MFS - The Other News

                    Morning Posting.

• Updated !Earthquakes in the last 24 hours in the world seismic activity situation Solomon islands 6.6 ; Tonga 5.4!More info here.

• Report: Obama to name Jack Lew an Orthodox Jew to be his chief of staff.(JTA).WASHINGTON (JTA) -- President Obama reportedly will name Jack Lew to be his chief of staff.Lew, an Orthodox Jew, will replace William Daley, the Los Angeles Times reported on Monday.Lew is currently the director of the Office of Management and Budget, a Cabinet-level position and a post he also filled during the Clinton administration.He was previously Obama's deputy secretary of state.Daley is leaving after just over a year on the job; he replaced Rahm Emanuel, who left the White House to run successfully for Chicago's mayor.Lew, like Emanuel, has close Jewish community ties.There had been speculation in the organized Jewish community about whether Obama would fill a top spot with someone close to the Jewish community after the departure last month of Dennis Ross, who had been Obama's top Iran policy adviser.Hmmmm......God knows he needs those Jewish votes.Read the full story here.

• Man thought to be an Islamic extremist in custody after shootout with police in Alabama City.(GadsdenTimes).By Lisa Rogers.A man thought to be an Islamic extremist is believed to have shot the windows out of at least two businesses in Alabama City early Sunday to lure police officers to the area and engage them in a shootout.Luis Ibarra-Hernandez, 21, from Albertville, was charged today with attempted murder, according to a news release from the Gadsden Police Department.“After the man was taken into custody, he reported that he knew he must do something extreme to draw attention to Islam and himself, so he planned to shoot police officers,” Gadsden Police Capt. Regina May said.Gadsden police officers responded to alarm calls for glass breakage after doors were shot out about 1:30 a.m. Sunday at AutoZone and Rainbow Food Mart near the intersection of 27th Street and West Meighan Boulevard.While investigating the broken doors and determining they were shot out, officers heard gunfire and spotted a man near the old CVS building. The man knew he had been seen and ran toward the Cathedral of Praise Church parking lot, then started firing rounds at the officers.The man continued to run through several blocks and at one point was in the Dwight Baptist Church parking lot. Shots were fired over about six blocks, and at least eight officers were shot at, before officers talked the man into dropping his weapon. Read the full story here.

• Developing story ! - Maricopa County Deputy Shot and Killed: Fast and Furious Gun?(BN).It looks like a comment from a Doug Ross reader has drawn attention to a horrible and potentially, very explosive development involving the shooting death of a Maricopa County sheriff's deputy. If officer William Cole was slain with a gun placed into the hands of bad guys by ATF's Operation Fast & Furious, Sheriff Joe Arpaio is likely to be front and center very quickly and his anger will be on full display.Via AZ Central:  A veteran Maricopa County sheriff's deputy slain by a gunman early Sunday responding to a call at an Anthem strip-mall was just hours away from finishing his final night shift before switching to daytime duties.
  Flags hung at half-staff across the state all day Sunday to honor Deputy William Coleman, 50, a 20-year veteran officer with two young children, and the first Maricopa County Sheriff's Office deputy slain in the line of duty since 1995.His killer, who "came out shooting" when approached in his van by deputies in a parking lot just before dawn, was killed in an exchange of gunfire with two other deputies.Here is the comment posted to Doug Ross' blog:
  I would like to comment on the shooting of a Maricopa Deputy Sheriff Sunday morning 4am, north of Phoenix, AZ. The no comment policy of the AZ Central newspaper prevents readers from expressing thier views and suspicions on this tragic event. The 50 year old father of 2, died when his body armor was penetrated by an AK 47 bullet. Eric Holder and the DOJ are holding their breath that this weapon is not connected to Gunwalker's Fast and Furious. Real OLD MEDIA is dying, but real scandals are ongoing. That is my tie-in to your article. Censure me if you must.Hmmm.....What would be the Odds?Read the full story here.

• Terror-linked CAIR hijacks MLK Jr Day, converts to ‘Muslims Day’.Join forces with "Occupy the dream" movement?(CreepingSharia).Bullying lawmakers into submitting to the less than 1% of Muslims in the state. And a little dawah with CAIR’s whitewashed version of the Koran for dummies. via Muslims Plan Capitol March – Americas – News – OnIslam.net.SEATTLE – Hundreds of Washington State Muslims are planning to march together to the Capitol Building, meet state lawmakers in their offices and urge their legislators to speak out against Islamophobic rhetoric and hate crimes.“This event will provide an opportunity for Muslims from the majority of our state’s legislative districts to learn more about the political process and to meet their elected representatives,” said CAIR-WA Executive Director Arsalan Bukhari.“Legislators should take action during this crucial year to allocate funds to preserve critical services for the most vulnerable in our society.”At the march, planned as part of the annual event, “Washington State Muslims Day at the Capitol,” some 400 Washington state Muslims are scheduled to meet with dozens of their elected representatives.Organized by the Washington state chapter of the Council on American-Islamic Relations, the event, to be held January 16, is one of the largest of its kind in the nation.It is designed to honor the legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. and his defense of civil rights through positive civic engagement.Muslim voters attending the event will represent 33 of the 49 state legislative districts.Participants will urge legislators to take action on other issues, including preserving critical public programs and having a balanced approach to the state budget.They will present legislators and their staff with a copy of the English translation of the Quran, Islam’s holy text.While CAIR hijacks MLK Jr. Day, it’s important to note that Islam sanctions slavery and in Africa Muslims are waging a vicious, violent jihad against black Africans.If you live in Washington, Contact Your Elected Officials en masse and tell them not to pander to Islamists like terror-linked CAIR and consider forming a counter procession next Monday.Hmmmm......It’s Time to “Occupy the Dream:” African-American Faith Community Joins Forces with Occupy Wall Street – First Day of Action on MLK Day, Jan 16 at Federal Reserve Banks.What would be the odds of Obama approving this?Read the full story here.

• The Top 5 Reasons Obama Must Be Removed as Commander-in-Chief.(AT).By Stella Paul.Obama recently signed a mysterious new law that proclaims all American soil is a "battleground," thereby allowing the president to indefinitely detain any American citizen without charges. Critics fear Obama will use his fun new unconstitutional powers to make his political enemies disappear, but that may not be necessary. The way things are going, most patriotic Americans will soon be six feet under, felled by apoplectic strokes brought on by reading the latest outrage committed by our "Commander in Chief." He may not have a limit to what he'll inflict; but our collective blood pressure may have a limit to what we can bear.With each passing hour, the question becomes not if America can survive a second term, but whether we can survive another day. It's not just the $15 trillion in debt, the Muslim Brotherhood in the catbird seat, and our bleeding open border. It's the never-ending deliberate assaults against our safety and security laughingly committed by the cold-eyed man with the nuclear code.Here are the top 5 reasons Obama must be removed as Commander-in-Chief. Please read them while seated.

