MFS - The Other News

                      Morning  Posting.

• Live broadcast info from Japan directly ! Here.

• Libya Live Blog - April 22. Here .(Al-Jazeera).

• Syria Live Blog - April 22. Here (Al-Jazeera).

• Updated !Earthquakes in the last 24 hours in the world low seismic activity in Japan  today between 4.5 and 4.7! More info here.

• Japan - Latest official Situation Update No. 95.On 22.04.2011 at 03:07 GMT+2
  
  Tokyo Electric Power Company says radioactive substances that leaked into the sea at the damaged Fukushima plant over six days from April 1st are estimated at 4,700 terabecquerels. This is 20,000 times more than the annual allowable limit at the complex, NHK reported. At a news conference on Thursday, Tokyo Electric said it calculated the total amount of leaked water assuming that the leak began on April 1st. The leak of contaminated water from a pit of the Number 2 reactor was found on April 2nd and was stopped four days later using liquid glass. The utility firm said that 520 tons of the high-level radioactive water is likely to have leaked into the sea during the period. The estimated level of radiation in the water is roughly one 100th of what the government announced on Tuesday of last week as the total amount of radiation released into the air from the Daiichi complex. The figure is about 10,000 times more than that released in the Three Mile Island accident in 1979. Levels of iodine131 were found to be 7.5 million times the safety limit on April 2nd near the water intake of the Number 2 reactor. Tokyo Electric has since set up underwater barriers near the intake to prevent the spread of radioactive water in the sea. The radiation level of seawater in the area has been gradually falling and, as of Tuesday, the iodine level was 1,200 times the limit. Tokyo Electric says radioactive water may possibly be still leaking out through unidentified routes. The firm is trying to determine the routes and to continue monitoring data and grasping the impact of the radioactive water on marine life and the sea.
  
  Situation Update No. 94 - On 21.04.2011 at 13:32 GMT+2
  
  Radioactive water 20,000 times the allowable limit leaked into the Pacific Ocean from Japan's Fukushima nuclear plant, Tokyo Electric Power said Thursday. The plant operator estimated the early April leakage lasted for six days through April 6 and amounted to 520 tons, Japan's Kyodo News Agency reported. Japan's worst nuclear crisis was triggered by a massive 9-magnitude earthquake and tsunami on March 11. In a related development, Prime Minister Naoto Kan announced his government will enforce a no-entry zone within a 12.4-mile radius of the crippled nuclear plant, prohibiting evacuees from returning to their homes without government permission. The restriction has been in force since the early days of the disaster but has often been ignored. Many of the 78,000 residents who have homes in the evacuation zone have gone back in recent weeks to retrieve their belongings and check on businesses. Chief Cabinet Secretary Yukio Edano told reporters entry into the area will now be highly regulated. People who temporarily return will have to wear protective suits and ride into the restricted zone on a designated bus.Source : Here .

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

• The first Amendmend Just passed away in Dearbornistan!Pastor Terry Jones' rally becomes battle over free speech.With some of metro Detroit’s biggest political and religious leaders united behind Muslims in Dearborn, Florida Pastor Terry Jones is expected to appear in court this morning for a jury trial that will determine whether he can hold a rally at the largest mosque in the city.This “bigot does not represent” us, Imam Hassan Qazwini, head of the Islamic Center of America in Dearborn, declared to a crowd of about 700 metro Detroiters at a rally that drew U.S. Rep. John Dingell, a Dearborn Democrat, and the local heads of the Catholic and Episcopal churches.Qazwini’s mosque is where Jones wants to rally today against what he calls “the radical element in Islam.” Jones appeared in court Thursday and refused to post a bond for the massive security effort Dearborn says it would have to deploy if Jones were allowed to rally. The judge then ordered the trial.Dearborn officials and Wayne County prosecutors sought to convince Jones to post a bond for security costs if he wants to protest in Dearborn. And they urged him to rally not at the Islamic Center of America — his desired spot — but instead in front of their City Hall or civic center. Dearborn District Judge Mark Somers sided with government officials, finding their arguments compelling. The officials argued that for logistical and security reasons, Jones should not be allowed to rally at the Islamic center.The government should “not impinge on a person’s right to protest, even when their speech is as distasteful and offensive as Rev. Jones’ is,” said Rana Elmir, communications director for the Michigan ACLU. “We should combat hate speech with more speech. I disagree vehemently with Rev. Jones’ message, but I believe wholeheartedly in his right to express himself.” Dearborn Police Chief Ron Haddad said there are serious problems with having Jones protest outside the Islamic Center of America, noting that Jones has received numerous death threats and has a $1.2-million bounty on his head from a Pakistan-based terrorist group. Moreover, the mosque is surrounded by several churches that have Good Friday services, making traffic an issue, he argued. The site also is logistically a challenge because of its layout, he said. The city already had denied Jones a permit to protest. “It would have been chaos,” Dearborn Mayor Jack O’Reilly Jr. told the Free Press on Thursday. “We just couldn’t do that.” O’Reilly, an attorney, said the government has to make “reasonable accommodation” for free-speech rights, which he says the city routinely does by providing free-speech zones in front of Dearborn City Hall and the civic center. Dearborn is known for its frequent rallies and protests, especially as they relate to the Middle East. “We know the Constitution,” O’Reilly said. “A lot of people really don’t understand the Constitution.” But Elmir of the ACLU said: “We can’t forget both religious freedom and the right to protest. The City of Dearborn should honor both of those rights equally.” Elmir said the ACLU is concerned about anti-Muslim hate speech and discrimination, but the solution is not censorship. “The government cannot silence demonstrations in anticipation that their message will not be welcome,” she said.Majed Moughni, a Dearborn attorney, agreed that Jones has the right to protest. Moughni is not a fan of Jones, having burned him in effigy last year because he had threatened to burn the Quran. But Moughni said it’s wrong for the city and county to try to hinder Jones’ rights. “Instead of him being the bad guy, now he’s the hero,” Moughni said. “They’ve turned him into a hero of the First Amendment. “The prosecutors should withdraw their demands and let him speak as he wishes, which is his right under the Constitution.” Michael Steinberg, legal director with the ACLU of Michigan, said the government’s actions are unconstitutional. “In a free society, the government can’t place a price on a person’s ability to speak,” Steinberg said.Hmmmm.....Meanwhile the First Amendmend has been burried in a 'private' ceremony in the courthouse according to the Sharia law rites?Read the full story here.More here .

• Related - Islamophobes in Michigan Assert Muslims More Violent Than the Rest of Us.(TheJawaReport).I am constantly being called an Islamophobe because I don't like religious law and I have the audacity to suggest that political Islam might be a causal factor in the majority of today's terrorism.Okay, if I get this story right then:

A) Terry Jones, the Quran burning pastor is holding a protest in Dearborn, Michigan, a city with one of the highest Muslim populations in the US.

B) The city is worried that Muslims might riot in response.

C) So, the city says it will only give Jones a permit if he posts a bond to cover additional security measures.

D) Jones is refusing to pay the bond and faces jail time.

So, if I'm reading all of this right .....Then the City of Dearborn is saying that Muslims are like children in that they can't help but rioting when they get offended? Jones is following the law and exercising his right to protest, while those he's protesting against can't be trusted to do the same? The city is in fact asserting as a matter beyond dispute that Muslims are less responsible than other citizens. If this is the case, then why isn't the so-called "Muslim community" being forced to pay the bond? They are the ones the city alleges will be breaking the law, so why shouldn't they be the ones paying for extra police protection?Read the full story here.

• Mubarak about to be transferred to the Tora Prison hospital?Egyptian Prosecutor-General Abdel-Magid Mahmoud has appointed a leading forensic doctor to assess the state of the Tora Prison hospital contemplating the transfer of the ousted Mubarak there. The doctor is expected to ascertain whether the hospital is equipped to tend to Mubarak's health care and needs.The 83-year-old is currently under arrest at a hospital in the Red Sea resort of Sharm el-Sheikh and has been remanded for 15 days in jail pending investigations on April 13. The deposed Mubarak is due to be questioned about allegations of corruption and alleged violence against protesters during the popular uprising which began January 25 and led to his stepping down February 11.The former president’s two sons, Alaa and Gamal, are also serving a 15-day detention order in Tora Prison. According to Egypt's state news agency Mena reported on Thursday Mubarak’s health is unstable.In a new bout of corruption exposed both wives of Mubarak’s sons have been summoned for questioning over the vast amounts of assets and funds accumulated during Mubarak’s reign.Related, a court in Egypt has ruled that the names of the ousted Mubarak and his wife Suzanne be removed from all public places. Hundreds of public squares, streets, libraries and schools across Egypt are named after the couple. It is expected that Mubarak’s name would also be removed from all ministry facilities, including a major underground station in central Cairo. According to Judge Mohammed Hassan Omar said who ordered the removal it has become clear that the size of the corruption that's being uncovered every day exceeds by far anyone's imagination. BBC in Cairo reports that there have been suggestions for streets to be renamed after the people who were killed in the recent anti-government protests.Thursday’s papers also reported that one of the Egypt’s most prestigious awards, the Mubarak Award, has been abolished adding the cabinet announced it approved a diktat law on the establishment of the Nile Prize in the fields of literature and the arts and social sciences, science and technology in its place.Source.

