'Put that everywhere': Steve Bannon admits 'Project 2025 is the agenda' after Trump wins

David Edwards

November 6, 2024 11:41AM ET

Real America's Voice/screen grab

Right-wing pundits admitted that a controversial plan to reshape the country called Project 2025 is Donald Trump's agenda after he won the 2024 presidential election.

On his daily War Room podcast, host Steve Bannon agreed with conservative pundit Matt Walsh, who made the admission on social media.

"Now that the election is over I think we can finally say that yeah actually Project 2025 is the agenda," Walsh wrote on X (formerly Twitter).

Bannon sought to spread Walsh's message.

"Matt Walsh, I think, is a very smart and funny guy," Bannon said before amplifying the social media post. "Now that the election is over, I think we can finally say that, yeah, actually, Project 2025 is the agenda."

ALSO READ: 'Bloodbath': Inside the MAGA playbook for mayhem after Election Day

"Fabulous," the conservative host laughed as he instructed his staff to re-post the sentiment on social media channels.

"Put that everywhere," he said.

Watch the video below from Real America's Voice or click the link.

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Kamala Harris MOCKS Christian, Then THIS Happens

Painting of crucified Santa heading to St. Pat’s Cathedral

By Ian Mohr



December 23, 2017 | 4:11pm


Artist Robert Cenedella is taking his controversial Christmas painting, “The Presence of Man” — which shows Santa Claus on a crucifix — to St. Patrick’s Cathedral on Christmas Eve to display it after it caused protests at a local gallery and was pulled.

The image shows old St. Nick on a cross above a wasteland of gifts and other seasonal accoutrements. It was hanging in the window of Central Park Fine Arts this week but had to be yanked by gallery owners after less than 48 hours following complaints, sources close to the artist said.

Ironically, the work’s now being defended by Catholic League President Bill Donohue — who condemned the painting when he first saw it displayed two decades ago.

Donohue wrote recently on his site of the nearly 30-year-old work, “It caught my eye when it debuted some 20 years ago. At that time, I said, ‘We took no objection to art that protested the commercialization of Christmas, but we also maintained that it was not obvious that the painting conveyed that message.” He added, “In 1998, I said, ‘Our point was that the artist could have made the same point by putting Santa in a noose, thus avoiding a conflict with Christians.’ ” 

Artist Robert CenedellaGetty Images

Interestingly enough, Cenedella has said that his intention was not to be iconoclastic, but to inspire viewers to go back to the holiday’s Christian roots rather than celebrate its modern commercialism. Said a pal of the artist, “He always wanted to show it on Christmas Eve at St. Patrick’s to get people’s attention back on Christ on the cross instead of the commercialization of Christmas, which this painting is about.”

Either way, we hear Cenedella, whose painting has been included in a past Smithsonian Libraries exhibition, has been cleared by lawyers to bring the painting to St. Pat’s, where it will be displayed outside at 5:30 p.m. on Sunday. Says a source, “He wants it displayed there right before Mass.”

And perhaps, like many of the greatest contemporary religious fine art “controversies,” some of the flames seem to be fanned by the artist himself. In this case, just in time for art shopping?

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God's People Brought to the Test

 July 20

Many will say to me in that day, Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in thy name? and in thy name have cast out devils? and in thy name done many wonderful works? And then will I profess unto them, I never knew you: depart from me, ye that work iniquity. Matthew 7:22, 23.

We need not be deceived. Wonderful scenes, with which Satan will be closely connected, will soon take place. God's Word declares that Satan will work miracles. He will make people sick, and then will suddenly remove from them his satanic power. They will then be regarded as healed. These works of apparent healing will bring Seventh-day Adventists to the test.Many who have had great light will fail to walk in the light, because they have not become one with Christ.

I saw our people in great distress, weeping, and praying, pleading the sure promises of God, while the wicked were all around us, mocking us, and threatening to destroy us. They ridiculed our feebleness, they mocked at the smallness of our numbers, and taunted us with words calculated to cut deep. They charged us with taking an independent position from all the rest of the world. They had cut off our resources so that we could not buy nor sell, and referred to our abject poverty and stricken condition. They could not see how we could live without the world; we were dependent upon the world, and we must concede to the customs, practices, and laws of the world, or go out of it. If we were the only people in the world whom the Lord favored the appearances were awfully against us. They declared that they had the truth, that miracles were among them, that angels from heaven talked with them, and walked with them, that great power, and signs and wonders were performed among them, and this was the Temporal Millennium, which they had been expecting so long. The whole world was converted and in harmony with the Sunday law, and this little feeble people stood out in defiance of the laws of the land, and the laws of God, and claimed to be the only ones right on the earth. 