ONE - LightSquared : If we had an actual media, you should be able to wake up an average fourth grader at 3 AM and ask, "Who's General William Shelton?" and the fourth grader would chirpily recite: "He's the Air Force Commander who was pressured by the White House to change his testimony about LightSquared."The facts are not in dispute. A four-star general has testified to Congress that he was pressured by the White House to alter his testimony to make it friendlier to a broadband company backed by a major Democratic donor. The problem with LightSquared's new wireless project is that it could disrupt all military communications and GPS. But what worth has the entire capacity of the military's communication system against the pleadings of LightSquared's biggest investor, Philip Falcone, who shovels cash to Obama?

TWO- Fast and Furious: No matter how many times you hear the facts they never get less sickening or bizarre. The United States Department of Justice deliberately ran thousands of guns to Mexican drug cartels, which then used them to commit at least 11 violent crimes in the US and 200 violent crimes in Mexico. A Fast and Furious gun was used to murder U.S. Border Patrol Agent Brian Terry and possibly U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agent Jaime Zapata.ATF Agent Vince Cefalu was fired for whistleblowing about this surreal horror show. Attorney General Eric Holder perjured himself to Congress, pretending he knew nothing about it. And newly released emails confirm that the motivation for supplying weapons to Mexico's most violent criminals was to use the ensuing chaos to enact stricter gun control laws here.Not content to unleash murder and mayhem, the Department of Justice also went into the money-laundering racket, washing clean millions of dollars for Mexico's drug cartels. Your tax dollars at work! And while this evil madness was raging, Obama conducted a hysterical campaign against Sarah Palin for using an image of a target on her website.

THREE - Giving Top-Secret Technology to Our Enemies: Last week brought word that Obama is planning to share U.S. missile defense secrets with Russia, over the strenuous objections of security officials who say it could devastate the effectiveness of our entire defense system. They also fear Russia will share our secrets with China, Iran and North Korea.Remember how Obama's Mommy and Daddy met in Russian class? If only they could see their little boy now. Obama also gave a freebie of our most classified intelligence to Iran, refusing all three options to destroy a downed U.S. drone. Instead, he let the mullahs paw their way through our most sensitive high-tech secrets. Not to worry -- he did politely ask them to give it back.

FOUR - Waging War Against Libya Without Congressional Approval: Obama's handlers dreamed up a catchy new doctrine called Responsibility to Protect (R2P), and they were itching to try it out. So Obama gave them a nice, peppy little war to conduct in Libya. Why not take out the mad transvestite, Qadaffi? Nobody likes him, anyway.
Flagrantly flouting the War Powers Resolution, Obama spent a billion dollars to wage an unconstitutional war. The grand result is Al Qaeda's flag waving over Benghazi and 20,000 anti-aircraft missiles missing, which will probably wind up blasting towards us.

FIVE - Hollowing Out Our Military: This week we learn that Obama is slashing the defense budget, planning to lay off 14% off our troops, reduce our nuclear arsenal, shelve key weapon systems and explicitly cripple our ability to wage ground wars. What hath Saul Alinsky wrought!Already, Obama has strait-jacketed the military in political correctness, forbidding discussion of the nature of radical Islam and sanitizing the jihad-crazed murder of 13 soldiers at Fort Hood into "workplace violence." But that was not enough for our Commander-in-Chief. Our troops are so heroic that even in straitjackets, they can win. And if there's one thing Obama will not tolerate it's American victory.From George Washington to Barack Obama - it's been quite a ride.Read the full story here.

• McCain: Iraq is Unraveling Thanks to Obama.(Politico).Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) says Iraq is in the process of “unraveling” and could eventually split into three different states, blaming the Obama administration for a failure to secure a long-term troop presence in the country.“Iraq is unraveling. It’s unraveling because we didn’t keep a residual force there because the president of the United States pledged to get out of Iraq,” McCain said in an interview aired Sunday on CBS’ “Face the Nation.” “And we could have kept a residual force there and kept some stability. Instead it’s unraveling and Iran’s influence is increasing. And there’s every possibility you could see a very chaotic situation”McCain declined to say whether he foresaw the possibility of an outright civil war, but said the country could certain break up into three different states.“There’s clearly an unraveling going on which could eventually lead basically into three different kind of states in Iraq. We needed to keep a residual force there. And that was what the Bush administration envisioned and that’s what we should have done.”McCain went on to say that the Obama administration did not effectively pressure the Iraqi government into allowing American troops to remain long-term.“The Iraqis were ready to deal on the issue. This administration did not give them a number [of troops],” the Arizona Republican told CBS.“Leading from behind is not what this world needs,” McCain said, in a shot at a comment that an anonymous advisor to President Obama made to the New Yorker last year.Read the full story here.

• U.S. orders expulsion of Venezuelan consul for suspected links to Iranian plot.(AlArabiya).The United States has ordered the expulsion of Venezuela’s consul general in Miami amid reports linking the diplomat to an alleged Iranian plot to target sensitive U.S. facilities with cyber attacks, the U.S. State Department said Sunday.The U.S. action comes as Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad was to kick off a Latin American tour in Caracas later Sunday.The Venezuelan embassy in Washington was notified Friday that Livia Acosta Noguera, the consul general, had been declared persona non grata and had until Tuesday to leave the country, said State Department spokesman William Ostick.“In accordance with Article 23 of the Vienna Convention on Consular Relations, the department declared Ms Livia Acosta Noguera, Venezuelan consul general to Miami, to be persona non grata. As such, she must depart the United States by January 10,” he said.“We cannot comment on specific details behind the decision to declare Ms Acosta persona non grata at this time,” he added in a statement.The State Department had said last month it was looking into “very disturbing” allegations that Acosta was a participant in an alleged Iranian plot to launch cyber-attacks on sensitive U.S. national security facilities.The allegations were made in a documentary that aired on the Spanish-language television network Univision, which said Acosta was taped discussing the alleged plot with Mexican students who later sought asylum in the United States.The contacts reportedly took place in 2007 while Acosta was serving at the Venezuelan embassy in Mexico City.On December 12, a State Department spokesman said the department could not corroborate the Univision report, but said, “We’re looking into it and continue to assess what additional actions we might take.”Venezuela’s President Hugo Chavez has long been a vociferous opponent of Washington, siding with Iran and Syria against US-led efforts to pressure Tehran over its nuclear program and Damascus on human rights abuses.Ahmadinejad’s trip to Venezuela and three other leftist-ruled Latin American countries -- Nicaragua, Ecuador and Cuba -- comes amid spiking international tensions over Iran’s nuclear program.A preliminary agreement by the European Union to embargo Iranian oil shipments has drawn Iranian threats to close the strategic Strait of Hormuz at the entrance of the Gulf if it does.US Defense Secretary Leon Panetta, meanwhile, warned Sunday that the United States would not tolerate the closure of the strait and would respond to reopen it.In October, the United States accused Tehran of plotting to hire Mexican drug traffickers to assassinate the Saudi ambassador to the United States, which Tehran dismissed as “baseless and unfounded.”Read the full story here.