• Pharao Obama's plan: Palestinian state, without right of return.(Ynetnews).White House works out peace deal that focuses on Israel accepting Palestinian state, Palestinians giving up right of return. PM plans to present own peace plan before Kensset, US Congress.WASHINGTON - The White House has been working on a new peace initiative for the past three months, one that revolves around a few key principles: A Palestinian state without the right of return, Jerusalem as the capital of both states, and an emphasis on Israel's security needs.According to an article published in the New York Times Thursday, the details of the proposal are yet to be hashed out.Officials at the Prime Minister's Office did not rush to respond to the NY Times report. Thursday evening, sources in Jerusalem said that Israel was not surprised by the American plan currently being worked out. "Everyone knew something is being formulated in Washington," one official said. At this time it's unclear whether Prime Minister Netanyahu was aware of the initiative and gave it his blessing. Some officials estimated that the Obama plan is meant to affect the PM's upcoming speech, which is expected to feature Israel's new peace initiative.Though US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton announced last week that President Barack Obama will be “speaking in greater detail about America’s policy in the Middle East and North Africa in the coming weeks,” it is still unclear whether Obama will use the occasion to present a new peace plan. An unnamed official told the Times that both Obama and Clinton are in favor of such move, while the president’s senior adviser on the Middle East, Dennis Ross, is against it.According to the article, if Obama does, in fact, present a peace initiative, it will discuss four terms of reference: Israel's acceptance of a Palestinian state within the 1967 borders; Palestinian acceptance that there would be no right to return to Israeli land; Jerusalem as the capital of both states; and the protection of Israel's security needs.Read the full 'story' here.

• White House readies ‘US Shake Out’ to prepare citizens for earthquakes.(TheHill)The Departments of Homeland Security and Education are reaching out to millions of people in central U.S. states to get them to participate in an earthquake preparedness drill.In an event called the “Great Central U.S. Shake Out,” Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano and Education Secretary Arne Duncan are reaching out to areas in the Midwest that could be impacted by an earthquake along the New Madrid fault line.According to the event’s website, more than 2.5 million people have committed to taking part in Thursday’s drill in which participants will be told how to react in the event of an earthquake.“It's critical that all members of the nation's emergency management team — including the federal government, state, local and tribal officials, the private sector and the public — are prepared,” said Napolitano.“Learning how to protect yourself and your loved ones in the event of an earthquake or other disaster is a vital life skill — and we look forward to working with schools, colleges and our other partners to strengthen the resiliency of communities across the central United States,” she said.The White House is reaching out to schools in Alabama, Arkansas, Georgia, Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, Mississippi, Missouri, Oklahoma, South Carolina and Tennessee.“The ShakeOut drill is an important exercise for parents, students, teachers and schools leaders across the country, and I hope it encourages more schools to develop, implement and evaluate emergency plans,” said Duncan.Nearly 200 years ago, a series of earthquakes along the New Madrid fault line rippled throughout the United States, causing a vast shadow of destruction and disrepair.Hmmmm......An earthquake that might be good for a few votes if you're preparing it and lay waiting for it?Is this going to be a natural occuring earthquake in the New Madrid or a HAARP induced quake?Read the full story here.

• Change you can see!America within days of breaching $14.3TRILLION borrowing limit.The United States has surpassed $14trillion in debt for the first time in history while continuing on a course to hit the legal limit on the national debt in less than one week, while Democrats continue to battle the GOP on raising the debt ceiling to avoid a new financial crisis.House Majority Leader Eric Cantor warned Democrats that he is willing to let the U.S. default to creditors if GOP demands for massive cuts to spending and budget process reforms are not met by President Obama and House Democrats, who are seeking to increase the debt ceiling to avoid another economic crisis.‘With the debt-limit window fast approaching, House Republicans have made clear that, if the President and our Democratic colleagues refuse to accept serious reforms that immediately reduce federal spending and end the culture of debt in Washington, we will not grant their request for a debt limit increase,’ Cantor said is a statement Wednesday.A balanced budget amendment, statutory spending caps and a two-thirds vote requirement for tax increases are potentially some of the GOP’s top demands before a debt ceiling agreement can be reached.Treasury Secretary Tim Geithner has warned of catastrophic consequences if the ceiling is not raised, saying that it will lead to an even worse crisis then the recession that the country is just emerging from, as an increase in interest rates and borrowing costs would be seen for Americans nationwide.Gold and silver rallied on Thursday, with both increases viewed as a result of the dismal economic outlook for the U.S., along with the country’s historically low interest rates, coupled with a rise in inflation and on-going concerns about European debt.Democrats are trying to avoid another stand-off with Republicans on the contentious matter. But the debate has emerged as Standard and Poor delivered a massive blow to the U.S., changing its debt outlook from ‘stable’ to ‘negative’.The country’s borrowing limit currently stands at just under $14.3trillion. According to the Daily Treasury Statement released Wednesday, the national debt subject to this legal limit is now officially at $14.26trillion. This leaves only $25.635billion left for the U.S. treasury to borrow until the limit is hit.Meanwhile, the U.S. dollar stumbled on the world markets, falling against most major currencies yesterday and hitting a 15-month low against the euro.Hmmm...Considering the trouble the Euro is in that says a lot about the Dollar!Read the full story here.

• Sen. Jim DeMint (R): Obama Regime “Acting Like a Bunch of Thugs”.I thought I’ve seen all, but now this administration is acting like a bunch of thugs. I mean they really are trying to bully and intimidate, not just Boeing, they are attacking every right to work state,” Sen. Jim DeMint (R-SC) about White House union ties possibly blocking a move of Boeing to South Carolina.Read and see the full story here.

• Old habits die hard: Obama Omits “Creator” From Declaration.....again.(TheBlaze). I propose a new drinking game. And this is one even a recovering alcoholic can play.For every time that Barack Obama recognizes that the Declaration of Independence has the word “Creator” in it this campaign season, we all have to take a shot. So for example, when he quotes the phrase “that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable rights,” we all drink. Simple.But it probably won’t be that much fun. That’s because if we all decide to play, we’ll probably end up like Glenn — sober.As we’ve noted several times, Obama has a habit of leaving out “Creator” when he quotes the founding document (see here, here, and here). And he did it once again while speaking to supporters in San Francisco last night.Oversight? Does he think it’s unnecessary? Or maybe, do you think he’s just trying to save us from alcoholism?Hmmmm....."There can be only one 'God' in the room?Read and see the full story here.

• Senators Battle Environmentalists Seeking to Ban Lead in Ammunition, Fishing Tackle.(Fox).As environmentalists battle to ban the use of lead in ammunition and fishing tackle out of concern for wildlife and their habitats, several U.S. lawmakers have rushed to defend the tools of hunters and fishermen with a new bill to shield such items from regulation.Sens. Jon Tester, D-Mont, and John Thune, R-S.D., co-chairmen of the Congressional Sportsmen's Caucus, unveiled this week legislation to clarify the longstanding exemption of ammunition and its components under the Toxic Substances Control Act of 1976, which allows the Environmental Protection Agency to regulate "chemical substances" under certain circumstances.Citing tax revenue as justification, the lawmakers say a ban would lead to higher excise taxes on more expensive bullets that would price out many hunters and fisherman."Hunting, shooting and fishing are more than just pastimes in Montana – they're part of our outdoor heritage," Tester said. "They're Montana values that we pass on to our kids and grandkids. And I'll fight for those values whenever Washington D.C.'s rules get in the way of commons sense.""Outdoor activities, including hunting and fishing, not only provide recreational opportunities, but also greatly contribute to South Dakota's economy," Thune said. "The EPA's overreaching regulations in other areas are already negatively affecting jobs and businesses across the country, and I am committed to ensuring that ammunition and tackle do not become subject to arbitrary regulation.""I guarantee that if the EPA were to ban lead ammunition, there would be no difference in the excise tax taken by federal officials," Keats said. "It's not a rational argument. The premise requires you to believe hundreds of thousands of people who are not allowed to use lead ammunition will instead give up hunting."Miller said the excise tax equally applies to ammunition sold regardless of its composition."Sales of copper-based ammunition brings in just as much money for conservationists," he said. "It's a nonissue. That tax would continue."Read the full story here.

• Arab League Sec-Gen: Camp David Accords Have Expired.(Memri).The Camp David Accords signed between Egypt and Israel have expired and no longer govern the situation, Arab League secretary-general and potential Egyptian presidential candidate Amr Moussa has said.Moussa, who participated in the negotiations with Israel in 1978, made the statements during a discussion with Egyptian youth.He added, "What governs the relationship between the two countries is the Arab Peace Initiative of 2002 and the Egyptian-Israeli treaty."Source.

