Thursday, May 02, 2013

America: Protect Our Civil Liberties, But Expand Surveillance Cameras And Chat Room Monitoring

by Noah Rothman | 5:50 pm, May 1st, 2013



In the wake of the April 15 Boston Marathon bombing, CNN/ORC has released a new poll showing conflicting conclusions about how Americans have internalized the lessons of that attack. Most surveyed said that the preservation of civil liberties should be American elected officials’ first priority and not passing new laws intended to make it easier to target potential terrorists. However, Most surveyed said that they support an expansion of law enforcement’s ability to monitor online conversations and favor an increase the number of cameras monitoring pedestrian traffic in public spaces.

The latest CNN/ORC poll could be broadly interpreted by civil libertarians as good news. A majority of those surveyed, 63 percent, say that terrorists will find a way to attack the U.S. no matter what. Only 32 percent say new laws and added vigilance could prevent every conceivable terrorist event. That number is remarkably stable among subgroups. 63 percent of both women and men sampled said that terrorists will find a way to execute an attack if they are so inclined.

CNN/ORC found similar results when they asked if they feared the government’s response to the Boston attack would be approving new counterterror policies or the preservation of Americans’ civil liberties. 61 percent said they fear new policies which will “excessively restrict the average person’s civil liberties.” Only 31 percent said they fear the government will not do enough to prevent a future attack. Again, 61 percent of both women and men said they are more concerned about civil liberties than new anti-terror policies.

Things get a little more confusing as the survey progresses. Only 49 percent said that they would not consider surrendering some of their liberty even if it could curb future incidences of terrorist violence. 40 percent said they would be “willing” to “give up some civil liberties” to ensure future security.

A vast majority – 81 percent to 18 percent – favor expanded camera surveillance on streets and in public places. This figure likely buoyed by the fact that both Boston bombers were first identified by footage from a surveillance camera outside a retail outlet.

While 59 percent oppose the expansion of government monitoring of cellular or email communication, 55 percent expressed support for an expansion of law enforcement monitoring electronic communications in chat rooms. Only 42 percent oppose the expansion of law enforcement’s ability to monitor chat room communications.

Self-identified Democrats and Republicans both strongly favor expanding the monitoring of online communications in chat rooms. Only self-identified independents were split; 48 to 46 percent favor such a move, well within that subgroup’s 6.0 percent margin of error.

CNN closes this schizophrenic survey with a note of optimism. 70 percent of Americans say they will not change their behavior patterns as a result of the attack in Boston and plan on attending large public events in the near future.

The CNN/ORC survey was conducted of 606 adults on April 30 and contains a margin of error of +/- 4.0 percent.


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Texas Sen. Ted Cruz Reportedly Considering Presidential Run


May 1, 2013 9:49 AM

 
U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX) (L) speaks while Chairman Dick Durbin (D-IL) listens during a Senate Judiciary Subcommittee on Civil Rights and Human Rights hearing on Capitol Hill on April 2013 in Washington, DC. (Photo by Mark Wilson/Getty Images)


CBSDFW.COM – Freshman senator Ted Cruz from Texas is considering a presidential run in 2016, according to the National Review.

The article cites friends and confidants of Cruz, saying that though Cruz won’t address it publicly, he has undeniable interest in making a run.

Last November, Cruz defeated Democratic challenger Paul Sadler to become the first Latino U.S. Senator from Texas. He succeeded retiring Republican Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison, who had held the position since 1993.

Cruz secured an upset victory over Lt. Gov. David Dewhurst to win the Republican senatorial nomination. Cruz credited the victory to the support he received from Tea Party members and grassroots conservatives. In the campaign, Cruz painted the mainstream GOP choice Dewhurst as being too moderate.

In his first three months in office, Cruz has been viewed by some as a troublemaker in the Senate, often voting contrary to the GOP mainstays. While the approach has been questioned nationally, Cruz is making good on promises to be absolute in his adherence to conservative principles.


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P.S.