•  Iran sentences Iranian-US man to death for spying.(AlArabiya).Iran’s Revolutionary Court has sentenced an Iranian-American man to death for spying for the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA), the student news agency quoted a judiciary official as saying, a move likely to aggravate U.S.-Iranian tension already high because of Tehran's nuclear work.Western nations have recently expanded punitive economic sanctions against Iran over suspicions it is trying to develop atomic bombs under the cover of a civilian atomic energy program. The Islamic Republic denies this.“Amir Mirza Hekmati was sentenced to death ... for cooperating with the hostile country America and spying for the CIA,” ISNA news agency quoted judiciary spokesman Gholamhossein Mohseni-Ejei as saying.“The court found him Corrupt on the Earth and Mohareb (one who wages war on God). Hekmati can appeal to the Supreme Court.”Iran’s highest court must confirm all death sentences. When it will rule in Hekmati’s case was not known.Hekmati, a 28-year-old of Iranian descent born in the southwestern U.S. state of Arizona, was arrested in December and Iran’s Intelligence Ministry accused him of receiving training at U.S. bases in neighboring Afghanistan and Iraq.Iran’s judiciary said Hekmati admitted to having links with the CIA but denied any intention of harming Iran, which has had no relations with the United States since its 1979 Islamic Revolution. Mutual antagonism has reigned since.Hekmati’s family said earlier this month in a statement that the former U.S. military translator was visiting his grandmothers in Iran when he was arrested.“We have struggled to provide Amir with an attorney in Iran. We have sought to hire at least 10 different attorneys to no avail,” the family’s statement said. It said Hekmati’s “only advocate in Iran was a government-appointed lawyer who he met on the first day of his trial.”The U.S. government has demanded Hekmati’s release, saying he has been “falsely” accused. State Department spokeswoman Victoria Nuland said last month that Iran had not permitted diplomats from the Swiss Embassy, which represents American interests in Iran, to see him before or during his trial.Hekmati graduated from a Michigan high school. His father Ali is a professor at a community college in Flint, Michigan.Hekmati, whose trial ended on Jan. 2, was shown on Iranian state television in December saying he was a CIA operative sent to infiltrate the Iranian intelligence ministry.Iran also said on Monday it had broken up an alleged U.S.-linked spy network that planned to “fuel unrest” ahead of the March parliamentary election, the first nationwide vote since the country’s 2009 disputed presidential vote.“The detained spies were in contact with foreign countries through cyberspace,” Intelligence Minister Haydar Moslehi was quoted by state television as saying. He gave no information about the nationalities and the number of those detained.Iran, which often accuses its foes of trying to destabilize its Islamic system, said in May it had arrested 30 people on suspicion of spying for the United States and later 15 people were indicted for spying for Washington and Israel.Despite mounting international pressure and sharpened rhetoric, Iran seems determined to stick to its nuclear course ahead of the parliamentary election, to be followed by a presidential ballot in 2013.Read the full story here.
  
  

• Haniyeh: Muslims are creating the new Middle East.(JPost).Hamas Prime Minister Ismail Haniyeh declared Sunday that the Muslim revolutions born out of the "Arab Spring" would replace US-backed chaos in the Middle East, Hamas affiliate Al Resalah quoted the Hamas leader as saying. "We are among those who will create a new Middle East. We have created a glorious revolution that will bring back the nation and its glory in place of the chaos that the American administration had so desired," Haniyeh told a gathering of Tunisian Islamist Ennahda party supporters in Tunis. According to the report, tens of thousands of Tunisians gathered outside the palatial government complex in the Tunisian capital to see Haniyeh speak, chanting in support of "Palestinian liberation." Protesters also chanted "Death to Israel" and "the army of Mohammed is back," as Haniyeh reiterated his pledge not "to lay down our arms" or recognize Israel, according to AFP. The Ennahda party, banned under the rule of ousted Tunisian president Zine El Abidine Ben Ali, has since become the country's largest party, garnering 40 percent of votes in last October's parliamentary elections.Haniyeh has traveled Arab and Muslim nations on a Middle East tour that began December 25, including Egypt, Sudan, Turkey and Tunisia.Hmmmm......Thanks to Obama's 'incompetence' or is it something else the Muslim Brotherhood is taking over in the Middle East.Read the full story here.

• 'Europe's Guantanamo': Öcalan Lawyer Discusses PKK Leader's Detention.(Spiegel).Abdullah Öcalan, leader of the outlawed Kurdish Workers' Party, is locked up in a remote island prison and denied access to legal representatives. His lawyer Mahmut Sakar, who fled to Germany, discusses Öcalan's isolation, secret talks with the government and Turkey's recent military escalation against the Kurds.

SPIEGEL: The Turkish judiciary has arrested 36 lawyers who represented Kurdistan Worker's Party (PKK) leader Abdullah Öcalan. What are they accused of?

Sakar: They are said to be members of a terrorist organization but there is no evidence to support the allegations. Öcalan is currently denied legal representation and cannot receive visitors. For almost six months, he has been completely isolated from the outside world. He is held in a prison on the Marmara island of Imrali, which we see as Europe's Guantanamo.

SPIEGEL: Is Turkey steering itself into a new wave of violence?

Sakar: The situation is very tense. At the end of December, 35 civilians were killed during an air attack by the Turkish army. At the same time around 5,000 Kurdish politicians and activists are in prison. People are frustrated and angry. Day by day the chances of resolving this conflict are waning.Read the full story here.

• Turkey turned into open prison, opposition leader says, names prison “Silivri Concentration Camp”.(Hurriyetdaily).One day after main opposition Republican People’s Party (CHP) leader Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu has described Turkey as an “open prison” over the arrest of former top commander İlker Başbuğ, he issued a statement on the 1000th day CHP Deputy Professor Mehmet Haberal’s has spent at the “Silivri Concentration Camp.”“Our Zonguldak Deputy Professor Mehmet Haberal has now completed his 1000th day at the Silivri Concentration Camp. Together with Haberal and Balbay, a total of eight deputies -- the ones who have been elected by the scared votes of the people -- are detained in prisons,” the written statement said.Kılıçdaroğlu also said the president, the speaker of Parliament, deputy prime ministers, ministers and many other top officials were declaring they were against long terms of detention. “I want to ask,” the statement said, “If you are sincere, why don’t you move a finger for those outstanding people specially authorized courts have sent to concentration camps?”The CHP chairman slammed the government over the arrest of Başbuğ over the weekend, arguing the court was directed by the government.“Rule of law is just a notion on paper for Turkey. There is no rule of law in practice. Judiciary has been politicized. Specially authorized courts are the instruments of the political authority. I don’t trust in the impartiality of the judges of these courts,” Kılıçdaroğlu said on dissident TV channel Ulusal Kanal.Detention of Başbuğ was the result of the “poor justice system,” according to Kılıçdaroğlu. “Başbuğ has been arrested today, it may be somebody else tomorrow,” he said.Stressing that Başbuğ was inducted as chief of General Staff during the ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) term, Kılıçdaroğlu said: “If you appointed this person to his post, then he cannot be the only one responsible. Those who appointed him also have the responsibility. The prime minister should speak on this issue; he cannot remain silent.”The CHP leader also indicated that the arrest of Başbuğ by a specially authorized court decision is jurally problematical. According to the constitution, chiefs of General Staff, even if they are retired, can only be judged by the Supreme Council, Kılıçdaroğlu recalled. The arrest of Başbuğ was a “judicial defect,” Kılıçdaroğlu said.Such shocking decisions were likely to take place in the future to divert attention from the compelling circumstances of the government, he said. “Some special files are being kept in the drawers of specially authorized courts. When the AKP is stranded, a file would be taken out of the drawer, somebody would be arrested and public attention would be diverted,” Kılıçdaroğlu said.Hmmmmm............Read the full story here.