• Savage Beheading Reprise: Libyan Rebels Behead Captured Soldier.(TheJawaReport).Hmmmm.....Perhaps to celebrate the arrival of the drones send by Hussein...or is it to greet McCain?Read the full story here .Warning extremely graphic images!

• Indonesian police find bombs near church ahead of Easter, arrest 19 terror suspects.(Washingtonpost).JAKARTA, Indonesia — Terror suspects arrested Thursday led police to five massive bombs buried beneath a gas pipeline near a church just outside Indonesia’s capital, officials said.Djoko Suyanto, a security minister, said he believed Islamic militants had been plotting an attack ahead of Easter celebrations. The U.S. embassy urged Americans to be vigilant.The explosives, safely defused at the scene, had been set to detonate by cell phone at around 9 a.m. Friday.“The army and police are under high alert,” Suyanto told reporters, adding that troops would be deployed at churches and other strategic locations. “We want to guarantee safety.”Indonesia, the world’s most populous Muslim nation, has been battling extremists since 2002 when al-Qaida-linked militants attacked two nightclubs on Bali island, killing 202 people, many of them foreign tourists.Several attacks since then targeted glitzy hotels, restaurants and an embassy, killing another 60. Hundreds of suspects have been arrested, convicted and thrown in jail.In recent months, small bands of militants hoping to turn the secular nation of 237 million into an Islamic state have shifted their focus to local “enemies.”They’ve gone after police, members of a minority Islamic sect deemed “deviant,” Christians and moderate Muslim leaders.National Police Chief Gen. Timur Pradopo said the 19 suspects were arrested Thursday, including six accused in a series of mail bombs sent last month to liberal Muslim activists and a former anti-terror chief.Several people were wounded in the parcel bombings, none seriously.The arrested men eventually led police to the gas pipeline 100 meters (yards) from a Catholic church large enough to hold 3,000 people in Serpong, Pradopo said.They discovered five bombs that together weighed 150 kilograms (330 pounds) and were rigged to be detonated by cell phone, according to Nardi Atmaja, a church official at the scene.Earlier police had said there was just one bomb. The reason for the discrepancy was not immediately clear.Local media quoted investigators as saying each explosion would have had a reach of up to 250 meters (yards), presumably engulfing the church in flames during Good Friday celebrations.The U.S. embassy in Jakarta issued a statement urging Americans to be especially cautious over the weekend and to stay clear of demonstrations.“Even demonstrations intended to be peaceful can turn confrontational and possibly escalate into violence,” it said.Ninety percent of Indonesians are Muslim, though most practice a moderate form of the faith and abhor violence. A small, extremist fringe has become more vocal, and violent, in recent years.Hmmmm......Obama "Indonesia is an example of religious tolerance".Read the full story here.

• New Christian Convert from Islam Murdered in Somalia.(Compassdirect).NAIROBI, Kenya, April 20 (CDN) — Two Muslim extremists in Somalia on Monday (April 18) murdered a member of a secret Christian community in Lower Shabele region as part of a campaign to rid the country of Christianity, sources said.An area source told Compass two al Shabaab militants shot 21-year-old Hassan Adawe Adan in Shalambod town after entering his house at 7:30 p.m. “Two al Shabaab members dragged him out of his house, and after 10 minutes they fired several shots on him,” said an area source who requested anonymity. “He then died immediately.”The militants then shouted “Allahu Akbar [God is greater]” before fleeing, he said. Adan, single and living with his Muslim family, was said to have converted to Christianity several months ago. Area Christians said they suspected someone had informed the Islamic militants of his conversion. One source said that a relative who belonged to al Shabaab had told Adan’s mother that he suspected her son was a Christian. “This incident is making other converts live in extreme fear, as the militants always keep an open eye to anyone professing the Christian faith,” the source said.Read the full story here.

• Pollard in plea to Obama: Set me free for Pessah!‘Post’ obtains jailed agent’s letter; Pollard expresses remorse for crime, raises legal arguments for release; Obama yet to respond.Israeli agent Jonathan Pollard appealed to US President Barack Obama to commute his sentence and allow him to go home to Israel for Pessah, in a letter hand-delivered to Obama by President Shimon Peres that was obtained exclusively by The Jerusalem Post on Thursday.The letter to Obama was the first Pollard had written to an American president since he began serving his life sentence 25-and-a-half years ago. It has received no response from Obama, who also did not react when Peres brought up Pollard’s fate when he met with Obama at the White House on April 5.“I hope that my own personal appeal may touch your heart and elicit a compassionate, humanitarian response to my heartfelt request to be sent home to Israel for Passover, the holiday of freedom,” Pollard wrote Obama.“My release in time to celebrate Passover at home in Israel with my beloved wife would be a welcome gesture of friendship to the Israeli people, an act of solidarity with a staunch and long-time ally of the United States, and a deeply compassionate and humane gift of life to my wife and me.”In the letter, Pollard unequivocally expressed remorse for his crime, as he has publicly and privately on numerous occasions and in various documents. He noted that Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu had also apologized on behalf of Israel.“After serving more than a quarter century in some of the harshest prisons in the American penal system, I have had a great deal of time to think and to regret,” Pollard wrote. “I am genuinely and sincerely sorry for the offense I committed in passing classified information to Israel. My actions were wrong and I deeply regret that I did not find a legal way to act upon my concerns for Israel.”“Obama’s utter indifference to Peres’s request was very puzzling, but it has to be seen in context of the president’s indifference to all of the requests he has received to release Jonathan Pollard after 26 years in prison, not only from Peres and Netanyahu but also from ranking senior American officials,” she said.“The president’s resounding silence in the face of all of these requests leaves no room for any doubt. Clearly it is nothing personal against Jonathan, but it is, without a doubt, a devastating slap in the face to Israel and Jews worldwide.”.Hmmm...."Pharaoh's heart was hardened, neither did he hearken unto them; as the Lord had said. And Pharaoh turned and went into his house." Read the full story here.

• And now for something completely different!Run Forest, run!Man runs 99 miles home after completing London Marathon.Sam Robson did what most people do after completing a marathon: He went home and fell asleep. Except rather than drive to his house, 99 miles away from the finish line of the London Marathon, Robson ran back. All the way.The 28-year-old from Central England finished Sunday's official race in 3 hours and 45 minutes before starting on the 99-mile second leg. He arrived to his home in St. Ives Cambs about 25 hours later, greeted by a cheering crowd. In total, he ran 125 miles in 29 hours, a pace of around 13 minutes per mile.That number sounds insane, but it's even more mind-boggling if you really think about it. Think back to what you were doing five hours ago yesterday. Now imagine you've been running since then. I don't know if most people could stay awake that long, let alone do anything remotely physical.He told reporters that the running itself was easy, but staying up, keeping hydrated and ingesting calories (to make up for the 15,000 he burned) was the hard part."I had to have regular breaks to refill my water and whenever I stopped my legs seized up so I couldn't rest for long. In terms of tiredness, my legs felt pretty good and the worst bit was I had to keep eating to replace all the calories I was burning.One day after his mega-run, Robson said he was doing fine except for some soreness. That's to be expected. It wasn't just his first 99-mile run, it was his first marathon too.Read the full story here.

MFS - The Other News

                       Afternoon Posting.

• Live broadcast info from Japan directly ! Here.

• Libya Live Blog - April 19. Here .(Al-Jazeera).

• Syria Live Blog - April 19 Here (Al-Jazeera).

• Updated !Earthquakes in the last 24 hours in the world low seismic activity in Japan  today between 4.5 and 4.7! More info here.

• Japan - Latest official Situation Update No. 92.Source : Here .

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

• Michele Bachmann'I Have a Spine Made Out of Titanium'.(DerSpiegel).Michele Bachmann, a darling of the Tea Party movement in the US, voted against President Barack Obama's budget compromise last week. She spoke with SPIEGEL about the need to cut spending, the US involvement in Libya and her fight for principles.

SPIEGEL: Why was it a mistake to intervene in Lybia?

Bachmann: The Obama doctrine now says that President Obama will use our United States military for humanitarian purposes. He went into Libya for humanitarian purposes. Since that time, we have seen murders and riots break out in Syria, and a number of people have been killed in Syria. So does that mean that our United States military should also intervene in Syria and get involved in that conflict? It would take very little for the United States to be involved in multiple efforts all across the world. The fact is we simply do not have the resources to do that.Read the full interview here.

• Malaysia to Send 66 Muslim Schoolboys to Anti-Gay Camp For Being “Too Effeminate”.Malaysian authorities have sent 66 Muslim schoolboys whom they consider effeminate to a four-day camp where they will receive counseling on masculine behavior.The education director of a northeastern state in this Muslim-majority country says the measure is meant to help prevent the teens from potentially becoming gay or transvestites.Gay rights advocates criticized the effort Tuesday and called it a sign of homophobia.Education official Razali Daud says the boys reported Monday for what is officially being called a “self-development course” after their schoolteachers identified them as students who displayed effeminate mannerisms.Razali says it the first program of its kind in Terengganu state, which is known for religious conservatism.Pang Khee Teik, co-founder of a Malaysian sexual rights awareness group, dubbed the camp “outrageous”.“If we don’t do anything to stop the rot of homophobia… I worry it may get worse,” he told Associated Press.Rights for gay people in Malaysia are currently not recognised and acts such as sodomy (both homo and heterosexual) are illegal.Hmmm.......welcome to A.D. 620?Read the full story here. 