Cruz was born in CalgaryAlbertaCanada, where his parents, Eleanor Darragh and Rafael Cruz, were working in the oil business.[9][10] His father was a Cuban immigrant to the United States during the Cuban Revolution.[11] His mother was born and reared in Delaware, in a family of Irish and Italian descent.[10][12] Cruz's family returned to the U.S. when he was four years old.[11]

Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ted_Cruz
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The Siege of Jerusalem


Flavius Josephus
(37-100)

"But why dwell on the commonplace rubbish which the starving were driven to feed upon, given that what I have to recount is an act unparalleled in the history of either the Greeks or the barbarians, and as horrible to relate as it is incredible to hear?"



The Siege of Jerusalem, AD 70
by Josephus

Jerusalem fell, after a siege, to a Roman army under Titus.
Josephus was a Jew who had gone over to the Romans.



Throughout the city people were dying of hunger in large numbers, and enduring unspeakable sufferings. In every house the merest hint of food sparked violence, and close relatives fell to blows, snatching from one another the pitiful supports of life. No respect was paid even to the dying; the ruffians [anti-Roman zealots] searched them, in case they were concealing food somewhere in their clothes, or just pretending to be near death. Gaping with hunger, like mad dogs, lawless gangs went staggering and reeling through the streets, battering upon the doors like drunkards, and so bewildered that they broke into the same house two or three times in an hour. Need drove the starving to gnaw at anything. Refuse which even animals would reject was collected and turned into food. In the end they were eating belts and shoes, and the leather stripped off their shields. Tufts of withered grass were devoured, and sold in little bundles for four drachmas.

But why dwell on the commonplace rubbish which the starving were driven to feed upon, given that what I have to recount is an act unparalleled in the history of either the Greeks or the barbarians, and as horrible to relate as it is incredible to hear? For my part I should gladly have omitted this tragedy, lest I should be suspected of monstrous fabrication. But there were many witnesses of it among my contemporaries; and besides, I should do poor service to my country if I were to suppress the agonies she went through.

Among the residents of the region beyond Jordan was a woman called Mary, daughter of Eleazar, of the village of Bethezuba (the name means "House of Hyssop"). She was well off, and of good family, and had fled to Jerusalem with her relatives, where she became involved with the siege. Most of the property she had packed up and brought with her from Peraea had been plundered by the tyrants [Simon and John, leaders of the Jewish war-effort], and the rest of her treasure, together with such foods as she had been able to procure, was being carried by their henchmen in their daily raids. In her bitter resentment the poor woman cursed and abused these extortioners, and this incensed them against her. However, no one put her to death either from exasperation or pity. She grew weary of trying to find food for her kinsfolk. In any case, it was by now impossible to get any, wherever you tried. Famine gnawed at her vitals, and the fire of rage was ever fiercer than famine. So, driven by fury and want, she committed a crime against nature. Seizing her child, an infant at the breast, she cried, "My poor baby, why should I keep you alive in this world of war and famine? Even if we live till the Romans come, they will make slaves of us; and anyway, hunger will get us before slavery does; and the rebels are crueler than both. Come, be food for me, and an avenging fury to the rebels, and a tale of cold horror to the world to complete the monstrous agony of the Jews." With these words she killed her son, roasted the body, swallowed half of it, and stored the rest in a safe place. But the rebels were on her at once, smelling roasted meat, and threatening to kill her instantly if she did not produce it. She assured them she had saved them a share, and revealed the remains of her child. Seized with horror and stupefaction, they stood paralyzed at the sight. But she said, "This is my own child, and my own handiwork. Eat, for I have eaten already. Do not show yourselves weaker than a woman, or more pitiful than a mother. But if you have pious scruples, and shrink away from human sacrifice, then what I have eaten can count as your share, and I will eat what is left as well." At that they slunk away, trembling, not daring to eat, although they were reluctant to yield even this food to the mother. The whole city soon rang with the abomination. When people heard of it, they shuddered, as though they had done it themselves.