• Updated - Prosecutor launches probe into Turkey's main opposition leader.Courts serve political will: CHP.(HurriyetDaily). Main opposition Republican People's Party (CHP) reacted to the launching of a probe into party leader Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu, saying that courts served the political will. CHP speaker Birgül Ayman Güler made a statement saying, "[the specially authorized courts] are under the command of the political will," and added that the CHP was left as "the last bastion of opposition in Turkey."The public prosecutor's office in Istanbul's Silivri district had launched an investigation into the CHP's leader earlier today, charging him with "attempting to affect a fair trial," and sent a letter to the Justice Ministry requesting the removal of Kılıçdaroğlu's judicial immunity.CHP deputy chairman reacted to the investigation and said, "the Parliament should revoke the immunity of all CHP members."Kılıçdaroğlu had made a public statement in front of Silivri prison, where suspects in the Ergenekon coup case are being held, likening the prison to a concentration camp. Kılıçdaroğlu had also said he could not bear to term members of the court “judges.” The prosecutor's office acted on Kılıçdaroğlu's remarks and prepared a two-fold indictment against him, charging him with "attempting to affect a fair trial" and "insulting members of the court." The CHP leader could face trial if the Justice Ministry revokes his judicial immunity.Hmmmmm....Democracy and Dictatorship both start with the same letter.Journalists,Generals.... Parliamentarians.....who's next?Read the full story here.

• Bahrain to Jewish leader: Iran is a threat to both of us.(JPost).Iran is a common threat to Bahrain, Israel and the US, the King of Bahrain Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa was quoted as saying by a Jewish official on Sunday.Rabbi Marc Schneier, vice president of the World Jewish Congress, said the king told him he was alarmed by the Islamic Republic during a 45- minute meeting held in the capital city of Manama late last month.“I made a point how it’s ironic how we share a common enemy and he acknowledged that Iran has been a threat,” said Schneier, who gave the king a hanukkia at the end of their conversation.The oil-rich island nation has a troubled history with its northern neighbor across the Persian Gulf, which once laid claim to its territory.Schneier said Hamad agreed to his request to host a Jewish-Muslim dialogue in the oil-rich country later this year. The rabbi, who is also president of the Foundation for Interfaith Dialogue, said there was no set date or list of participants yet but that the conference would aim to improve ties between the Abrahamic faiths.The news comes at a time when the Sunni elite that rules Bahrain has been accused of oppressing the country’s Shi’ite majority.Last year Sunni security forces and Shi’ite protesters clashed for weeks, leaving 51 people dead, according to local human rights groups.Schneier said he did not believe Hamad was reaching out to Jews to rebuff charges of religious intolerance against him, saying the ruler had “implemented reforms and reached out to his opponents and tried to help.”He said it was imperative to hold talks between Jews and Muslims now because the perfect conditions to conduct such a conversation would never arise.“Whether we chose to have it [in Bahrain] or not you can’t wait,” he said. “It’s a genuine sincere effort to expand Muslim-Jewish dialogue.”During his stay Schneier met with the small but influential Jewish community in Bahrain including Jewish- Bahraini member of parliament Nancy Khadouri and Houda Nonoo, the country’s ambassador to the US.Read the full story here.

• Deployment of thousands of U.S. troops in Israel, a start of war against Iran?(AlArabiya).As the Middle East roils in crisis when a U.S. aircraft carrier entered a zone near the world’s most important choke point for oil shipments, the Strait of Hormuz, also an offshore region that Iran threatened to close if the United States raises sanctions against the Islamic Republic, the deployment of thousands of U.S. troops in Israel has raised speculations of an imminent war.On December 20, the Jerusalem Post newspaper reported Lt.-Gen. Frank Gorenc, commander of the U.S.’s Third Air Force based in Germany, as saying that there will be a deployment of several thousand American soldiers in Israel.“There is already a U.S. radar station in southern Israel, and might as well contain from 500 to 700 American soldier operating there,” Mathloum said.For Abdulaziz Sager, chairman and founder of the Gulf Research Center in Dubai, the deployment of U.S. troops in Israel is “definitely to send a clear signal to Iran.”But according to Elia Henna, a Lebanon-based expert in military issues, the deployment of 9,000 U.S. troops in Israel goes back to the U.S. withdrawal from Iraq and to further the U.S. presence in the region and not to leave the “Arab field” open to further Iranian influence. Asked on why the United States did not increase its troops numbers in its military bases in the Arab Gulf, Henna said that both countries [Israel and United States.] have far more compatible militaries and are bound with military agreements and that the United States has more freedom in Israel. “Israel does not mind even if one million U.S. soldiers to be deployed in the Jewish state,” he added. Despite U.S.-Israel furthering their combative cooperation in light of the crisis looming around Iran, the Islamic Republic remains unyielding.On Sunday, head of Iran’s Atomic Energy Organization Fereydoun, Abbasi Davani, reportedly said that Iran’s underground uranium enrichment facility will go on stream soon.Davani said that the Fordow nuclear enrichment plant will be operational in the near future and that around 20 percent, 3.5 percent and four percent enriched uranium can be produced at the site.“There is no third party to verify about the site [Fordow] and truth about the announcement,” said Sager, adding “they can say all they want to say but there is no confirmation or verification.”Asked about the nature of the attack against Iran if there will be one, Sager said there will be a surgical and not a complete one since Iran cannot afford to, but it will be leaving the Gulf Arab or the surrounding region of Iran in dire environmental consequence.Hmmmm........"Asked about the nature of the attack against Iran if there will be one, Sager said there will be a surgical and not a complete one since Iran cannot afford to, but it will be leaving the Gulf Arab or the surrounding region of Iran in dire environmental consequence." is he talking nuclear fall out?Read the full story here.

• New Belgian govt. raises its own wages by 8% - paper, implements cuts on everyone else.(RaiNovosti).The new government in Belgium raised its own wages by 8% contrary to promises of 5% cuts under the spending cuts plan, the Het Nieuwsblad op Zondag paper said on Sunday.The ministers’ new wages were approved at a cabinet session on December 16.Therefore annual wages of Belgian deputy prime ministers have been increased from 224,000 euros to 248,000 pretax, ministers’ salaries from 220,000 to 238,000 euros and state secretaries’ from 210,000 to 227,000 euros.The paper did not cite the figures for the premier.Belgian nationalists have already expressed their anger at the new move. Ben Weyts of the New Flemish Alliance opposition party said “ministers are only enriching themselves at a time when others have to save.”On Saturday, the Belgian government decided to freeze about a billion euros of budget expenses for a few months after the European Commission refused to approve the Belgian 2012 budget.The commission disagreed with the Belgian government calculations that the budget deficit would be 2.8 % GDP with 0.8 % economic growth. According to the commission, the budget deficit would reach 3.1% given such growth rate, which is above the 3% margin set by the EU’s Stability and Growth Pact.The European Commission has asked the Belgian government to find 1.2-2 billion euros to cover the budget deficit by January 9.Read the full story here.

