afghan gunmen poured acid on faces of three sisters and their parents... because eldest 'didn't want to marry ageing warlord'.(DailyMail).Afghan gunmen burst into a family home - where they poured acid over the father, his wife and their three daughters - because they stopped their eldest from marrying an ageing warlord.They carried out the brutal midnight attack on Tuesday to scar the girls, in the belief that no-one will now want to marry them.Officials said the oldest daughter Mumtaz, 18, had been pursued by a local gunman who the family considered a 'troublemaker' and a 'bully'.With her parents support, she turned him down and instead got engaged to a relative.But, a few weeks later, six or seven armed men burst into their home in the Bulk Awal area of the northern Kunduz city - the largest in the region - in the middle of the night.One man beat up the girl's parents with a club. Mumtaz and her two sisters, aged 14 and 13, were guarded by two other men and told not to make a sound while their parents were beaten. It is unclear whether they were sexually abused. The men then poured acid on the mother's hands, before spraying all three girls liberally with the corrosive chemical. 'First they beat her father and then they attacked with acid,' said Mumtaz's mother, who asked not to be identified. All five are now receiving medical treatment, said Abdul Shokor Rahimi, head of the Kunduz regional hospital.Rahimi said: 'The father and oldest daughter are in critical condition as they have been attacked all over the body. Their mother and two daughters who are 14 and 13 have some wounds only in hands and faces.Ghulam Mohammad Farhad, the senior police detective for Kunduz, promised to track down the attackers, who he called immoral and irresponsible. He said: 'We have started an investigation and those who have attacked them will be prosecuted.Nadira Geya, the provincial head of women's affairs, added: 'They wanted to prevent the wedding. They threw acid into the girl's face so that no one else would marry her. The 18-year-old was badly hurt. They threw acid on her face, on her hands, her body and her feet. 'Her body is 40 per cent burns. She is in a bad condition in hospital.' She added that the 14-year-old's face is completely burnt and the youngest child's face is half-burnt. The family also has a son, but he was not at the house during the attack and is unharmed.The Afghan Ministry of Interior said it was treating the attack with 'utmost seriousness' and had already arrested one suspect.A spokesman said: 'We have arrested one person so far and we have identified two other suspects. If convicted, they will face the highest possible sentence.'Acid is used intermittently as a weapon in Afghanistan, but not always against women. In the conservative, and Taliban influenced south and east, it has been thrown at girls attending schools.With foreign combat troops set to return home by the end of 2014, some activists inside and outside Afghanistan fear that women's rights may be sacrificed in the scramble to ensure the West leaves behind a relatively stable state.Hmmm.....Instead of speaking up against this cruelty just Keep singing with Kermit.Read the full story here.

• "Lord have mercy" - Saudis fear there will be ‘no more virgins’ and people will turn gay if female drive ban is lifted.(DailyMail).Repealing a ban on women drivers in Saudi Arabia would result in ‘no more virgins’, the country’s religious council has warned.A ‘scientific’ report claims relaxing the ban would also see more Saudis - both men and women - turn to homosexuality and pornography.The startling conclusions were drawn by Muslim scholars at the Majlis al-Ifta’ al-A’ala, Saudi Arabia’s highest religious council, working in conjunction with Kamal Subhi, a former professor at the King Fahd University.Their report assessed the possible impact of repealing the ban in Saudi Arabia, the only country in the world where women are not allowed behind the wheel.It was delivered to all 150 members of the Shura Council, the country’s legislative body.The report warns that allowing women to drive would ‘provoke a surge in prostitution, pornography, homosexuality and divorce’.Within ten years of the ban being lifted, the report’s authors claim, there would be ‘no more virgins’ in the Islamic kingdom.And it pointed out ‘moral decline’ could already be seen in other Muslim countries where women are allowed to drive.In the report Professor Subhi described sitting in a coffee shop in an unnamed Arab state. ‘All the women were looking at me,’ he wrote. ‘One made a gesture that made it clear she was available... this is what happens when women are allowed to drive.’The astonishing report comes after Shaima Jastaniya, a 34-year-old Saudi woman, was sentenced to 10 lashes with a whip after being caught driving in Jeddah.There has been strong protest in the country about the sentence - and about the law generally. But resistance to reform and change remains strong among conservative royals and clerics.Hmmm.....Read the full story here.