God's people will not find their safety in working miracles, for Satan would counterfeit any miracle that might be worked.... They are to take their stand on the living Word--"It is written."

Maranatha, p. 209

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‘Black Mass’ on Harvard Campus Canceled

Maya Rhodan @m_rhodan May 12, 2014



Critics of the re-enactment that was planned as an educational demonstration of a historical "black mass," a ritual that mocks the Roman Catholic Church, included the university's president and Roman Catholic Archbishop of Boston, who called the idea "repugnant"





Updated 8:45 p.m. ET

A Harvard University student club’s planned re-enactment of a satanic ritual was canceled at the last minute, amid backlash from students, alumni and the Archdiocese of Boston.

The “black mass,” to be hosted by the Harvard Extension School’s Cultural Studies Club, would have taken place at a pub on the school’s Cambridge campus Monday night. The club called it a “re-enactment” that was intended solely for educational purposes. The ritual was historically performed to mock the Roman Catholic Church.

About an hour before the ritual would have been held, the dean of student affairs at Harvard’s Extension School said in a statement that the black mass had been moved to an off-campus location. Fox Boston later reported that the group then canceled the event because it was unable to secure a new location.

Dean Robert Neugeboren said he was glad that the students finally decided to cancel, given religious leaders’ and other students’ firmly expressed reservations about the event.

Earlier on Monday, the Cultural Studies Club had faced strong criticism of its plans. Cardinal Sean O’Malley, the Roman Catholic Archbishop of Boston, called the event “repugnant” in an interview with the Boston Globe. He added, “There’s a great fascination with evil in the world, but you know, it doesn’t lead to anything good.”

University president Drew Faust denounced the event in a statement, saying that “the decision by a student club to sponsor an enactment of this ritual is abhorrent.” She then said that students still have a right to free expression: “Vigorous and open discussion and debate are essential to the pursuit of knowledge, and we must uphold these values even in the face of controversy.”

A petition started by a member of the school’s Catholic Students group had hundreds of signatures, the Harvard Crimson reports, and a prayer vigil would have coincided with the black mass.


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Anti-papal Minaj pomp is circumstantial

Tuesday February 14, 2012 9:12 AM

Nicki Minaj with her escort

A performer who wants to pretend to be daring can’t go wrong mocking Christianity, particularly the Roman Catholic Church.

Its symbols are familiar and its reactions predictable: expressions of outrage that fade rapidly until the next time a performer needs a booster shot of notoriety.

The only thing that offends me about the performance of Nicki Minaj on Sunday at the Grammy Awards is the idea of it as daring.

On the contrary, it perfectly fit the offense template that has been used by everyone from the photographer who in 1987 depicted a crucifix in a jar of urine to Lady Gaga in her 2010 Alejandro video: Simply juxtapose religious symbols with something crude or sexual. The controversy will roll in like the tide and recede just as predictably.

Minaj pushed all the buttons with her Roman Holiday performance. She had a man in papal garb, stained-glass windows, altar boys and — as the online magazine Salon put it — “monks getting groped by hot leather babes.”

A choir sang a less-than-reverent version of O Come, All Ye Faithful, too.

Minaj was ostensibly portraying an exorcism, but the only thing comprehensible about the whole mess was that she was dutifully checking off all the offensiveness boxes.

The Catholic League for Religious and Civil Rights obliged her by reacting as expected, complaining that similar irreverence toward Islam or Judaism would never be attempted.

Well, of course not. That would be dangerous. The offense template is meant to minimize risk, remember.

I was raised Catholic and am now a Methodist, and I think Christianity is just as ripe a target for satire as anything else. But at least do it with some originality and wit. (See Huckleberry Finn, The Producers or any number of Simpsons or South Park episodes.) We’ve seen this Minaj act a million times from Madonna, Lady Gaga and many others.