MFS - The Other News

                         Afternoon Posting.

• HT:BigGovernment.Video : Obama: Wisconsin is Launching an ‘Assault on Unions’.Shortly after the state of Arizona began cracking down on illegal immigration, President Obama and company went on the offensive against the state.Now, with the Gov. Scott Walker taking on unions in Wisconsin, it was only a matter of time before Obama gave his two cents. He has taken the side of the state government unions against Walker’s plan that would force state workers to cover half of their pension contributions and 13 percent of their own health insurance cuts. The plan would also strip government workers of the power to collectively bargain for higher wages unless the public approved it through a vote.When asked about the public employee benefits cuts in Wisconsin and the resulting union protests President Obama said he saw the cuts as an “assault on unions”.After these comments it seems that Wisconsin Governor Scott Walker is going to become the next conservative sweetheartHmmmmm......."Don't touch my Socialist troops"?Read the full story here.

• US pledges $150 million to help Egypt's transition.The United States will spend $150 million to assist Egypt's democratic transformation after the ouster of President Hosni Mubarak, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said on Thursday."It's very clear that there's a great deal of work ahead to ensure an orderly, democratic transition. It's also clear that Egypt will be grappling with immediate and long-term economic challenges," Clinton told reporters after briefing lawmakers on Capitol Hill."I'm pleased to announce today we will be reprogramming $150 million for Egypt to put ourselves in a position to support the transition there and assist with their economic recovery," Clinton said.The United States has urged Egypt's military rulers to push ahead with plans for democratic reforms that can ultimately lead to free and fair elections in the country, which under Mubarak was a longtime U.S. ally.Clinton said Bill Burns, the under-secretary of State for political affairs, and David Lipton, a White House adviser on international economic affairs, would travel to Egypt next week to consult with various stakeholders on how too use the funds.Hmmmmm......Don't tell me he's giving the Muslim Brotherhood 150 Million Dollar US taxpayer money?Read the full story here.

• HT:ForeignPolicy.Ros-Lehtinen: Obama proposed “major concession to enemies of the Jewish state”.The chairwoman of the House Foreign Affairs Committee lashed out at the Obama administration on Thursday over reports the United States offered to support a U.N. Security Council statement critical of Israeli settlements.The Obama administration's policy has long been to oppose much of Israel's ongoing settlement activity. But the revelation that the administration contemplated criticizing Israel at the U.N. has many members of Congress incensed, especially Rep. Ileana Ros-Lehtinen (R-FL). "Support for this anti-Israel statement is a major concession to enemies of the Jewish State and other free democracies. It telegraphs that the U.S. can be bullied into abandoning critical democratic allies and core U.S. principles," she said in a statement on Thursday. "Pretending that criticism of Israel is OK if it comes in a ‘Presidential Statement' instead of a resolution isn't leadership, it's unacceptable. Twisting and turning and tying yourself in knots to avoid using our veto to defend our allies and interests isn't leadership, it's unacceptable. The administration should change course, stand unequivocally with Israel, and publicly pledge to block any anti-Israel UN Security Council action," she said.Quick congressional criticism of the administration based on the report isn't limited to Republicans. "This is too clever by half," said Rep. Anthony Weiner (D-NY). "Instead of doing the correct and principled thing and vetoing an inappropriate and wrong resolution, they now have opened the door to more and more anti-Israeli efforts coming to the floor of the U.N. The correct venue for discussions about settlements and the other aspects of a peace plan is at the negotiating table. Period." Rep. Nita Lowey (D-NY), the House Appropriations State and Foreign Ops subcommittee ranking Democrat, agreed. "Compromising our support for Israel at the U.N. is not an option. The United States must veto the U.N. resolution on settlements to make clear we will not support such a blatant attempt to derail the peace process," she said.Hmmmm........"They don't trust me because of my middle name"?Read the full story here.

• Big Brother going NANO? Is it a bird? Is it a plane? No, it's the army's latest $4million spy drone disguised as a hummingbird, measuring just 16 centimetres.A pocket-sized spy drone disguised as a hummingbird has been unveiled by a major Pentagon contractor measuring just 16 centimetres and weighing less than an AA battery.The mini spy plane can fly up to 11 miles an hour and took five years to develop at a cost of $4million.Army chiefs hope to use the drone’s tiny camera to spy on enemy positions in war zones without arousing detection and eventually deploy it into both rural and urban environments.Around 86 per cent of its orders come from the Government, meaning last year it was paid a whopping $215million from the Department of Defense.The company, based in California with 732 full-time employees, expects to sell even more drones to the Government once rules are relaxed to allow spying within America.The unveiling of the Hummingbird comes just weeks after the same company launched its $30million Global Observer with a wingspan similar to a Boeing 747 which can survey an area as large as Afghanistan.Chris Fisher, project manager at AeroVironment explained: ‘It gives the guy on the ground the opportunity to see what’s on the other side of the hill. There’s only so much you can see with binoculars. A small [drone] can get up and go over the hill. That gives the ground soldier a capability that is huge.He added: ‘One of the things we benefit from is the average young person in the military has hours and hours of video games experience. They are attuned to holding these things in their hands; moving the joysticks around with their thumbs and that’s how our planes are flown. To an 18-year-old it’s extremely simple.Hmmmm.....Why the sudden increase of spying capabilities on American civilians?Is the police state near?Read the full story here.

• HT:Memri.Mavi Marmara Delegation Leader Nurettin Sirin Writes From Tehran: “ALLAHUAKBAR! Now Is The Time To Eliminate Israel..!”In an article titled “ALLAHUAKBAR! Now Is The Time To Eliminate Israel..! sent from Tehran, the radical Islamist activist Nureddin Sirin wrote, “As guests of the International Islamic Radio and Television Union, we are here in Tehran, together with the Mavi Marmara freedom fleet’s mujahedeen, ghazis and families of the shahids, to participate in the anniversary ceremonies of the (Iranian) Islamic Revolution, and to celebrate with unparalleled joy and pride, the ousting of the Pharoah Mubarak through the holy intifada of freedom-loving Egyptian people. We are sending (to Turkey) our proud salutations from this land of revolution.“We are delivering to you the promising words of the President of the Islamic Republic of Iran Dr. Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, that ‘only a short time is left for the building of a Middle East without Israel or America in it’ and we are praying for the quick arrival of that bright day, when all of us will meet in a free al Quds (Jerusalem). We are sending our salutations to the people of Palestine – that feels the utmost joy for the demise of Egypt’s pharoah Mubarak – and the defiant Muslim heroes of Gaza.”Sirin ends his article with the following lines:“(…) Salutations to the shimmering dawn of revolution, that’s upon the world of Islam!“Salutations to the Free Quds!“Salutations to a Middle East, without Israel!“WAIT FOR US ISRAEL, EVERYWHERE YOU’RE WAITING,“WAIT FOR US ISRAEL, EVERYWHERE WHERE YOU ARE NOT WAITING..!”Hmmmm.....Yup real peacefull humanitarian group.Read the full story here.