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Famine during the Siege of Jerusalem



Terrible were the calamities that fell upon Jerusalem when the siege was resumed by Titus. The city was invested at the time of the Passover, when millions of Jews were assembled within its walls. Their stores of provision, which if carefully preserved would have supplied the inhabitants for years, had previously been destroyed through the jealousy and revenge of the contending factions, and now all the horrors of starvation were experienced. A measure of wheat was sold for a talent. So fierce were the pangs of hunger that men would gnaw the leather of their belts and sandals and the covering of their shields. Great numbers of the people would steal out at night to gather wild plants growing outside the city walls, though many were seized and put to death with cruel torture, and often those who returned in safety were robbed of what they had gleaned at so great peril. The most inhuman tortures were inflicted by those in power, to force from the want-stricken people the last scanty supplies which they might have concealed. And these cruelties were not infrequently practiced by men who were themselves well fed, and who were merely desirous of laying up a store of provision for the future.

Thousands perished from famine and pestilence. Natural affection seemed to have been destroyed. Husbands robbed their wives, and wives their husbands. Children would be seen snatching the food from the mouths of their aged parents. The question of the prophet, “Can a woman forget her sucking child?” received the answer within the walls of that doomed city: “The hands of the pitiful women have sodden their own children: they were their meat in the destruction of the daughter of my people.” Isaiah 49:15; Lamentations 4:10. Again was fulfilled the warning prophecy given fourteen centuries before: The tender and delicate woman among you, which would not adventure to set the sole of her foot upon the ground for delicateness and tenderness, her eye shall be evil toward the husband of her bosom, and toward her son, and toward her daughter, ... and toward her children which she shall bearfor she shall eat them for want of all things secretly in the siege and straitness, wherewith thine enemy shall distress thee in thy gates.” Deuteronomy 28:56, 57.

The Great Controversy, pp.31-32.
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Jamestown settlers ate 14-year-old girl, researchers say



Smithsonian explains the Jamestown archaeological dig.
By Matt Pearce

May 1, 2013, 1:47 p.m.

The early American settlers called it "the starving time," and accounts of the winter of 1609-1610 were so ghastly, and so morbid, that scholars weren't sure if the stories were true.


George Percy, then president of the English settlement of Jamestown in Virginia, wrote that settlers ate horses, then cats and dogs, then boots and bits of leather, and, finally, one another.

"One of our colony murdered his wife, ripped the child out of her womb and threw it into the river, and after chopped the mother in pieces and salted her for his food," wrote Percy, who then ordered the man executed.

"Now whether she was better roasted, boyled or carbonado’d [barbecued], I know not, but of such a dish as powdered wife I never heard of," added the famed settler John Smith. "This was that time, which still to this day we called the starving time; it were too vile to say, and scarce to be beleeved, what we endured."

Until now: Researchers said Wednesday that they have discovered the first forensic proof that cannibalism happened at Jamestown during one of its darkest periods.

The announcement was presented by Douglas Owsley, the division head for physical anthropology at the Smithsonian’s National Museum of Natural History, chief archaeologist William Kelso from the Jamestown Rediscovery Project at Preservation Virginia and historian James Horn, vice president of research and historical interpretation at Colonial Williamsburg.

But the biggest name involved with the announcement was "Jane," the nickname given to the remains of a 14-year-old girl found last year in settlement trash from the starving period.

Archaeologists did not find much of Jane -- just part of her skull and part of her leg, or 10% of her body -- but said those remains showed that someone tried to eat her, apparently after she had died of an undetermined cause.

Someone made four small chops to Jane's forehead before an ax or cleaver broke open the back of her skull, the researchers said. There were also small knife cuts on her jaw and cheek.

“The desperation and overwhelming circumstances faced by the James Fort colonists during the winter of 1609–1610 are reflected in the postmortem treatment of this girl’s body,” Smithsonian anthropologist Owsley said in the announcement. “The recovered bone fragments have unusually patterned cuts and chops that reflect tentativeness, trial and complete lack of experience in butchering animal remains. Nevertheless, the clear intent was to dismember the body, removing the brain and flesh from the face for consumption.”