My biggest objection to pop stars falling back on religious mockery is that they seem to be making no point beyond “Hey, look at me being all naughty now that I’m successful and safely beyond the reach of a Catholic school principal.”

The odd thing about that type of posturing is that religion’s hold on the culture isn’t even that formidable. Consider the teeth-gnashing last week over birth control, which many people in the real world happily use no matter what their spiritual leaders say.

If Minaj wants to impress people by twisting the dragon’s tail, she ought to find a stronger dragon.

No religious authority will threaten Minaj with anything worse than disapproval — and that boosts her celebrity. So she, in fact, did something both predictable and safe. For an artist, aren’t those mortal sins?

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Fire and Brimstone, Chevy and Twinkies...

Chevy - Apocalypse - Super Bowl Commercial

Chris Wallace to Michele Bachmann: "Are You a Flake?"

Uploaded by jackohoft on Jun 26, 2011

Christian movement preparing for End of Days

Caroline Dennewith, co-owner of Dorky's Arcade in Tacoma, Wash., poses for a photo, Friday, May 20, 2011 with a poster advertising her business' "Rapture Party," which will be held Saturday, May 21, 2011, the day on which a loosely organized Christian movement believes Jesus will return to Earth to gather the faithful. Dennewith says she has received international media attention and some isolated local criticism for what started out as a low-key party in response to predictions of the rapture. (AP Photo/Ted S. Warren)

Christian movement preparing for End of Days
(AP) – 7 hours ago

OAKLAND, California (AP) — Some shut themselves inside to pray for mercy as they waited for the world's end.

Others met for tearful last lunches with their children, and prepared to leave behind homes and pets as they were swept up to heaven.

And across the globe, followers of a California preacher's long-publicized message that Judgment Day would arrive Saturday turned to the Bible, the book they believe predicts the beginning of Earth's destruction on May 21.

The doomsday message has been sent far and wide via broadcasts and web sites by Harold Camping, an 89-year-old retired civil engineer who has built a multi-million-dollar nonprofit ministry based on his apocalyptic prediction.

After spending months traveling the country to put up Judgment Day billboards and hand out Bible tracts, Camping follower Michael Garcia planned to spend Friday evening with his family at home in Alameda, near the Christian media empire's Oakland headquarters.

They believe it will likely start as it becomes 6 p.m. in the world's various time zones.

"We know the end will begin in New Zealand and will follow the sun and roll on from there," said Garcia, a 39-year-old father of six. "That's why God raised up all the technology and the satellites so everyone can see it happen at the same time."

The Internet was alive with reaction in the hours past 6 p.m. Saturday in New Zealand.

"Harold Camping's 21st May Doomsday prediction fails; No earthquake in New Zealand," read one posting on Twitter.

"If this whole end-of-the-world thingy is still going on ... it's already past 6.00 in New Zealand and the world hasn't ended," said another.

Camping's radio stations, TV channels, satellite broadcasts and website are controlled from a humble building on the road to the Oakland International Airport, sandwiched between an auto shop and a palm reader. Family Radio International's message has been broadcast in 61 languages.

Camping, however, will be awaiting Jesus Christ's return for the second time. He said his earlier apocalyptic prediction in 1994 didn't come true because of a mathematical error.

"I'm not embarrassed about it. It was just the fact that it was premature," he told The Associated Press last month. But this time, he said, "there is...no possibility that it will not happen."

Skeptics are planning Rapture-themed parties to celebrate what hosts expect will be the failure of the world to come to an end.

Bars and restaurants from Melbourne, Australia to the Florida Keys advertised bashes.

In Oakland, atheists planned a gathering at a local Masonic temple to include group discussions on "The Great Success of Past Apocalypses," followed by dinner and music.

Camping and his followers believe the beginning of the end will come on May 21, exactly 7,000 years since the flood in the biblical story of Noah's Ark.

Some 200 million people will be saved, Camping preaches, and those left behind will die in earthquakes, plagues, and other calamities until Earth is consumed by a fireball on October 21.

In the Philippines, a big billboard of Family Radio ministry in Manila warned of Judgment Day. Earlier this month, group members there distributed leaflets to motorists and carried placards warning of the end of the world.