• Human Rights Watch Appoints ‘Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde’ to MidEast Advisory Board.Jerusalem – Signaling the continuing decline of the organization, Human Rights Watch (HRW) has appointed Shawan Jabarin, an alleged senior activist in the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP) terrorist organization, to its Middle East Advisory Board. This appointment, as first reported in the Daily Beast, is further evidence of the moral collapse and corruption in HRW, says Jerusalem-based NGO Monitor, a research institution that tracks NGOs.“This appointment ends any façade that Human Rights Watch is a moral ‘watchdog’ organization,” says Prof. Gerald Steinberg, president of NGO Monitor. “Mr. Jabarin has ties to the PFLP terror group, which specialized in aircraft hijackings and carries out suicide bombings and political assassinations. He also heads an organization, Al Haq, which is among the leaders of delegitimization campaigns targeting Israel. This appointment is a slap in the face from HRW Executive Director Ken Roth and Chairman James Hoge to terror victims, Israelis, Jews, and others who seek to uphold universal human rights.”With this appointment, HRW blatantly disregards decisions by the Israeli Supreme Court and other countries that have affirmed Jabarin’s terror links. Jordan also has denied him exit visas because of his alleged ties to the PFLP.As reported by NGO Monitor, the Israeli Supreme Court in June 2007 referred to Jabarin as a “Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde,” a human rights worker by day and a terrorist by night. In 2008, the Supreme Court upheld a visa denial because of his terror connections.“By appointing Jabarin, HRW has contemptuously dismissed the widely respected Israeli Supreme Court” Steinberg adds. “The assault on the courts is a key component of the strategy of demonizing Israel, as developed at the NGO Forum of the 2001 Durban Conference. HRW played a central role in Durban, and this is another step in the organization’s implementation of this strategy.”“Unfortunately, Jabarin’s appointment is the latest and most egregious immoral act for an organization that already lost its moral compass,” adds Steinberg. “HRW founder Robert Bernstein has denounced the biases and failures of his own organization, lamenting the organization’s failure to hold accountable closed societies and oppressive regimes. The appointment of an individual with ties to terror reinforces Mr. Bernstein’s assessment of HRW.”As donations decreased amid the scandals, George Soros rescued HRW with a 10-year, $100 million donation. Mr. Soros also funds Al Haq.“Perhaps Mr. Soros and his cohorts should reevaluate their contributions, particularly as these groups strengthen ties with individuals linked to terror,” Steinberg adds. “This is the antithesis of advancing universal human rights.”Hmmmmm.....When will this "travesty of justice" end?Read the full scandal story here.

• Bahrain military locks down capital.Following deadly pre-dawn raid on Manama's central square, army says it has 'key parts' of city under control. Protesters, banned from gathering, chant 'regime must go'.Army patrols and tanks locked down the capital of Bahrain after riot police swinging clubs and firing tear gas smashed into demonstrators, many of them sleeping, in a pre-dawn assault Thursday that uprooted their protest camp demanding political change. Medical officials said four people were killed.Hours after the attack on Manama's main Pearl Square, the military announced a ban on gatherings, saying on state TV that it had "key parts" of the capital under its control. After several days of holding back, the island nation's Sunni rulers unleashed a heavy crackdown, trying to stamp out the first anti-government upheaval to reach the Arab states of the Gulf since the uprisings in Tunisia and Egypt. The move was a sign of how deeply the Sunni monarchy - and other Arab regimes in the Gulf - fear the repercussions of a prolonged wave of protests, led by members of the country's Shiite majority. Tiny Bahrain is a pillar of Washington's military framework in the region. It hosts the US Navy's 5th Fleet, which is a critical counterbalance to Iran. Bahrain's rulers and their Arab allies depict any sign of unrest among their Shiite populations as a move by neighboring Shiite-majority Iran to expand its clout in the region.But the assault may only further enflame protesters. In the wake of the bloodshed, angry demonstrators chanted "the regime must go" and burned pictures of King Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa outside the emergency ward at Salmaniyah hospital, the main state medical facility. The hospital was thrown into chaos by a stream of dozens of wounded from Pearl Square with gaping wounds, broken bones and respiratory problems from tear gas. Men and women lay in shock on stretchers, heads bleeding, arms in casts, faces bruised as they were shuttled around by nurses. At the entrance, women wrapped in black robes embraced each other and wept.US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton telephoned her Bahraini counterpart on Thursday to express deep concern after the violent raid, the State Department said. "She expressed deep concern about recent events and urged restraint moving forward. They discussed political and economic reform efforts to respond to the citizens of Bahrain," a senior State Department official, speaking on condition of anonymity, said.Hmmmm........How much damage has Obama done with his "Outreach to Muslims"?Read the full story here.Tanks in Bahrain streetsVideo footage here.

• Wind Power FAIL!Northern New Brunswick wind turbines frozen solid.FREDERICTON — A $200-million wind farm in northern New Brunswick is frozen solid, cutting off a potential supply of renewable energy for NB Power.The 25-kilometre stretch of wind turbines, located 70 kilometres northwest of Bathurst, N.B. has been completely shutdown for several weeks due to heavy ice covering the blades.GDF SUEZ Energy, the company that owns and operates the site, is working to return the windmills to working order, a spokeswoman says."We can't control the weather," Julie Vitek said in an interview from company headquarters in Houston, Texas. "We're looking to see if we can cope with it more effectively, through the testing of a couple of techniques."She says the conditions in northern New Brunswick have wreaked havoc on the wind farm this winter."For us, cold and dry weather is good and that's what's typical in the region. Cold and wet weather can be a problem without any warmer days to prompt thawing, which has been the case this year."This weather pattern has been particularly challenging."Wintery conditions also temporarily shutdown the site last winter, just months after its completion. Some or all of the turbines were offline for several days, with "particularly severe icing" blamed.The accumulated ice alters the aerodynamics of the blades, rendering them ineffective as airfoils. The added weight further immobilizes the structures.Vitek says workers are trying to find a way to prevent ice buildup from occurring again in the future. The shutdown has not had any effect on employment at the site, which provides 12 permanent jobs.Hmmmm......No word if they use electric cars by chance?Read the full story here.

• HT:TheAmericanDream.Betrayed! Tea Party Politicians Vote To Renew The Patriot Act As America Is Slowly Transformed Into A Big Brother Police State Worse Than George Orwell’s 1984.For a moment, imagine that you are awakened one night by a heavily-armed team of federal agents dressed in all black breaking into your home. As you confront them, they hand you a piece of paper that says that your son has been identified as a "terrorist" and that they are there to take him away. They pull your son out of bed, they throw him on the floor and the use a taser on him repeatedly. Then they handcuff him and haul him away without telling you a thing about where they are taking him. Your son suddenly has no rights because the Patriot Act supersedes the U.S. Constitution. That's right - because your son has been identified as a "terrorist" because of something that he has said on the Internet he no longer has any constitutional rights. Your underage son is held indefinitely and is subjected to "enhanced interrogation" because he has been identified as a "threat". You are not able to get your son back for years even though it turns out that he is completely and totally innocent. If you think that such a thing cannot happen to you then you are a fool, because this kind of thing is happening over and over across the United States and it is all legal because of the Patriot Act.America is rapidly turning into a horrible Big Brother police state and most of our politicians are fully supporting this transformation. In fact, the U.S. House of Representatives gave us quite a Valentine's Day gift the other day when it voted to once again extend provisions of the Patriot Act that allow for domestic surveillance of American citizens, wire tapping of American citizens and warrantless searches of the homes of American citizens.What was perhaps most disappointing was that a large number of "Tea Party politicians" cast votes in favor of renewing the Patriot Act provisions.The majority of Americans were absolutely disgusted when the Bush administration instituted the Patriot Act and many other police state measures and they voted for Barack Obama hoping for something different.Well, it turns out that Barack Obama has been even worse.Many of us had hoped that Tea Party politicians would be different and would stand up for our liberties and freedoms, but now we can clearly see that many of them will not.In the past, Americans would ready George Orwell's 1984 and would think that nothing like that could ever happen in the United States of America.Well, it is happening in the United States of America.Are you going to stand up and say anything about it?Read the full story here.