Researchers took DNA from Jane in case that her real identity could be someday discovered by matching samples with those of her family's descendants, though officials said finding relatives was unlikely.

Tests showed that Jane had a diet of wheat and meat, said officials, who believe she arrived in Jamestown in August 1609, mere months before the worst of the colonists' starvation. That winter, 80% of the settlers died -- about 200 people -- sometimes at the hands of the Native Americans living in the area.

"The 'starving time' was brought about by a trifecta of disasters: disease, a serious shortage of provisions, and a full scale siege by the Powhatans that cut off Jamestown from outside relief," Colonial Williamsburg's researcher Horn said in the announcement. "Survival cannibalism was a last resort; a desperate means of prolonging life at a time when the settlement teetered on the brink of extinction."

By May, the colony's Percy wrote, settlers called out to visitors, "We are starved, we are starved."

One man, Hugh Pryse, "being pinched with extreme famine ... did come openly into the market place blaspheming, exclaiming and crying out that there was no God, alleging that if there were a god he would not suffer his creatures whom he had made and framed to endure those miseries." Pryse was soon killed by Native Americans, Percy wrote, surely in divine punishment for his blasphemy.

Jamestown, although almost abandoned, survived after more settlers and colonists arrived.

The discovery of Jane came as part of a 20-year excavation of the colonists' original settlement. A digital reconstruction of her face will go on display Friday at the Nathalie P. and Alan M. Voorhees Archaearium at Historic Jamestowne and at the Smithsonian’s National Museum of Natural History in Washington.


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Wednesday, May 01, 2013

A handful of arrests as May Day protesters return to downtown


May 1, 2013 at 10:26 AM

Posted by Mike Carter



Flash bangs explode in a crowd near 5th and Olive at about 8:15 in downtown Seattle. (Photo by Bettina Hansen / The Seattle Times)

UPDATE AT 8:22 P.M.: Capt. Chris Fowler, the incident commander, said police are deploying pepper spray canisters to disperse the crowd.

“It’s a safety issue,” Fowler said.

Crowd continues to head east on Olive, toward Capitol Hill.

UPDATE AT 8:12 P.M.: Police are now herding protesters east on Olive Way. Police using flash-bangs to move the crowd. Objects, including a skateboard, are being thrown at police.

Police continue to use pepper spray to clear the crowd.


Flash bangs between police and protestors go off at 5th and Olive around 8:00. (Photo by Bettina Hansen / The Seattle Times)

UPDATE AT 8:06 P.M.: Seattle police say they plan to give the official order to clear the streets. Things could reach a head soon.

UPDATE AT 7:59 P.M. Police are making more arrests at Olive, between Fourth and Fifth. Police are also using pepper spray for the first time.

UPDATE AT 7:54 P.M.: The two men taken into custody were apparently assaulting a TV cameraman, police say. One was reportedly on a pogo stick (the protester, not the cameraman).

UPDATE AT 7:48 P.M.: Seattle police are making a couple of arrests at Fourth and Pine.


Police work to divert a crowd of protesters around 7:45 in Westlake Park in downtown Seattle. (Photo by Bettina Hansen / The Seattle Times)

UPDATE AT 7:35 P.M.: The crowd has come full circle. They’re now at Westlake Park, where the “festivities” began this morning.

Still no arrests.

UPDATE AT 7:28 P.M.: Police say some are throwing metal pipes and other objects at windows.


Police create a barrier with their bicycles as protesters deploy smoke and march downtown near Sixth Ave. and Pike St. downtown. (Photo by Bettina Hansen / The Seattle Times)

UPDATE AT 7:25 P.M.: Group now at Sixth and Pike and Niketown, epicenter of last year’s violence when self-proclaimed anarchists — some wearing Nikes — broke windows. Heavy police presence there today.

Someone set off a flare.

UPDATE AT 7:20 P.M.: Crowd heading west on Pike over the freeway.

Police say the broken window was at Sun Liquor. A police source says demonstrators may have taken bottles.