Christian leaders from across the spectrum have widely dismissed the prophecy, but one local church is concerned that Camping's followers could slip into a deep depression come Sunday.

Pastor Jacob Denys of Milpitas-based Calvary Bible Church plans to wait outside the nonprofit's headquarters on Saturday afternoon, hoping to counsel believers who may be disillusioned if the Rapture does not occur.

"The cold, hard reality is going to hit them that they did this, and it was false and they basically emptied out everything to follow a false teacher," he said. "We're not all about doom and gloom. Our message is a message of salvation and of hope."

On Friday afternoon, a small group of eccentrics, gawkers and media opportunists convened outside Family Radio's closed office building. A sign posted on the front door said "SORRY WE MISSED YOU!"

As May 21 drew nearer, followers say donations grew, allowing Family Radio to spend millions of dollars on more than 5,000 billboards and 20 RVs plastered with the doomsday message. In 2009, the nonprofit reported in IRS filings that it received $18.3 million in donations, and had assets of more than $104 million, including $34 million in stocks or other publicly traded securities.

Marie Exley, who helped put up apocalypse-themed billboards in Israel, Jordan, Lebanon and Iraq, said the money helped the nonprofit save as many souls as possible. She said she and her husband, mother and brother planned to stay glued to the television Friday night in Bozeman, Montana for news of an earthquake in New Zealand.

Camping recommended this week that followers surround themselves by their loved ones and not meet publicly, Exley said.

"It's an emotional time and we're kind of nervous and scared about how things will pan out as to who will be here and who will go to heaven," she said. "I'll probably be scared in the fog of it, and crying, because we don't know who is saved and who is not."

Some people wanted to make sure their pets receive good treatment, no matter what happens.

Sharon Moss, who founded AfterTheRapturePetCare.com to provide post-apocalypse animal care, said a new wave of customers has paid $10 to sign up in the last few weeks.

"A lot of people have said you should be out there saving souls not saving pets but my heart says 'why can't you do both?'" said Moss, who identifies herself as Protestant.

Associated Press video journalist Haven Daley in San Francisco contributed to this report.(backslash)

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Social Media: Preparedness 101: Zombie Apocalypse

Social Media: Preparedness 101: Zombie Apocalypse

The following was originally posted on CDC Public Health Matters Blog May 16th, 2011 by Ali S. Khan.


There are all kinds of emergencies out there that we can prepare for. Take a zombie apocalypse for example. That’s right, I said z-o-m-b-i-e a-p-o-c-a-l-y-p-s-e. You may laugh now, but when it happens you’ll be happy you read this, and hey, maybe you’ll even learn a thing or two about how to prepare for a real emergency.

A Brief History of Zombies

We’ve all seen at least one movie about flesh-eating zombies taking over (my personal favorite is Resident Evil), but where do zombies come from and why do they love eating brains so much? The word zombie comes from Haitian and New Orleans voodoo origins. Although its meaning has changed slightly over the years, it refers to a human corpse mysteriously reanimated to serve the undead. Through ancient voodoo and folk-lore traditions, shows like the Walking Dead were born.

A couple dressed as zombies - Danny Zucco and Sandy Olsson from the movie Grease walking in the annual Toronto Zombie Walk.

In movies, shows, and literature, zombies are often depicted as being created by an infectious virus, which is passed on via bites and contact with bodily fluids. Harvard psychiatrist Steven Schoolman wrote a (fictional) medical paper on the zombies presented in Night of the Living Dead and refers to the condition as Ataxic Neurodegenerative Satiety Deficiency Syndrome caused by an infectious agent. The Zombie Survival Guide identifies the cause of zombies as a virus called solanum. Other zombie origins shown in films include radiation from a destroyed NASA Venus probe (as in Night of the Living Dead), as well as mutations of existing conditions such as prions, mad-cow disease, measles and rabies.

The rise of zombies in pop culture has given credence to the idea that a zombie apocalypse could happen. In such a scenario zombies would take over entire countries, roaming city streets eating anything living that got in their way. The proliferation of this idea has led many people to wonder “How do I prepare for a zombie apocalypse?”

Well, we’re here to answer that question for you, and hopefully share a few tips about preparing for real emergencies too!


Better Safe than Sorry

Some of the supplies for your emergency kit.