• Upton Expanding Investigation Into Industry Groups And Unions Secret Meetings With White House Prior to ObamaCare Passage. (DailyCaller)House Energy and Commerce Committee Chairman Fred Upton is expanding his investigation into the meetings between special interest groups and the Obama White House that set the stage for the passage of Obamacare, sending document requests to 12 industry groups and unions that played a key role in the negotiations.In April 18 letters to the groups, Upton asks for extensive details and documents about each organization’s interactions with the White House in regards to the health care law.The requests come as the Obama White House has so far declined to provide its documents about the meetings.At issue are special deals struck between interest groups and President Obama to either garner the support of major industry sectors or soften their criticism of the health care law.In one major instance, the pharmaceutical drug sector agreed to back the legislation as long as the costs to that sector did not exceed $80 billion. The drug sector eventually spent over $100 million on television advertisements touting the law.The industry groups and unions subject to Upton’s request are AARP, AFL-CIO, AdvaMed, AFSCME, American Hospital Association, American Medical Association, America’s Health Insurance Plans, Blue Cross and Blue Shield Association, Business Roundtable, Federation of American Hospitals, PHRMA, and SEIU.Hmmmm.......Let Obamacare die by a thousand cuts?Read the full story here.

• Michigan: County Prosecutors Seeking Court Order to Stop Koran-Burning Pastor From Protesting Outside Dearborn Mosque.(Freep) — Concerned about a potential outbreak of violence, Wayne County prosecutors have filed a complaint in court that seeks to compel Florida pastor Terry Jones, who oversaw the burning of a Quran last month, not to rally outside an Islamic center in Dearborn this week.Jones told the Free Press he intends to come to Dearborn this Friday with others to protest against sharia and jihad, Islamic ideas that he said threaten the U.S.Walid also said that the court filing inaccurately tries to “equate the actions of zealots in Afghanistan with Muslim-Americans in Dearborn,” which he described as a peaceful community that would not harm Jones. The court action, considered rare, is called in the filing a "verified complaint to institute proceedings to prevent crime."But Dearborn police and Wayne County prosecutors are trying to convince him that showing up at the Islamic Center of America would endanger his life and public peace. In the court filing, prosecutors and Dearborn police note that Jones has received numerous death threats and a $1.2 million bounty on his head by leaders of Jamaat-ud Dawa, a cover organization for the Pakistan-based terrorist organization Lashkar-e-Tayyiba. Dearborn and Wayne County authorities also note that Friday happens to be Good Friday and that the Islamic Center is next to several churches. And so if Jones and his followers were to protest, they argue, it could create enormous problems for Christian worshippers to enter and leave the churches for Good Friday services. A spokesperson for Terry Jones was not immediately available to comment today, but Jones has told the Free Press he wants to come to Dearborn to help preserve the U.S. Constitution and ensure that Islam does not dominate non-Muslims.Hmmmm..... "Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances." the First Amendment.Read the full story here.

• American teacher claims she's detained 457 days against her will.(ArabNews).RIYADH: An American woman who came to Riyadh on a teaching contract has alleged her sponsor detained her in the Kingdom against her will for at least 457 days as of Sunday.“Today is the 457th day that I’ve been held against my will, 13 days longer than the Iranians held Americans between 1979 through to 1981,” Trina Flowers, a teacher from Dulles, told Arab News on Sunday.“I arrived in Saudi Arabia on Oct. 22, 2009, to teach English to university students through a private company in a program undertaken on the initiative of Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Abdullah mandated to the Ministry of Higher Education.“However, almost immediately after my arrival, I realized that the company was in no way capable of dealing with Western people in a humane manner. I wanted to leave Saudi Arabia. Things went from bad to worse.”She said when she received her visa from the Saudi Embassy in Washington, it stated her employer was King Saud University (KSU).“When I came to Riyadh, I was sent to Najran University,” she added, pointing out that she had never even been to KSU. She strongly believes her sponsor deliberately deceived her since her arrival.The saga started when Flowers refused to renew her visit visa after she realized that it was illegal to work in the Kingdom with such papers.“As soon as I was made aware that none of the teachers would be given proper work visas, I wanted to return to the United States as quickly as possible. Therefore, I refused to renew my visa and told my company that I wanted to leave Saudi Arabia immediately,” she said. “How can such a company bring teachers on visit visas that are renewed every 90 days to work since it is against the labor regulations? Why did the proper Saudi government authorities do nothing when I went to them to file complaints?”The company was supposed to fly her out at 6:15 a.m. on Jan. 15, but it failed to provide a driver or escort to finalize the exit procedures.“They ignored all my attempts to get them to fly me out the following week before my visa expired. I made a number of attempts to give the company the opportunity to redress their crimes and human rights violations. Instead, I was subjected to harassment, threats and even attempts to abduct me in the middle of the night,” Flowers said, adding that she was denied medical care and practically starved to death.At present, the hotel where the teacher has been staying in Riyadh has asked her to vacate her room since her sponsor has withdrawn tenancy of the room. It has warned her that the power supply to the room will be disconnected if she fails to leave.“Now I am penniless and homeless,” Flowers said.“The company lied, threatened and harassed me, left me with no resources whatsoever, and yet they claim it's my fault. I've broken the law and I'm a criminal and they're not responsible?” she said.She said she feels that all this happened due to a human resources officer’s personal vendetta against her.“The company owes me both compensatory and punitive damages for their human rights violations and crimes against me,” Flowers said, recalling that three Western women provided her food after she placed an online advertisement to teach English in exchange for food.Arab News attempted to contact the human resources officer, but there was no response.Read the full story here.

• “One Shock” Away from World Food Crisis.(Bloomberg).World Bank President Robert Zoellick said the global economy is “one shock away” from a crisis in food supplies and prices.Zoellick estimated 44 million people have fallen into poverty due to rising food prices in the past year, and a 10 percent increase in the food price index would send 10 million more people into poverty. The United Nations FAO Food Price index jumped 25 percent last year, the second-steepest increase since at least 1991, and surged to a record in February.Food price inflation is “the biggest threat today to the world’s poor,” Zoellick said at a press conference following meetings of the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund. “We are one shock away from a full-blown crisis.”“For most commodities, stocks are relatively low,” he said. “You have one other weather event in some of these areas and you really take a danger zone and start to push people over the edge.”Zoellick said he opposes export bans that nations use to depress local commodity prices for their citizens, lifting costs for consumers in other countries.Farmers in Russia, once the second-biggest wheat exporter, are planting the fewest acres in four years, in part because a government export ban kept prices low, a Bloomberg survey of producers, traders and analysts showed last month. India, the largest grower after China, is mulling lifting an export ban in place since 2007 as harvests may reach a record for a fourth straight year, Agriculture Minister Sharad Pawar said this month.Economic growth “is leveling off after a post-crisis recovery,” Zoellick said. “The question now is whether it’s strong enough to reduce unemployment, particularly in developed countries. Inflation is up in developing countries, and this could lead to overheating or asset price bubbles.”Read the full story here.

• CAN: Charity that aided Muslim countries sent $15M to Hamas.(TheStar).Nearly $15 million of Canadian charitable donations were sent overseas to groups the taxman has labelled terrorist organizations, according to a federal audit obtained by the Toronto Star.The audit states that International Relief Fund for the Afflicted and Needy Canada (IRFAN-Canada) used "deceptive fundraising" to support Hamas.The Canada Revenue Agency announced its decision to revoke the status of the Mississauga-based charity last week. A lawyer for IRFAN-Canada said the charity has appealed the decision."Canada Revenue Agency's position is really built on a pillar of sand," said Naseer Syed.However, a CRA report states that "IRFAN-Canada is an integral part of an international fundraising effort to support Hamas." Hamas is considered a terrorist organization by Canada, the U.S., the European Union and Israel.IRFAN-Canada created promotional videos that the CRA said "demonize Israel, characterize the Arab-Israeli conflict as a religious war, appeal for all Arab and Muslim nations to join in the struggle against Israel and glorify martyrdom."But Syed said the CRA overstated the political content.The CRA said IRFAN-Canada has damaged the integrity of the Canadian charity system.The audit found that the charity redistributed more than $580,000 raised for disaster relief projects to sponsor programs in the West Bank and Gaza. Donors had earmarked donations to specific disasters, including the 2004 tsunami, the 2006 South Asia earthquake, the 2006 Indonesia earthquake, the 2007 Bangladesh cyclone, the 2008 Burma cyclone, the 2008 Pakistan earthquake and the 2008 Indonesia earthquake.However, Syed said some of those funds have already been spent on their designated disaster relief while the rest will remain in IRFAN-Canada's general bank account until suitable projects are selected.The audit also found that the charity failed to maintain proper records. The records the charity did provide for the audit period were often an "after-the-fact paper exercise" that showed it distributed $19 million in Canadian funds and $17 million in gifts-in-kind for projects outside Canada during that period.The audit established that $13 million of the gifts-in-kind were transferred to organization with ties to Hamas.Stockwell Day raised the charity's alleged link to Hamas in Parliament when he was an opposition MP in 2004. He asked the Liberal government to investigate.Day referenced a Privy Council report sent to Prime Minister Jean Chretien in 2000 that listed Povrel Jerusalem Fund for Human Services (JFHS) as a Canadian group with links to terrorist organizations.The audit suggests that JFHS and IRFAN-Canada were consolidated in 2001. under the leadership of Rasem Abdel-Majid. The report states the consolidation was concealed, "leading us to consider the strong possibility that this exercise was intended to circumvent the CRA's refusal to grant JFHS registration as a charity."Syed said IRFAN-Canada was formed independently and later acquired some assets from JFHS.Though the IRFAN-Canada is no longer a charity, it still operates as a not-for profit organization.Hmmmm.......Hurry,hurry ....declare them a state?Read the full story here.