Protesters head West on Pike Street. (Photo by Bettina Hansen / The Seattle Times)


A sizable contingent of police follow demonstrators on bike. (Photo by Dean Rutz / the Seattle Times)

UPDATE AT 7:12 P.M.: Even the superheroes got hosed with Silly String. Oh, the humanity.

Crowd continues to march toward downtown, although the marchers don’t seem to know where they’re going.

A window was reportedly broken at East Pike and Belmont. Still no word of arrests.

UPDATE AT 7:01 P.M.: The group has now stopped at Pine and Broadway. Heavy police presence.

Many in the crowd are unhappy with the media. A KING-TV reporter was doused with Silly String.

UPDATE AT 6:56 P.M: Marchers have left SCCC and are heading west along East Pine toward Broadway, possibly in a route that will take them downtown. Police say some in the crowd appear to be lighting flares or some type of smoke devices.

Someone set off firecrackers.

Thus far, no arrests.

UPDATE AT 5:33 P.M.: The rally at the federal building is breaking up and many people are making their way up Capitol Hill for what’s labeled an “anti-capitalist” rally and march.

It’s set to begin at 6 p.m. at Seattle Central Community College.The route of that march is unclear as organizers did not obtain a permit from the city, according to Seattle police. It was during last year’s anti-capitalist march that dozens of protesters wielding sticks, hammers and rocks went on a noontime rampage.

A large group of Seattle police bicycle officers were seen heading up to Seattle Central CC a short time ago.

Seattle police say there have been no arrests.


Thousands of demonstrators rally at the federal building in downtown Seattle for the 13th Annual May Day March for Workers and Immigrant Rights. (Photo by Steve Ringman / The Seattle Times)

UPDATE AT 4:58 P.M.: Marchers are beginning to arrive at the federal building in downtown Seattle. The march is several blocks long so it will take some time for all to reach their destination.

Things are still peaceful, although some members of the crowd — generally people with bandannas over their faces — are taunting some police. The officers are not reacting.

No arrests.

The highlight of the march was covered by this SPD Tweet: “Brief disturbance earlier at 5th & Jackson between superheroes & clowns. Everything’s under control.”


Police line S King St. as the 13th Annual May Day March for Workers and Immigrant Rights passes at about 3:45 Wednesday afternoon. (Photo by Steve Ringman / The Seattle Times)

UPDATE AT 3:25 P.M.: In what may be the first sign of potential trouble, Seattle police say they have recovered rocks and bricks possibly placed in advance of today’s May Day events. Police say the objects were recovered in the East and West precincts.

Meanwhile, police are lining the route as marchers may their way to downtown. Still peaceful.






Read rome

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House panel to hear from eyewitnesses on Benghazi attack

Politics: Congress

May 1, 2013 | 7:00 pm


Susan Ferrechio
Chief Congressional CorrespondentThe Washington Examiner
@susanferrechio


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Issa: New Benghazi hearing will ‘expose new facts’ Obama ‘has tried to suppress’



FILE - In this Friday, Sept. 14, 2012 file photo, Libyan military guards check one of the U.S. Consulate's burnt out buildings during a visit by Libyan President Mohammed el-Megarif, not shown, to the U.S. consulate in Benghazi, Libya to express sympathy for the death of the American ambassador, Chris Stevens and his colleagues in the deadly Sept. 11, 2012 attack on the consulate. (AP Photo/Mohammad Hannon, File)


House Republicans scheduled a new hearing on the Benghazi terrorist attacks and suggested it would include new testimony from eyewitnesses to the deadly Sept. 11 assault on the U.S. Consulate who will provide firsthand reports about what happened that day.

House Oversight and Government Reform Committee Chairman Darrell Issa, R-Calif., scheduled a May 8 hearing entitled "Benghazi: Exposing Failure and Recognizing Courage." It will be the latest attempt by congressional Republicans to demonstrate that the Obama administration misled the public about the true nature of an attack that killed four people, including the U.S. ambassador to Libya.