So what do you need to do before zombies…or hurricanes or pandemics for example, actually happen? First of all, you should have an emergency kit in your house. This includes things like water, food, and other supplies to get you through the first couple of days before you can locate a zombie-free refugee camp (or in the event of a natural disaster, it will buy you some time until you are able to make your way to an evacuation shelter or utility lines are restored). Below are a few items you should include in your kit, for a full list visit the CDC Emergency page.
•Water (1 gallon per person per day)
•Food (stock up on non-perishable items that you eat regularly)
•Medications (this includes prescription and non-prescription meds)
•Tools and Supplies (utility knife, duct tape, battery powered radio, etc.)
•Sanitation and Hygiene (household bleach, soap, towels, etc.)
•Clothing and Bedding (a change of clothes for each family member and blankets)
•Important documents (copies of your driver’s license, passport, and birth certificate to name a few)
•First Aid supplies (although you’re a goner if a zombie bites you, you can use these supplies to treat basic cuts and lacerations that you might get during a tornado or hurricane)

Once you’ve made your emergency kit, you should sit down with your family and come up with an emergency plan. This includes where you would go and who you would call if zombies started appearing outside your door step. You can also implement this plan if there is a flood, earthquake, or other emergency.




Family members meeting by their mailbox. You should pick two meeting places, one close to your home and one farther away.


1.Identify the types of emergencies that are possible in your area. Besides a zombie apocalypse, this may include floods, tornadoes, or earthquakes. If you are unsure contact your local Red Cross chapter for more information. Family members meeting by their mailbox. You should pick two meeting places, one close to your home and one farther away.

2.Pick a meeting place for your family to regroup in case zombies invade your home…or your town evacuates because of a hurricane. Pick one place right outside your home for sudden emergencies and one place outside of your neighborhood in case you are unable to return home right away.

3.Identify your emergency contacts. Make a list of local contacts like the police, fire department, and your local zombie response team. Also identify an out-of-state contact that you can call during an emergency to let the rest of your family know you are ok.

4.Plan your evacuation route. When zombies are hungry they won’t stop until they get food (i.e., brains), which means you need to get out of town fast! Plan where you would go and multiple routes you would take ahead of time so that the flesh eaters don’t have a chance! This is also helpful when natural disasters strike and you have to take shelter fast.



Never Fear – CDC is Ready



Get a Kit, Make a Plan, Be Prepared

If zombies did start roaming the streets, CDC would conduct an investigation much like any other disease outbreak. CDC would provide technical assistance to cities, states, or international partners dealing with a zombie infestation. This assistance might include consultation, lab testing and analysis, patient management and care, tracking of contacts, and infection control (including isolation and quarantine). It’s likely that an investigation of this scenario would seek to accomplish several goals: determine the cause of the illness, the source of the infection/virus/toxin, learn how it is transmitted and how readily it is spread, how to break the cycle of transmission and thus prevent further cases, and how patients can best be treated. Not only would scientists be working to identify the cause and cure of the zombie outbreak, but CDC and other federal agencies would send medical teams and first responders to help those in affected areas (I will be volunteering the young nameless disease detectives for the field work).

To learn more about what CDC does to prepare for and respond to emergencies of all kinds, visit:
http://emergency.cdc.gov/cdc/orgs_progs.asp

To learn more about how you can prepare for and stay safe during an emergency visit:
http://emergency.cdc.gov/

To download a badge like the one above that you can add to your social networking profile, blog, website, or email signature visit:
http://emergency.cdc.gov/socialmedia/zombies.asp

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Obama Mocks Republican 'Armageddon' Rhetoric on Healthcare bill - CNN

researchris2 March 29, 2010 http://researchris.blogspot.com
http://freedomwatchnews.blogspot.com
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CSI at Newbold Church

Saturday 28th March saw the first in the four - week series of talks regarding the Easter story. These will be presented by Pastors Patrick Johnson and Kirsten Oster-Lundqvist, who have come up with the theme of viewing the death of Christ as a possible crime , and approaching the analysis of the evidence in the same way a modern day murder would be investigated! In this week’s “episode” of CSI (Christ Scene Investigated) Patrick did the family service, while preaching together with Kirsten in the contemporary service was Pastor Victor Hulbert, BUC Communication Director.