• Europe's Anti-Islamic Parties on the Move.(DanielPipes).Elections in Finland today saw the True Finns Party (PS) win 39 out of 200 seats in parliament, a huge increase over its 1 parliamentary seat in 1999, 3 in 2003, and 5 in 2007. In percentage terms, they went from 1, 2, and 4 percent of the vote to 19 percent.This surge typifies the enormous strides by right-wing insurgent parties which typically emphasize such issues as immigration, cultural continuity, multiculturalism and Islamification.For a graphic of where such parties now stand across Europe, see the helpful graphic, "Europe's Right Turn," published by Der Spiegel just before the Finnish election.To generalize: Anti-Islamic sentiments are now outpacing Islam in Europe.Hmmmm......."CHANGE"?Read the full story here.

• HT:SultanKnish.Muslims Are Not a Minority.The most persistent myth of the Western Dhimmi narrative is that Muslims are a minority and must receive special protection and accommodation. But Muslims are not a minority. There are 1.5 billion Sunni Muslims worldwide, outweighing Catholics as the next largest religious faction at 1.1 billion and Hindus at 1 billion. They are still a minority of the overall population in Western countries, but a demographically trending majority.In the UK more people attend mosques than the Church of England, that makes Muslims the largest functioning religious group there. Mohammed was the most popular baby name last year, ahead of Jack and Harry. In France, in this generation, more mosques have been built than Catholic churches and in southern France there are already more mosques than churches. Mohammed-Amine is the most popular double name, ahead of Jean-Baptiste, Pierre-Louis, Leo-Paul and Mohammed-Ali. In Belgium, 50 percent of newborns are Muslim and empty Belgian churches are being turned into mosques. The most popular baby name is Mohammed and of the top 7 baby names, 6 were Muslim. A quarter of Amsterdam, Marseilles and Rotterdam and a fifth of Stockholm is already Muslim. The most popular baby name in Amsterdam, Utrecht, Rotterdam and The Hague is... Mohammed. Europe's Muslim population doubled in the last generation, and is set to double again. By 2025, (a decade and a half away), a third of all births in the EU will be Muslim. The demographic writing is already on the wall. A third of Muslims in France and Germany are teenagers or younger, as compared to a fifth of the native population. A third of Muslims in the UK and Belgium are under 15 versus a fifth of the native population. Counting all age groups, they're a minority. But in generational demographics, Muslims are swiftly becoming a majority.Muslims in America and Europe are still numerical minorities, but they act like majorities. And they are doing everything they can to become majorities. Treating them like minorities is a mistake, that Europe has already come to regret and that we are only beginning to learn the folly of. Muslims can either be a minority or a majority. If they choose to act like a majority, imposing their culture, religion and worldview on others-- then they should be treated like one.Hmmmm.......Majority rules?Read the full story here.

• Belarus - West Puzzled by Lukashenko's Clampdown on Weak Opposition.(DerSpiegel).Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko no longer leaves the house without Kolya, his favorite son, the product of an extramarital affair with a personal physician he got rid of long ago. The six-year-old boy has been by his side during government talks, corporate visits and an audience with the pope in Rome. Kolya was with his father once again last Monday, April 11, hardly two hours after the bomb attack in Minsk's Oktyabrskaya metro station. They stood together holding hands -- both dressed in black, both with somber demeanors -- on a train platform that was still covered in blood. There, they laid red carnations in silence to commemorate the 13 people who died.

Lukashenko is a lonely man, which explains his demonstrative displays of affection for his son. But since he's also a consummate actor and demagogue, he has devised a political role for his son. He knows that people are touched when they see a strong man with a young boy on his hand. It makes them think his main priorities are order and stability.But what kind of order does he represent? Late Wednesday, Lukashenko told his people that the calm situation in Belarus "had lulled us to sleep." But this time, he continued, officials from the KGB, the country's security service, had done a "brilliant" job in tracking down the men who perpetrated the metro station attack and getting them to confess. The alleged culprits are a lathe operator and an electrician from the provinces.

"Holy cow!" wrote one Belarusian blogger. "After being arrested at 9 p.m., they admitted to several attacks in recent years -- down to the really small ones -- by 5 a.m. They must be using some really cutting-edge interrogation techniques! Is Belarus about to face another 1937, when the show trials were held in Moscow against suspected regime opponents?"That can't be ruled out, although there are indications that the suspected assailants had no political motives. Lukashenko has already announced that he will impose the "strictest order and organization possible" and that the police regiments brought into the city would remain there for the time being. He also said that the all the "gibberish about democracy one wants to impose on us" was absurd and that the people who ordered the bombing -- and who inspired it -- should be sought out in the "fifth column."By "fifth column," Lukashenko means the opposition. Indeed, the president has directed all his scorn at the opposition since the presidential elections held on Dec. 19, 2010. After the autocrat supposedly won 79.7 percent of the vote, most of the opposition candidates joined tens of thousands of demonstrators outside the main government building to protest against suspected electoral fraud and to demand that Lukashenko step down.

Security forces brutally suppressed the demonstration, injuring at least 100 people and arresting some 700. Once it was over, the president boasted that his forces had "reinstated order in seven and a half minutes."Immediately after the demonstration, Lukashenko locked up seven of the nine presidential candidates who had run against him. Two of them are still being held. Although the seven others have been released, they are either being held under house arrest or have been forced to agree to help the KGB. One former candidate, who has since found refuge in the Czech Republic, reports that KGB officers abused and humiliated him.The mills of justice are now grinding relentlessly. Several of the December 19 demonstrators have already been sentenced to between three-and-a-half and four years in prison, and the former presidential candidates are about to face trial. As one Western diplomat put it, the trials will be part of a "general reckoning with the opposition."The West has responded by severing ties with Belarus. To protest against the treatment of regime opponents, the EU banned 177 Belarusian politicians, judges, prosecutors and journalists from entering EU territory. In response, Lukashenko made it clear that Western visitors would not be welcomed in Belarus.Lukashenko has even bad-mouthed German Foreign Minister Guido Westerwelle as a "fairy" and claimed that Westerwelle had offered him support when he and Poland's foreign minister had visited Minsk before the election. If "people want to try to frighten us with sanctions, no problem" he said, adding that Belarus would become "the Chechnya of the West."

Is it possible that Lukashenko himself is behind the metro attack? Though it's highly unlikely, the explosions certainly did come at a curious moment, when all the country's problems seem to be piling up. Lukashenko has always known how to turn such situations to his own advantage. He is the most agile of all post-Soviet politicians. And as one biography of him published in Moscow puts it, Lukashenko has succeeded with impunity in "creating a closed society right in the middle of Europe." But now he has become a hostage of his own system, and one that cannot survive without constantly searching for new enemies.Hmmmm......."Лукашенко в День дурака уехал в колхоз"Read the full story here.