• Thousands of Muslims Attack Christians in Egypt, 2 Killed, Homes and Stores Torched.(Aina).By Mary Abdelmassih.Thousands of Muslims attacked and besieged Copts in elGhorayzat village, population 80,000, killing two Copts and severely wounding others, as well as looting and torching homes and businesses. A quarrel between a Copt, John Hosni, and Mahmoud Abdel-Nazeer, who later died in hospital, turned into collective punishment of all Copts in the majority Christian village of elGhorayzat, in the Maragha district of Sohag province. Muslims vowed not to bury Abdel-Nazeer until John Hosni is punished. Mr. Hosni fled from the village with his family, "fearing a wholesale massacre of Copts," reported activist Mariam Ragy.The events started on Monday, November 28, when John Hosni, a building supplier, had a quarrel with his neighbor, Mahmoud Abdel-Nazeer (48), over some steel rods and cement Mr. Hosni had left in the street to use for erecting a wall around his house. This was perceived by Mr. Abdel-Nazeer as extending the home into the street, which is public property. "Instead of reporting this building transgression to the police or local authorities, Abdel-Nazeer took the matter in his own hands and brought some Salafists and torched the store and the home of the Copt," said an eyewitness.In the altercation between the neighbors, Mr. Hosni hit Abdel-Nazeer in the head with a wooden branch, which lead to his death later in hospital.Angry Muslims murdered two Christian brothers, Kamel Tamer Ibrahim (55) and Kameel Tamer Ibrahim (50), in revenge. The brothers were not a party to the altercation. Kamel Tamer, who was defending his shop from looting, was murdered in front of his wife. His brother was also murdered in front of his wife for defending his home (video of the murdered Copts. WARNING: contains highly graphic content).Three other Christians, Maher Samir Gota, his wife, and his brother Osama Samir Gota, were severely injured and are in intensive care. They were in their homes when their shop was broken into and looted by Muslims. Maher and his wife were stabbed and Osama received a blow on the head. The ambulance could not go to them to transport them to hospital. He was privately transported by his friends. There were reports of Muslims preventing the fire brigades from reaching the burning homes.After killing the Copts, Muslims went on a rampage, looting and burning Christian owned homes and businesses.Despite killing the two Coptic brothers the Muslims insist they have not yet avenged Abdel-Nazeer's death."This is not revenge; this is simply an excuse to kill people because they are Christians, as well as loot their property," said an eyewitness."Security was present in all the streets, and protected the churches, but they did nothing in the face of Muslims killings, looting and torching of Christian property,", said another eyewitness, who managed to get out of the village "by a miracle," as he put it, leaving all his belongings and money behind. "We do not know whether we will be able to go back to the village as the Muslims refuse to bury the dead Muslim before killing all Copts in the village."He added that Muslims are openly walking the streets carrying firearms and clubs while the police standby and do nothing. The number of police is not enough, there are 500 Muslims for every one policeman.Copts have been prevented from fleeing the village by Muslims, who have imposed a blockade. Some were able to flee with the aid of some Muslims, who drove them out in a truck, telling the guards at the exit point these people have nothing to do with the ongoing problem.Christian inhabitants are still afraid to venture into the streets.Father Lucas Aghapios, pastor of St. George's Church in alGhorayzat, described the situation in the village today as "cautioned" peace. He said that although the Muslim attack started at 11 AM, security forces turned up late in the evening, and Muslim transgressions occurred in the presence of the security forces. Father Lucas said that yesterday Muslim attacks resulted in 25 incidents of looting and torching of Christian-owned shops, in addition to 8 homes. He confirmed the eyewitness accounts of the events, but could not confirm that John Hosni had surrendered to the police. "Yesterday John Hosni was in a safe place, but he is not in the village, I do not know his whereabouts." He does not know whether any Muslims were arrested in connection with the slaughtering of the two Coptic brothers.A funeral for Abdel-Nazeer was held on Tuesday.Bishop Bachoum of Sohag said this evening on CTV Coptic Channel that funerals for the two Copts were held in Sohag and they were buried in their village of elGhorayzat, under heavy security. He said that efforts are under way for a "reconciliation" meeting between Muslim and Christians elders.Commenting on the elGhorayzat events, Dr. Fawzi Hermina, a Coptic activist who lives in Sohag, said that Copts are living in a state of Statelessness -- with no state, no security and no law. "Unfortunately the Copts, being the weak party in society, are paying the price.Read the full story here.