Viewers of murder/crime shows such as the popular “CSI“ will know that all investigations follow a set pattern, and as Pastor Patrick Johnson pointed out, the main focus is always on the QUESTIONS asked. Therefore each of the parts of this series also concentrates on examining different aspects of the Easter story in an equally detailed manner.

Week One was entitled “ Questioning Jesus “ , and referred heavily to John 10: 1-21 for it’s evidence. This story of Jesus as the Good Shepherd takes place at a time when the Jews were of a divided opinion about Jesus, not convinced of his authenticity. In the present time , many people are also unsure of whether to “believe” or not . However John 10 shows us that Jesus, and Him alone , is indeed our salvation …”I am the gate, whoever enters through me will be saved “. …But of course there is always hope for those prepared to turn towards God …”I have other sheep who are not of this sheep pen , I must bring them also“

The main emphasis of this week’s talk was about the conclusions we can reach about His death. These were summed up in three points:

1) It was Voluntary - and may even have been deliberate, in order to illustrate His sacrifice for us.
2) It was Vicarious - on behalf of the sheep/us. “I am the good shepherd; I know my sheep and my sheep know me - and I lay down my life for the sheep”
3) It was Victorious - Christ was triumphantly resurrected to Eternal life! “ I lay down my life - only to take it up again. No-one takes it from me, but I lay it down of my own accord.”
After such a good start, I’m sure we all look forward to the remaining “episodes “, which are as follows:

4th April “QUESTIONING THE TRIAL” Early and Family Service - Kirsten, Contemporary Service - Patrick

11th April “QUESTIONING THE CRUCIFIXION” Early and Contemporary Service - Patrick,
Family Service - Kirsten/Robyn Anthony

18th April “QUESTIONING THE RESURRECTION” Early and Family Service - Patrick,
Contemporary Service - Kirsten. (Lesley Dennison)
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Source: http://newboldchurch.org/news.aspx

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NOTE:

I provide this information for the faithful brethren that are living under a rock (which are clueless to the changes that have taken place all around them), and innocently believe that their beloved church is still singing "When the role is called up yonder", and we're all following the a church manual; While in reality (au contraire) everything goes, and the beloved church is being swept by every wind of doctrine imaginable (some pantheistic) while the stewards condone it all, if not look the other way. This is what is really happening; And, it's no secret (except to the uninformed masses), since they publish their exploits on the internet for the whole world to see...

Can't you see the strange crosses invading the churches?

Or, the worldly music, instruments such as electric guitars and drums behind the pulpits?

Or, the jovial atmosphere during the solemn divine worship service?

Or, the comedy skits, the puppets, the pantomime?

Or, the applause? When did all this strange phenomenon become part of our worship to a Holy God?

And Jesus answered and said unto them, Take heed that no man deceive you.
For many shall come in my name, saying, I am Christ; and shall deceive many.

Matthew 24:4,5.

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And have no fellowship with the unfruitful works of darkness, but rather reprove them.
For it is a shame even to speak of those things which are done of them in secret.
But all things that are reproved are made manifest by the light: for whatsoever doth make manifest is light.............. Ephesians 5:11-13

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Who knowing the judgment of God, that they which commit such things are worthy of death, not only do the same, but have pleasure in them that do them........Romans 1:32

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Arsenio.

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Obama Jokes: Twitter Could Replace "Red Phone" Calls to Russia

June 24, 2010 5:33 PM

Posted by Jaywon Choe

(Credit: AP)

At a joint press conference today with Russian President Dmitry Medvedev, President Obama joked about how one popular technology might help the two countries move past traditional Cold War-style diplomacy.

The technology in question was Twitter - or as Mr. Obama put it, signaling he might be less familiar with the technology than he let on, "Twitters." During his speech, Mr. Obama made reference to the fact that Medvedev "visited the headquarters of Twitters where he opened his own account."
Speaking of Medvedev starting a Twitter account, Mr. Obama said, "I have one, as well, so we may be able to finally throw away those red phones that have been sitting around for so long." The comment garnered titters from the assembled guests and press corps at the White House.