• And now for something completely different.From Israeli Shores with Love: A Floating Knight Rider.Meet the Silver Marlin, an 11-meter unmanned surface vessel that’s currently residing in Haifa harbor. It’s built by Elbit Systems, whose American offshoot is manning the showroom floor on Monday at the Navy League’s annual Sea Air Space confab just outside Washington. It’s just your standard autonomous robot boat, armed with a .50-caliber machine gun, maneuvering around buoys in a harbor thanks to its package of electro-optic sensors and 360-degree panoramic cameras.So, um. The Knight Rider of boats? “That’s exactly right,” says retired Rear Adm. Mark Milliken, a vice president for Elbit’s U.S. branch.Simpsons nerds will recall that Bart gets disillusioned with the seafaring Kitt when he realizes the show’s writers lazily sneak in fjords or inlets to the plots so it can fight crime. The Silver Marlin isn’t as contrived in its relevance: coastal defense; or protecting an offshore oil rig; or, say, placement “in front of a small flotilla,” Milliken says. (Before you ask: the vessel’s been in development for about two and a half years, he explains, well before last year’s Gaza flotilla incident.)Elbit wants to convince the U.S. Navy of the virtues of its robo-boat for other missions, too: launch from a Littoral Combat Ship to protect against small-boat “swarming” threats to the Navy’s close-to-the-coast tactics. Or even counterpiracy. While the Silver Marlin can operate autonomously, a satellite downlink to a control station puts it in remote control mode. Which is what you want, Milliken notes, when you’re talking about firing a weapon at a hostile craft.Might not be such a hard sell: the Navy’s been experimenting with the concept of drone vessels for years, and particularly with an eye toward thwarting pirates. Its long-range research division, the Office of Naval Research, reconfigured existing boats to turn them into drones. Send ‘em into maritime danger without fear they’ll be blown up. “So long as there’s not a human on board,” Milliken says, “I’m not so concerned with survivability.”Hmmmm..........Tora , Tora?Read and see the full story here.

MFS - The Other News

                   Morning  Posting.

• Live broadcast info from Japan directly ! Here.

• Libya Live Blog - April 04. Here .(Al-Jazeera)And  here (BBC).

• French forces take over Abidjan airport. Here . (Al -Jazeera).

• Updated !Earthquakes in the last 24 hours in the world seismic activity in Japan between 4.7 and 5.1 today. More info here.

• Latest official Situation Update No. 74.On 04.04.2011 at 08:31 GMT+2.

JAPAN plans to dump 11,500 tons of radioactive water at sea to free up storage space at its crippled nuclear plant for more highly contaminated water, the plant's operator said on Monday. A spokesman for Tokyo Electric Power Co (Tepco), operator of the crisis-hit Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant, said the water was only weakly radioactive. 'We have no choice but to release water tainted with radioactive materials into the ocean as a safety measure,' government spokesman Yukio Edano told a televised press conference.

Situation Update No. 73- On 04.04.2011 at 03:00 GMT+2.

Workers at the destroyed Fukushima nuclear power plant worked to plug a radioactive leak at the site Monday after efforts failed a day earlier to stop the flow of contaminated water into the sea. By Monday morning, chemical polymers being used to block the flow of radioactive water had yet to absorb the water, the Kyodo news agency reported. The 20-centimetre crack is in a pit where cables are stored near reactor number 2. The Japanese government warned it could take months to get the leak under control following the devastating March 11 earthquake and tsunami that damaged the plant. Plant operator, Tokyo Electric Power Co (TEPCO), has begun putting dye in the water to find the location of other possible leaks. Meanwhile, Kyodo reported officials were considering the possibility of wrapping the entire reactor in a 45-metre high sheet in an effort to contain the radiation coming from the facility. Source .

• International Physicians for the Prevention of Nuclear War – Japan. Physicians for Social Responsibility, has prepared the following summary of events at the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power plant since March 11, 2011, when an earthquake measuring 8.9 on the Richter scale struck northern Japan and created a tsunami that devastated large areas in northeastern Japan, killing thousands and leaving hundreds of thousands more stranded and without essential services.A must read !Read the full story here. 

• Gaddafi envoy in Europe 'seeking solution'.Libya's acting foreign minister on mission to Greece and Turkey in apparent initiative aimed at ending fighting.Abdel Ati al-Obeidi, Libya's acting foreign minister, has told the Greek prime minister in Athens that embattled Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi is seeking an end to fighting in the country."It seems that the Libyan authorities are seeking a solution," Dimitris Droutsas, the Greek foreign minister, said. He added that Obeidi planned to travel on to Malta and Turkey.Obeidi crossed into neighbouring Tunisia and travelled from Djerba airport to the Greek capital on Sunday and met George Papandreou, the Greek prime minister, later in the day. "They [Libyan government] requested to send an envoy with a message for prime minister George Papandreou and that is why he is in Athens," a senior Greek government official said.In a statement, the Greek foreign ministry said it was committed to seeking a "political, diplomatic solution" to the crisis in Libya, where government forces are battling rebels seeking to end Gaddafi's decades-old rule."We reiterated the clear message from the international community: respect for and full implementation of UN resolutions, an immediate ceasefire to stop the violence, particularly against the civilian population of Libya."In Tripoli, the Libyan capital, government officials were not immediately available to comment on Obeidi's movements. The New York Times has reported that Seif al-Islam and Saadi Gaddafi, two of the leader's sons, have created their own plan to remove their father from power amicably and negotiate an end to the conflict.Papandreou's office said Baghdadi al-Mahmudi, the Libyan prime minister, requested Obeidi's visit during a phone conversation on Saturday. Papandreou also discussed the Libyan crisis with Recep Tayyip Erdogan, the Turkish prime minister, on Sunday.Papandreou has been talking by phone with the leaders of Qatar, Turkey and Britain over the last two days.Read the full story here.

• Washington pulls support for Yemen's Saleh: report15 protesters killed, hundreds hurt in Yemen clashes.Yemeni soldiers shot dead at least fifteen protesters and wounded hundreds of others in a second day of bloody clashes with demonstrators in the city of Taez, south of the capital, witnesses and medical sources said. Tens of thousands of demonstrators were marching on the governorate headquarters in Taez, 200 kilometers (125 miles) from Sanaa, when the army opened fire from different directions, witnesses said.Medical sources said that there are hundreds of injured people.Earlier, police using live rounds and tear gas wounded more than 400 protesters who tried to march to a presidential palace in Yemen's Red Sea city of Hudaida, as reports said that President Barack Obama's administration has shifted position on President Ali Abdullah Saleh and now believes he should leave office. Witnesses said that armed men in civilian clothes opened fire on protesters.The New York Times reported on Sunday that the United States has concluded Saleh will not likely enact reforms demanded by opposition protesters and must be eased out of office. Washington has long supported Saleh, who has been in power since 1978, and the administration of President Obama has largely refrained from criticizing him in public.But U.S. officials have told allies that they see Saleh's position as untenable due to the widespread protests, and believe he should leave office.Negotiations over Saleh's departure began more than a week ago, the newspaper reported, citing U.S. and Yemeni officials.The United States has talked openly of its concern about who might succeed Saleh, whom it views as an ally who has helped to contain al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula, a Yemen-based wing of the militant group.Hmmmm.....The whole Middle East is becoming one 'Obamination'.Read the full story here.

• Ivory Coast braces for bloody final battle as Ouattara promises 'rapid' assault on capital.The Ivory Coast is today nervously awaiting a bloody showdown between troops loyal to rival politicians both claiming leadership of the country. Fighters backing the internationally recognised president, Alassane Ouattara, are massing in the north of Abidjan preparing for the final assault on Laurent Gbagbo, who is holed up in the presidential palace and refusing to yield power.Mr Ouattara was declared the winner of last November's election, but he has not been able to assume office because outgoing president Laurent Gbagbo is refusing to yield power.Water has been cut off to much of Abidjan, where the streets are empty and residents have barricaded themselves inside their homes.The showdown comes as both sides deny responsibility for a massacre in the western town of Duekoue, where the Red Cross reported finding up to 800 bodies at the weekend.Reports that forces loyal to Mr Ouattara committed the massacre have damaged his standing despite the UN saying that he us the legitimate ruler of the Ivory Coast after elections last month. Traditional hunters fighting for Mr Ouattara are said to be responsible for the most of the killings by machete and the burning of homes. And Mr Outtara's prime minister-in-waiting today promised a 'rapid assault' on the capital. Guillaume Soro told local TV: 'The situation is now ripe for a rapid offensive. The operation will be rapid because we have discovered the exact number of operational tanks on the ground. Ivorians must trust in the Republican forces.'Read the full story here.

• Dead voters like Walter Cronkite could decide New York elections: Mix-up means Walter Cronkite still eligible to vote.He died in July 2009 but legendary newscaster Walkter Cronkite could still have an influence on U.S. politics, thanks to an electoral oversight.New York City’s Board of Elections still lists Cronkite and hundreds of thousands of other New Yorkers on the city’s electoral rolls, even after they have died.And if the cost of sending forms to all those dead voters wasn’t enough, the mistake could potentially see an election rigged.Fraudsters could impersonate dead voters as a signature and confirmation of a residential address – rather than producing any form of identification – is all that is required for long-time voters to cast their ballot.Former Miami mayor Xavier Suarez was removed from office in 1997 after it was alleged ballots had been cast in the names of dead people.And in the late 90s, a flawed attempt to remove the dead from the electoral register in Florida meant thousands of legitimate voters were allegedly disenfranchised before the 2000 U.S. presidential election.Deceased celebrities like Cronkite, Angela’s Ashes author Frank McCourt and the late actress Natasha Richardson still registered to vote in New York, the city’s future elections could be unfairly contested.Aside from its political implications, the registration of dead people has financial implications for New York, with the city’s Campaign Finance Board spending $5.4million on posting voting guides to seven million homes in 2009.It was reported earlier this year that nearly a third of registered voters in Zimbabwe are dead.The independent Zimbabwe Election Support Network reported 27 per cent of people on the electoral roll were dead while more than 2,000 registered voters were purportedly over 100 years old, even though Zimbabwe’s life expectancy is 43.Hmmmmm.......Liberals and fraud?Read the full story here.