• Egypt: Iran naval vessels submit request to transit Suez.Egyptian Foreign Ministry confirms that authorities received request; Suez Canal official says Defense Ministry to process application.In Tehran, Iran's official English-language Press TV cited an Iranian naval official saying the two warships are to pass through the canal. The official said Tehran was in contact with Egypt about the ships.Earlier, a canal official had said the Iranians had withdrawn a request to transit the waterway, without giving an explanation for the application's withdrawal. The official spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to brief the media.Ahmed al-Manakhly, a senior Suez Canal official, said international agreements regulate the traffic through the canal. He said that only in the case of war with Egypt may vessels be denied transit through the waterway.Al-Manakhly noted that Iran and Egypt are not at war, and said the final decision on whether to grant the vessels' passage lies with the Defense Ministry.He said he will not allow any warships to transit the canal without approval from the Defense Ministry.The Suez Canal official identified the two vessels as the Alvand, a frigate, and the Kharq, a supply ship, and said they were en route to Syria. Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman said Wednesday that Iran was about to send two naval vessels through the Suez Canal for the first time in years, calling it a "provocation."Hmmmmm........Read the full story here.More here.

• Pakistan Delays Decision on U.S. Murder Suspect.A Pakistani court on Thursday delayed a hearing to decide whether a U.S. man charged with murdering two locals should be granted diplomatic immunity, triggering fresh tension among officials over the Asian country's ties to the United States.Raymond Davis, who the American government insists is a diplomat immune to local prosecution and should be immediately repatriated to the U.S., was arrested in Pakistan for last month's murder of two Pakistani nationals in Lahore. Thursday's decision by a Lahore court to put off hearing the case until March 14 means the Davis case will inevitably drag on, dashing hopes among senior officials in both Islamabad and Washington for a quick resolution."I leave here with confidence that if people act with both conviction and courage and vision, we will be able to move forward, said Kerry before leaving Pakistan on Wednesday. "I look forward to the next few days hopefully to finding ways that we all agreed on, that we can find in order to resolve this issue that's in front of us," he added, referring to the Davis case. Ahead of the Senator's departure, a senior Pakistani official told CBS News that President Asif Ali Zardari's government had decided to officially grant Davis immunity -- a crucial step to ultimately enable his exit from the country and avoid prosecution in Lahore.Hmmmmm.........How long before Pakistan explodes?Read the full story here.

• Report: Mubarak refused to talk to Obama.Al-Quds al-Arabi says former Egyptian leader felt 'humiliated' by US president's call to resign.Former Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak refused to accept a phone call from US President Barack Obama, the London-based al-Quds al-Arabi reported Thursday.The report says Mubarak feels "humiliated and embittered at Obama's most recent statement about the need for him to resign immediately", so he rejected the call. The report adds that the former president is residing at his palace in Sharm el-Sheikh and maintaining a similar lifestyle, though he has hired additional guards. Israel has also approved the entry of two Egyptian army battalions into the southernmost Sinai city in order to help guard the palace. Mubarak's health is deteriorating rapidly, the report says, and has been since he was forced to leave his Cairo residence. Saudi King Abdullah has offered him asylum in his country, but the former leader refused, saying he would like to die on Egyptian land.In addition, Mubarak continues to employ the aides who worked under him during his term as president, the report says, adding that the military has apparently "decided to grant Mubarak an honorable resignation" as no one has threatened him with charges of unlawful activity, though other officials have been accused of corruption. Meanwhile, CBS has broadcast footage of Mubarak leaving Cairo by chopper, apparently on his way to Sharm el-Sheikh. The footage was apparently filmed last week, immediately after Mubarak relayed power to his deputy, Omar Suleiman.Hmmmm......When will Israeli leaders grow enough spine to refuse to answer the call also?Read the full story here.

• Republican congressmen sign on to Israel aid letter.GOP newcomers to US House of Representatives call on party leadership to maintain current level of defense assistance to Israel.Among the 87 freshmen, 65 have signed the letter initiated by Reps. Robert Dold (R-Ill.) and Austin Scott (R-Ga.) to the party's House leadership. "As Israel faces threats from escalating instability in Egypt, Hezbollah rockets in Lebanon, Hamas terrorists in Gaza and the existential danger posed by Iran's nuclear program, full US security assistance to Israel, including supporting Israel's acquisition of the Iron Dome defense system, has never been more important for our own national security interests," said the letter asking fellow freshmen to sign, which was still accruing signatures as of Tuesday.The appeal -- and the support it garnered -- is significant because it answers questions pro-Israel groups had about the 2011 class of GOP freshmen, many of them spurred to office by the Tea Party movement, which has cost cutting as its central focus.The letter is a sign that US President Barack Obama's proposal this week to maintain levels of funding for Israel, currently at about $3 billion annually, will be untouched.Dold joined Rep. Gary Peters (D-Mich.), who is not a freshman lawmaker, in sending a similar letter last week to House appropriators.Hmmmm......Lets first see what "They don't trust me because of my middle name does"before celebrating.Read the full story here.

• All Free Speech Systems are Works in Progress: Prof. Craig LaMay.Kourosh Ziabari: Dear Craig; there’s a belief with regards to the mass media in the Western countries in general, and the United States in particular, which is undisputedly accepted by the international community: the widely-accepted belief is that the Western media are unrestrictedly free to publish whatever they want, to publish the viewpoints of the opponents of the government, the political dissidents and anti-governmental activists, without being harassed. Is it true that the mass media in the West are absolutely free to publish whatever they want? Isn’t there any implicit pressure on the media to publish the news and analysis in a way which is favorable to the interests of the government?

Craig LaMay: That belief is overstated. In the United States, for example, it has always been the law that restraints on publication, gag orders, are facially unconstitutional, and where they occur they get an immediate judicial review. Nonetheless, it is also the law that some materials are subject to what we call prior restraints, or injunctions against publication. Those materials fall into three broad categories: obscenity (which is subject to community standards, and thus what is ‘obscene’ in Alabama might not be so in New York); incitements to violence, but only when violence is likely and imminent, not when speech is mere advocacy, even advocacy that the government be overthrown by force; and risks to national security. The last of these is the most contentious for journalists, since even benign governments are apt to see national security threats where there are none. In Western Europe, there is no rule against prior restraints even if the principle against them is generally accepted. So information that is libelous or invasive of privacy can be enjoined before publication. Particularly notable is the high regard that EU law, and many national laws, have for personal privacy, not only for private citizens but also for celebrities and public officials.