Issa did not disclose the witness list but promised the hearing "will expose new facts and details that the Obama administration has tried to suppress."

A top committee member, Rep. Trey Gowdy, R-S.C., went further, telling Fox News that the testimony will be "explosive."

"Firsthand accounts by eyewitnesses [are] much more compelling, much more persuasive," Gowdy said of the hearing.

Republicans have for months been clamoring for additional information from the Obama administration about the attacks on the mission in Benghazi that left Ambassador Chris Stevens dead.

"Benghazi is warming up," Gowdy told Fox. "It is not going away, despite the efforts of this administration."

While many congressional Democrats appear satisfied with the Obama administration's handling of the attacks and the aftermath, Republicans believe the State Department did not provide adequate security for American diplomats at the consulate and charge that the administration hasn't been forthcoming about what its investigation of the attack found because it is trying to conceal its own negligence.

A lawyer and former Republican operative said State Department officials are preventing "whistleblower" witnesses to the attack from revealing what they saw.

When President Obama was asked about Benghazi whistleblowers in a Tuesday press conference, he said he was "not familiar" with anyone being prevented from talking.

White House spokesman Jay Carney, when pressed again on the matter Wednesday, suggested Republicans are politicizing an old issue.

"Benghazi happened a long time ago," Carney said. "We are unaware of any agency blocking an employee who would like to appear before Congress to provide information related to Benghazi."

The FBI on Wednesday released photos of "three individuals who were on the grounds" of the Benghazi consulate when it was attacked.

The photos, which were posted online by Foreign Policy magazine, are accompanied by an FBI request for information about the attack "from Libyans and people around the world."

Issa, meanwhile, wrote to the CIA, State Department and Defense Department requesting security clearances for lawyers representing the whistleblowers so lawmakers can gather information about the attack.

"The department's unwillingness to make the process for clearing an attorney more transparent appears to be an effort to interfere with the rights of employees to furnish information to Congress," Issa told the State Department in an April 25 letter.

Congress has conducted a number of hearings on Benghazi but some Republicans have called for a select committee to examine the matter. The House GOP issued a report last month that concluded former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton signed off on a memo rejecting increased security in Benghazi. An independent review board, however, did not fault Clinton and she denies ever seeing the security request.

sferrechio@washingtonexaminer.com


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Beltane Fire Festival lights up Edinburgh sky as thousands turn out for annual event


By Dailyrecord.co.uk


1 May 2013 09:33


THE Beltane Fire festival on Edinburgh's Calton Hill is held to mark the start of summer each year with theatre displays, dance and acrobatics.


The Beltane festival celebrates the coming of summer and the beginning of May.
Getty Images


FIRE illuminated the Edinburgh sky as thousands of people gathered to watch a modern take on an ancient Gaelic festival.

The Beltane Fire festival on Edinburgh's Calton Hill is held to mark the start of summer each year with theatre displays, dance and acrobatics.

Starting as darkness fell over the capital, a fire procession wound its way up the hill, stopping at set locations where different groups performed.

The festival is focused on two central figures, the May Queen and the Green Man, who led the procession to a massive bonfire which is lit to welcome what participants see as the first morning of summer.

Organised by the Beltane Fire Society, the modern festival started in 1988 as a community event which has grown each year as more acts join the line-up.

The ancient Beltane was historically held on the mid point between the spring equinox and summer solstice and fire was used to encourage crops to grow and cattle to produce during the summer.



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Related:


1 May 2013 Last updated at 07:14 ET

Day in pictures: 1 May 2013





The annual pagan-inspired Beltane Fire festival in Edinburgh gets under way on Calton Hill. It marks the beginning of summer and celebrates an ancient Celtic festival.


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Bomb in Russia's Dagestan province kills 2


By ARSEN MOLLAYEV
Associated Press

Published: Wednesday, May 1, 2013 at 11:52 a.m.
Last Modified: Wednesday, May 1, 2013 at 11:52 a.m.


MAKHACHKALA, Russia - A bomb exploded Wednesday in a busy shopping area in the capital of Russia's restive republic of Dagestan, killing at least two people, police said.