(Credit: Columbia Pictures)

The "red phone" Mr. Obama was referring to was the direct line that ostensibly connected the White House to the Kremlin during the Cold War, made famous in movies like 1964's "Fail Safe," starring Henry Fonda as the president (see left). In popular culture, the image of the red phone has become synonymous with U.S.-Russia relations during the era. But the reality today is a bit more complicated.

Former White House Chief of Staff Andy Card, who served under President George W. Bush, told CBS News White House correspondent Mark Knoller that in his time there was a direct connection phone between the White House Situation Room and the Kremlin, but that it wasn't red.

As for today?

"Nowadays, they just pick up a phone and call the Kremlin," a White House spokesman told Knoller.

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Source: http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-503544_162-20008776-503544.html

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Israel forced to apologise for YouTube spoof of Gaza flotilla

Israeli government press office distributed video link featuring Arabs and activists singing


Rachel Shabi in Jerusalem
guardian.co.uk, Sunday 6 June 2010 22.44 BST

The Israeli government has been forced to apologise for circulating a spoof video mocking activists aboard the Gaza flotilla, nine of who were shot dead by Israeli forces last week.

The YouTube clip, set to the tune of the 1985 charity single We Are the World, features Israelis dressed as Arabs and activists, waving weapons while singing: "We con the world, we con the people. We'll make them all believe the IDF (Israel Defence Force) is Jack the Ripper."

It continues: "There's no people dying, so the best that we can do is create the biggest bluff of all."

The Israeli government press office distributed the video link to foreign journalists at the weekend, but within hours emailed them an apology, saying it had been an error. Press office director Danny Seaman said the video did not reflect official state opinion, but in his personal capacity he thought it was "fantastic".

Government spokesman Mark Regev said the video reflected how Israelis felt about the incident. "I called my kids in to watch it because I thought it was funny," he said. "It is what Israelis feel. But the government has nothing to do with it."

The clip features a group led by the Jerusalem Post's deputy managing editor Caroline Glick, wearing keffiyehs and calling themselves the Flotilla Choir. The footage is interspersed with clips from the recent Israeli raid on the Gaza-bound aid ship, the Mavi Marmara.

The clip has been praised in Israel, where the mass-circulation daily Yediot Aharonot said the singers "defended Israel better than any of the experts".

But Didi Remez, an Israeli who runs the liberal-left news analysis blog Coteret, said the clip was "repulsive" and reflected how out of touch Israeli opinion was with the rest of the world. "It shows a complete lack of understanding of how the incident is being perceived abroad," she said. Award-winning Israeli journalist Meron Rapoport said the clip demonstrated prejudice against Muslims. "It's roughly done, not very sophisticated, anti-Muslim – and childish for the government to be behind such a clip," he said.

A similar press office email was sent to foreign journalists two weeks ago, recommending a gourmet restaurant and Olympic-sized swimming pool in Gaza to highlight Israel's claim there is no humanitarian crisis there. Journalists who complained the email was in poor taste were told they had "no sense of humour".

Last week, the Israel Defence Force had to issue a retraction over an audio clip it had claimed was a conversation between Israeli naval officials and people on the Mavi Marmara, in which an activist told soldiers to "go back to Auschwitz". The clip was carried by Israeli and international press, but today the army released a "clarification/correction", explaining that it had edited the footage and that it was not clear who had made the comment.

The Israeli army also backed down last week from an earlier claim that soldiers were attacked by al-Qaida "mercenaries" aboard the Gaza flotilla. An article appearing on the IDF spokesperson's website with the headline: "Attackers of the IDF soldiers found to be al-Qaida mercenaries", was later changed to "Attackers of the IDF Soldiers found without identification papers," with the information about al-Qaida removed from the main article. An army spokesperson told the Guardian there was no evidence proving such a link to the terror organisation.

While the debate over accounts of the flotilla raid continues, Israel is facing more boycotting. In the past week, three international acts, including the US rock band the Pixies, have cancelled concerts in Tel Aviv.

Best-settling authors Alice Walker and Iain Banks have backed the boycott campaign, with Banks announcing his books won't be translated into Hebrew. Dockworker unions in Sweden and South Africa have refused to handle Israeli ships, while the UK's Unite union just passed a motion to boycott Israeli companies.
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Source: http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2010/jun/06/israel-youtube-gaza-flotilla
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