In the majority of European countries, there are laws which restrict the publication of materials, articles, news and op-eds about Holocaust. Much of the journalists and academicians who publish materials which dispute the veracity of Holocaust get incarcerated immediately and have their respective media outlets banned or penalized with punitive measures. Isn’t this a violation of freedom of press and information on behalf of those who introduce themselves as the pioneers of freedom of speech?

CL: Interesting question. From the American point of view, the answer would be yes. But law is never abstract; it is always born of experience. The natural state of Europe for the last thousand years has been war, under Charlemagne, then Napoleon, then Hitler. The core purpose of the EU is to prevent future conflict, and in that system, and given the European experience with hate speech, it is hardly surprising that nation states from France to Austria would ban speech directed at certain minority populations. I get that. BUT, this does not explain the virulent anti-immigrant and racist speech you find all over Europe at any football game, for example, but also in public discourse. Sarkozy’s expulsion of the Roma last fall was the largest mass expulsion in Europe since the Holocaust, and yet it seemed to trouble few Europeans. The rise of anti-immigrant parties all over Europe is also a concern. So the problem the Europeans have, it seems to me, is that they have chosen to ban some hate speech directed at some minorities, but not all. I would say, however, that ALL free speech systems, including the United States’, are works in progress. The ideal of Europe regarding speech is contained in Article 10 of the EDHR, but it is far from realized.

What’s in your view, the main difference between the local newspapers and magazines, with the national/international media outlets? Aside from the extent and area of their coverage which varies from the local media to the national and international media, what are the major differences in the mechanisms of performance, distribution of facilities and approaches to the current affairs in these media?

CL: The main difference I think is economic and have to do with audiences. Local media are often hyper-local, since that’s what people want to know about — their own neighborhoods, not the goings on in Washington or Tehran. And people consume much more local than national media. Our national media run the gamut from very good (eg, the NYTimes) to very bad (FOX News), but the difference there is, to me, economic. Each of those two media serve a small but well-paying audience. That market is only so big, and at the local level it is often too small to sustain anything of quality.Read the full story here.

• Turkish religious head criticizes remarks blaming women for sex crimes.A professor’s controversial remarks on sex crimes have drawn strong criticism, including from the head of Turkey’s top religious body.Religious Affairs Director Professor Mehmet Görmez said Thursday criticisms and bans in Islam preventing women from exposing their sexuality cannot be used as an excuse for harassment or rape.His comments came after a professor from Konya’s Selçuk University Faculty of Theology claimed women wearing clothes that reveal their cleavage were provoking harassment.“Who is the focus of the problem? Women,” said Professor Orhan Çeker. “If you wear clothes that reveal your cleavage, it would not be a surprise for you to encounter such ugliness. It would not be reasonable for you to complain about the result after your provocation.”Görmez, speaking to reporters following a meeting with Chinese Islam Association Chairman Hilalunddin Chen Guangyan, said sexual harassment and rape were a crime committed against all humanity.Çeker’s remarks drew criticism from several female deputies of the ruling Justice and Development Party, or AKP, as well as Higher Education Board, or YÖK, chair Professor Yusuf Ziya Özcan, who ordered an investigation into the comments.Selçuk University Rector Süleyman Okudan has ordered a probe into Çeker’s remarks, the Anatolia news agency reported Thursday.Zafer Üskül, head of Parliament's Human Rights Commission, said Çeker’s remarks were unacceptable and women were not the only target of rape and sexual harassment.“This is a sick mentality that perceives women as sex objects,” Üskül told Anatolia news agency.Emphasizing that Çeker’s comments violated women’s rights and human rights in general, Üskül said every kind of rape and harassment was a crime and no situation could make the victim responsible for a crime. Such comments are humiliating and they should be severely protested, he added.Hmmmmm......Perhaps he should look at the sexual harrasment numbers in countries where women wear the burka?Read the full story here.

• HT:TheAmericanDream.47 Statistics That Indicate That Economic Stress Points In 2011 Could Be Setting The Stage For A Global Economic Meltdown In 2012.Is the world approaching a devastating global economic meltdown? Right now there are a large number of factors that are creating economic stress points all over the globe. All of the crazy money printing that the Federal Reserve and other central banks have been doing is putting inflationary pressure on agricultural commodities, oil and precious metals. Massive floods, horrific droughts and extreme weather patterns all over the globe are ruining crops and creating food shortages. Some nations are now actually hoarding food, and in other nations rising prices have sparked food riots. The price of oil has been moving back towards $100 a barrel, and if it stays at a high level for an extended period of time that is going to have very serious consequences for the global economy. In addition, the growing sovereign debt crisis could erupt again at any time. Half a dozen nations in Europe are on the verge of insolvency, Japan's national debt is now well over 200 percent of GDP, and the global financial system is growing increasingly concerned about the exploding national debt of the United States. The truth is that the entire world financial system is a house of cards balanced on a razor's edge and it could come down at any time.Sadly, very little has changed since the world financial system experienced almost a complete meltdown back in 2008. Global financial markets are still a whirlpool of debt and speculation. One really bad week could put us right back where we were prior to the infamous Wall Street bailouts. Very little in our world is truly stable anymore. As we have seen recently in Egypt, the globe can literally change almost overnight. All it would take is for one really bad event to happen and world financial markets would instantly start imploding. So when will the coming economic collapse happen? Nobody knows for sure, but the fact that the global economy is increasingly becoming less stable as we approach the year 2012 is making a lot of people very nervous.The following are 47 statistics that indicate that economic stress points in 2011 could be setting the stage for a global economic meltdown in 2012....Hmmmm.....If it even takes that long?Read the full story here.

• And now for something completely different.'Holy dove' drives yeshiva wild. Jerusalem yeshiva students view new classmate as 'a sign from God'."It's a real wonder," one of the students at the haredi Kamenitz Yeshiva says about his new classmate – a white dove. "This holy bird just listens to full lessons." Several weeks ago, during a Torah lesson in the Jerusalem yeshiva, a white dove entered the house of study, sat on the window sill and flew out at the end of the lesson. The following days, the bird would arrive at the yeshiva and stand in the corner for the entire lesson – prompting the excited yeshiva students to view it as a sign from God. They created a "studying circle" around the bird and began reading Talmud verses and begging forgiveness from the soul which they believed "wandered" into the dove. Surprisingly, these actions did not help send the mysterious bird away. Rumors about the righteous bird became the talk of the day in Jerusalem, and students watching the dove with binoculars discovered that it would visit the rooftop of the nearby Vizhnitz yeshiva as well. The yeshiva students tried to test the bird once again and sealed all the entrances to the yeshiva, but it "miraculously" managed to get in and attend its regular class on time."A few days ago," haredi newspaper Bakehila reported, "one of the yeshiva students, who could not bear the great waste of time that could be spent on studying Torah, went over and kindly took (the bird) to his home, where he fed it." The yeshiva student even took the dove to a slaughterer, but it turned out that the magnificent bird does not meet the rules of kashrut and the yeshiva is now contemplating what to do with it.Read the full story here.