• French police warned not to arrest Muslim women covering up near mosques as country prepares for 'burka ban'.Police in France have been warned not to arrest any women wearing Muslim veils ‘in or around’ mosques.The strict instructions, from Interior Minister Claude Guent, are contained in a nine page circular issued to officers prior to a full-blown burka ban coming into force next week.With tensions running high within the country’s six million strong Muslim community, people have already been warned not to perform ‘citizen’s de-veilings’.This means that members of the public will not be allowed to take the law into their own hands when they see a woman hiding her features in a public place.Instead they will have to call the police, who will in turn consider whether the offender should be fined 150 euros, 212 $ or around 132 pounds.This will apply to all garments which cover the eyes, although scarves, hats, and sunglasses are excluded.As well as at a mosque, Muslims will also be able to put on a veil in the privacy of their own homes, a hotel room, or even a car, as long as they are not driving. Police have already complained that they will have to waste time on ‘burka-chasing’, with Denis Jacob, of the Alliance police union, adding: ‘We have more important matters to be dealing with.’Hmmmmm.....More important things then uphold the law?Read the full story here.

• HT:SultanKnish.Muslims and Moral Handicaps.Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid wants an investigation into Koran burning. Supreme Court Justice Stephen Breyer suggested that this form of free speech could be banned. Senator Lindsey Graham is also looking for ways to limit free speech, saying, "Free speech is a great idea, but we’re in a war".Free speech is more than a great idea, it's a fundamental freedom untouchable by legislators. But all it takes is a few Muslim murders-- and Reid, Breyer and Graham eagerly hold up their lighters to the Constitution. Free speech has been curtailed before in the United States during a time of war-- but only free speech sympathetic to the enemy. During WW1 a suspected German propagandist filmmaker was jailed. But could anyone have imagined anti-German propagandists being jailed? The Wilson administration was behaving unconstitutionally, but not insanely. Today we aren't jailing filmmakers who traffic in anti-American propaganda in wartime. If we did that half of Hollywood would be behind bars. Instead Democratic and Republican Senators are discussing banning speech offensive to the enemy. Because even though they're killing us already-- we had better not provoke them or who knows how much worse it will become.Traditionally it's the victors who give their laws to the defeated. But massive immigration at home and nation building occupations abroad mean that the defeated of failed states are imposing their Sharia law on us. We're asked to trade in our Constitutional freedoms out of fear of Muslim violence. And so the murderers impose the terms of peace on us. And then don't abide by them.It is far more insulting to treat Muslims as if they have no ability to control themselves and have no responsibility for their actions-- than it is to burn their Koran. That is an assessment that even many Muslims would agree with. To blame Jones for their actions, we must either treat murder as a reasonable response to the burning of a book, or grant that Jones has a higher level of moral responsibility than the rioters do. There are few non-Muslims who could defend the notion that burning the Koran is a provocation that justifies bloodshed. And virtually no liberal would openly concede that he believes Muslims are morally handicapped-- but then why does he treat them that way?Now in the age of Globalism-- Muslims are the new oppressed, exempted from the norms of civilized society. The morally handicapped who cannot be expected to turn the other cheek, the way we're supposed to. But Muslims are not morally disabled-- they are immorally enabled. Muslim violence is a choice. Their choice. It is not a reflex or a reaction or a pinball bouncing off the cycle of violence. It is not something that we are responsible for. It is something that they and only they are responsible for. By pretending otherwise, we are immorally enabling them. Treating them like mad dogs or ticking time bombs just guarantees that they will play their part and fulfill our expectations by mauling or exploding.We have never held Muslims morally accountable for anything they do. Not as a religion or as countries or individuals. Instead we pretend that Osama bin Laden or Saddam Hussein or Gaddafi are the problem. A handful of extremists and a few bad leaders somewhere. Not the people themselves. Never them.Treating someone as dangerous gives them power over you. They will test that power and then use it. Allowing yourself to be intimidated is the first step to being defeated. For many it is also the last step. We treated Muslims as dangerous and then we insist loudly that we love them very much and aren't afraid of them at all. Guess who we're fooling? Only ourselves. Every time there's a terror alert or American politicians talk about the wonders of the Koran-- the Muslim world sees it as evidence of their power over us. And when a Koran is burned, that just means we need further intimidating. It's a cycle of violence, but we're not the ones driving it except through our appeasement.Senator Graham wishes there was a way to hold Koran burners accountable for violence carried out by Koran readers, but what we really need is a way to hold Koran believers accountable for their own violence.Read the full story here.

• HT:CreepingSharia.Muslims kill, US politicians consider limiting Americans free speech (aka sharia).Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid says congressional lawmakers are discussing taking some action in response to the Koran burnings of a Tennessee pastor that led to killings at the U.N. facility in Afghanistan and sparked protests across the Middle East, Politico reports.“Ten to 20 people have been killed,” Reid said Sunday on CBS’ “Face the Nation.” “We’ll take a look at this of course. As to whether we need hearings or not, I don’t know.”Sen. Lindsey Graham said Congress might need to explore the need to limit some forms of freedom of speech, in light of Tennessee pastor Terry Jones’ Quran burning, and how such actions result in enabling U.S. enemies.“I wish we could find a way to hold people accountable. Free speech is a great idea, but we’re in a war,” Graham told CBS’ Bob Schieffer on “Face the Nation” Sunday.“During World War II, we had limits on what you could do if it inspired the enemy,” Graham said, adding certain speech can “put our troops at risk.”Hmmmm.....Yup that's exactly why they forbid Chaplin imitating Hitler in "The Great dictator"?Read the full story here."If the freedom of speech is taken away then dumb and silent we may be led, like sheep to the slaughter." ~ George Washington.

• Food Stamp Graph… gulp!Read and see it all Obamanomics in their natural environment here.

• Canada - Toronto "SlutWalk"Cop's slut comment 'stupid': Chief.A Toronto cop who warned women that dressing like sluts can attract sexual assault was reprimanded and underwent “further training,” Chief Bill Blair said Sunday.Blair called Const. Michael Sanguinetti “inexperienced,” adding the officer uttered “something stupid and he’s apologized.”The constable’s comment sparked outrage, prompting more than 1,500 protesters to stage a “SlutWalk” Sunday from Queen’s Park to police headquarters on College St.“I don’t think the officer meant any offence,” added Blair.Even though the police force insisted the comment does not reflect modern training or professional attitudes towards victims, protesters embarked on the “SlutWalk” to condemn the long-held belief that a woman’s way of dressing “makes you a target,” organizer Jeanette Janzen said.Sanguinetti may have had a “sincere wish to help people,” but she said “it points to a larger problem within police culture.”The officer told a York University law class on Jan. 24 that “women should avoid dressing like sluts in order not to be victimized.”During the two-hour, peaceful and often light-hearted march from Queen’s Park, most participants dressed casually, others flamboyantly, with many proudly proclaiming they are “sluts.”Natalee Brouse wore a bride’s gown, walking with Stephanie Murphy in a groom’s dark gray suit over a black shirt and bright lime-green tie.Leading the march, Sierra “Chevy” Harris danced in knee-high black boots, with Magdalena “Maggie” Ivasecko sporting see-through, waist-high net stockings over white panties.Protest co-founder Sonya Barnett said victims are “never at fault.“Slut shaming needs to be addressed,” the York undergrad said.“We said an apology is not enough,” march organizer Heather Jarvis told the crowd.The University of Guelph student said some police “are good people,” but criticized the force for avoiding the rally officially and not addressing demands to cite officer education improvements.Rape victim Polly Esther, 39, said “it has nothing to do with what you are wearing.”Dragged into a stairwell at 14, “I was a child ... bundled in pants, with a long coat and gloves,” she said. What Sanguinetti said “is like a punch in the guts.”Jane Doe, a high-profile survivor who successfully sued Toronto Police for not warning residents of a home-invading attacker in 1986, said attitudes that women’s clothing invites rape are perpetuated by media, police and church leaders.Read the full story here.

• 'NYT refused to publish Goldstone retraction'.Source close to South African judge claims he initially approached liberal publication to print his letter of regret – and was rejected. New York Times says in response it does not comment on editorial process. Not only did Judge Richard Goldstone's words of regret fail to match the global resonance of his original report, it now comes to light that one of the most important newspapers in the world refused to publish his retraction.Yedioth Ahronoth reported Monday that a source close to Goldstone stated that in the past few days the judge had approached the editor of the New York Times opinion pages requesting to post the article he wrote in the paper – and was told his article was rejected. The editor gave no explanation as to why the article was rejected, but the source believes this was due to the newspaper's political agenda. The letter was ultimately published in the more conservative Washington Post over the weekend. The New York Times said in response that they do not comment on the editorial or reporting process. In recent years the New York Times adopted a highly critical line of reporting towards Israel. Lately, its senior commentator Thomas Friedman has been publishing extremely aggressive articles against Israel and its current government.Hmmmm......."Change".Read the full story here.

• 14-Year-Old Suicide Bomber in Pakistan Wants to ‘Send All You Policemen to Hell’.Multan, Pakistan (AP) - His accomplices brought carnage to a Sufi shrine, but the 14-year-old suicide bomber who was captured after his explosives failed to detonate was unrepentant."Let me go, I want to be a martyr," he said as he was being led away, according to police officer Khalid Mahmood. "I want to send all you policemen to hell!"The boy, identified as Fida Hussain, was arrested at the shrine in central Pakistan shortly after Sunday's twin suicide blasts, which killed 42 people and wounded 100 others. The complex close to Dera Ghazi Khan in central Pakistan was crowded with thousands of people attending an annual festival.Another suspect was also detained at the shrine, but police gave no details about him.Mahmood said both boys were apparently from North Waziristan, one of seven tribally administered areas close to Afghanistan. All those areas are militant hotspots, but North Waziristan is considered especially so. It is under virtual militant control and is home to extremists from around Pakistan and the world.Young boys, often with little or no education, are often used by the Taliban as suicide bombers. As well as being less suspicious, terrorism analyst say their handlers find it easier to persuade them to carry out suicide missions.Mahmood said Hussain and the other attacker were at the shrine around for around one hour before striking. When Hussain's vest failed to detonate, he threw a grenade but it exploded close to him, blowing off his hand. Police then fired at him, hitting him in his other arm.He was being treated for his injuries Monday, Mahmood said.His comments to policemen offer a glimpse into the level of indoctrination he had received."You all are accomplices of the enemies of Islam who are bent upon eliminating Islam and Muslims," he allegedly said. "If I get a chance, I will again strike as a suicide bomber."Hmmmmm.......Read the full story here.

• Senator: Gulf Coast Residents ‘Galled’ by Obama’s Suggestion We Buy More Brazilian Oil.(CNSNews.com) – Sen. David Vitter (R-La.) told CNSNews.com that residents of the Gulf Coast, whom he represents, were “galled” when President Obama went to Brazil two weeks ago and suggested they ramp up energy production so the U.S. could become one of the nation’s “best customers.”Obama, Vitter said, “went on that trip and made comments encouraging Brazilian offshore development and saying we want the U.S. to be your best customer. Particularly, those of us on the Gulf Coast found that pretty galling. How about starting in the Gulf?”Meanwhile, however, Obama’s Interior Department has been in a fierce court battle over how quickly to approve new drilling permits in the Gulf of Mexico after the Deepwater Horizon spill last summer.In February, Louisiana District Court Judge Martin Feldman ruled the Obama administration in contempt of court for what he said was “dismissive conduct” and their “increasingly inexcusable” refusal to approve permits that had met new standards. As of Vitter’s March 17 letter, just two permits had been granted for Gulf oil drilling.CNSNews.com asked Vitter whether he had received a response in the past two weeks. He nodded that he had not and then explained his frustration.“The day before the president went to Brazil, as you alluded to, I sent a letter to the administration asking some detailed questions about this ExIm Bank loan of $2 billion guaranteed, backed by U.S. taxpayers and it’s to develop Brazilian offshore opportunities while we’re shutting down U.S. offshore opportunities,” Vitter said.“In addition, the president went on that trip and made comments encouraging Brazilian offshore development and saying we want the U.S. to be your best customer. Particularly, those of us on the Gulf Coast found that pretty galling,” he added.“How about starting in the Gulf?” Vitter asked. “How about starting by having the U.S. be our own best customer and developing U.S. jobs right here at home?”Vitter held the press conference to announce he was introducing a bill to do just that. He is calling it a “3-D” bill, which stands for Domestic Jobs, Domestic Energy and Deficit Reduction.Hmmm.....If he wanted to destroy America would he do anything different?Read the full story here.

• HT:PajamasMedia.Islamists on Welfare: Paid to Plot the West’s Demise.In 2008, the Toronto Sun reported that “hundreds of [Greater Toronto Area] Muslim men in polygamous marriages — some with a harem of wives — are receiving welfare and social benefits for each of their spouses, thanks to the city and province, Muslim leaders say.”“Polygamy is a regular part of life for many Muslims,” Canadian Society of Muslims president Mumtaz Ali declared bluntly. “Ontario recognizes religious marriages for Muslims and others.”Government officials quickly denied the Muslim leader’s claims about immigration law and social benefits regulations. Only one public servant seemed sufficiently concerned. “This is wrong,” said city councilor Rob Ford. “They should put a stop to this immediately.”Instead, welfare abuse by Muslims appears to have metastasized across the Western world. Almost three years later, news stories about radical Muslims — often immigrants — engaged in social benefits scams emerge regularly from Europe, Canada, and Australia. Even when they are not involved in fraud, Muslims frequently are overrepresented on welfare rolls, compared with other communities. The statistics from around the globe are jaw-dropping, especially in economically uncertain times.According to one 2007 source, immigration, of which Muslims comprise a significant part, “costs Sweden at least 40 to 50 billion Swedish kroner [approximately $7 billion] every year … and has greatly contributed to bringing the Swedish welfare state to the brink of bankruptcy.” Yet two years earlier, the country’s finance minister declared counterintuitively that “more immigrants should be allowed into Sweden in order to safeguard the welfare system.”One Iranian immigrant to Sweden expressed astonishment at his new country’s policies: “In Sweden my family encountered a political system that seemed very strange. The interpreter told us that Sweden is a country where the government will put a check into your mailbox each month if you don’t work. She explained that there was no reason to get a job.”Research by Daniel Pipes and Lars Hedegaard from 2002 reveals that mostly Muslim immigrants in Denmark “constitute five percent of the population but consume upwards of 40 percent of the welfare spending.” In that country, numerous “single” women who receive social assistance are really the wives of polygamous Muslim men.Polygamy and benefits fraud go hand in hand across the continent. Last year in France, a polygamous Muslim and father of 17 children was charged with welfare fraud when authorities discovered that “two of his companions lived in Dubai for a year while continuing to receive welfare benefits worth 10,000 Euros.” The man did not exactly have a low profile, as he made news previously when one of his wives was fined for driving while wearing a niqab that restricted her vision.Meanwhile, Canada’s most famous welfare recipients — Muslim or otherwise — remain the Khadrs. Confessed war criminal Omar Khadr still resides in Guantanamo Bay, having pleaded guilty to killing a U.S. soldier in Afghanistan in 2002. However, his extended family members, all of whom share his radical views, continue to live on welfare in a Toronto suburb.Despite the public outrage provoked by the Toronto Sun in 2008, little evidence suggests that the situation has improved in Canada. In early 2011, the Mounties charged Ahmad El-Akhal, a Quebec immigration consultant, with “providing Canadian citizenship documents to hundreds of people in the Middle East so they could collect benefits and tax refunds” to the tune of $500,000. Adding an original twist on the venerable scam, none of the individuals receiving benefits actually lived in Canada. According to the Royal Canadian Mounted Police, the scheme had been going on since 1999.This author contacted the officials originally quoted in that Toronto Sun report to ask what is being done about welfare abuse by Muslims. The office of Rob Ford, who is now Toronto mayor, never replied to inquiries. Just one individual, a spokesperson for the Ministry of Community and Social Services, responded — but only with a boilerplate email. Rebecca MacKenzie explained that the ministry is “not able to provide comment on specific cases due to privacy concerns,” adding that they “take allegations of fraud very seriously.”Seriousness is long overdue. As an Islamist Watch blog post from 2009 put it, “Only one adjective properly describes a government that funds those who seek its destruction: suicidal.”Read the full story here.

Boxing terror as undefeated female Muslim star is shot by her stepfather ahead of title fight.A top woman boxer's career is hanging in the balance after she is believed to have been shot by her stepfather.German Rola El-Halabi, 25, was allegedly shot in the hand, knee and feet before a title fight on Friday night by the 44-year-old who was also her former manager.The undefeated fighter was preparing to fight Irma Balijagic Andler from Bosnia for the vacant IBF lightweight title when the man went to her dressing room and shot her.Berlin police sources said that two security guards were also shot before the gunman was arrested.All three victims were taken to a local hospital where they underwent surgery and police said their injuries were not life threatening.El-Halabi, who was born in Lebanon, won the WIBF and WIBA world titles in 2009 and has an 11-0 career record, with six knockouts.Rola El-Halabi told the German daily: 'Papa rushed into the room. He threatened us with a gun in his hand and shouted "Everyone out," and then he shot me in the hand from three metres. I cried and screamed.'Bild reported that El-Halabi split from her stepfather as a manager in January.'When I had problems I could talk with him about anything, except when it was about boys. That was taboo,' El-Halabi said.Hmmm......Sounds like another (Dis)honor shooting?Read the full story here.