Two teenage boys who tried to open a cardboard box left near a store were killed when the bomb inside went off, police said.

The explosion in the city of Makhachkala also wounded an undetermined number of people, said a spokeswoman for the republic's Interior Ministry, Fatina Ubaidatova. She had no further details about the bomb.

Islamic insurgents frequently mount attacks on police and Russian security forces in Dagestan, with bombs often placed in cars or along roads.

Wednesday's explosion, however, may have been intended to frighten the owner of the store and force him to pay protection money, Russia's National Anti-Terrorism Committee said in a statement.

The owner of the store, which sells construction and electrical supplies, had found a similar device three months ago before it could be detonated, the committee said.

Late Tuesday, three policemen were killed and another one was wounded when their vehicle came under fire in the Dagestani town of Buinaksk, police said.

The republic in southern Russia is home to the parents of the suspects in last month's Boston Marathon bombing. One of the bombing suspects who was killed in a shootout with Boston police, Tamerlan Tsarnaev, paid a long visit to Dagestan last year. Investigators are trying to determine whether he had contact with extremists here.


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Free condoms for your 12-year-old? California health council can help


By Holly Yan, CNN
updated 10:24 AM EDT, Wed May 1, 2013







Program offers free condoms to teens


STORY HIGHLIGHTS
Health council: "California is experiencing a near public health crisis with STD rates"
Teens in San Diego and Fresno counties are now able to get free condoms delivered by mail
Youths in five other California counties have already received about 30,000 free condoms
The program runs on a $5,000 annual budget supported by federal tax dollars



(CNN) -- With just a few clicks of a mouse, kids as young as 12 can have free condoms delivered to their doors in California.

News of the program's expansion to two new counties comes as the federal government approves the "morning-after pill" without a prescription for girls as young as 15.

The development has garnered mixed reactions.

"I would ask parents the question, 'Who should be making decisions for the best welfare of your child -- you as a parent, or the state, who has no direct connection, has no understanding, has no relationship with your child?'" San Diego-area pastor Chris Clark told CNN affiliate KSWB.

"If I was 12 and hearing this 'news' and looking at my Lego blocks, I would feel like such a loser. 'Is everyone doing it but me?' Talk about pressure!" CNN commenter Song Sing Sing posted.

Commenter bare_necessities "couldn't disagree more." Having received free condoms during a fifth-grade health class, bare_necessities says classmates usually used them to make balloons.

"Most, if not all, of us hadn't even become interested in the other sex at that age, but I'd like to think that the experience prepared us better for when we did. Condoms don't make children more sexually active."

The alarming rates of sexually transmitted diseases among teens call for immediate action, health officials say.

The Condom Access Project has been around for a year. Late last month, it expanded to San Diego and Fresno counties, bringing the number of counties it serves to seven.

As part of the project, anyone between 12 and 19 years old in those counties can confidentially request a pack of 10 condoms online, up to once a month. It's similar to Planned Parenthood programs that offer free condoms to teens who come to the organization's health centers.

With each order, teens also receive personal lubricant to reduce breakage as well as educational information, said the California Family Health Council, which runs the Condom Access Project.

So far, the program has sent nearly 30,000 condoms to youths via home mailers in the past year.

"Despite broad retail availability, teens continue to face many barriers to accessing condoms," such as embarrassment, cost and confidentiality, the council said.

The mail-order program targets counties that the council has designated as "STD hot-spots."

"California is experiencing a near public health crisis with STD rates among teens rising to alarming levels," said Julie Rabinovitz, the council's president. "By providing sexually active teens and their parents with the tools they need to prevent STDs and unintended pregnancy, we are hoping to move the needle in the right direction."

While teen pregnancy rates in the state have declined steadily over the past decade, rates of sexually transmitted diseases among California teens ages 15 to 19 are rising, the council said.

In 2011, more than 42,000 cases of chlamydia and 4,800 cases of gonorrhea were reported in that age group, according to the California Department of Public Health.

Out of California's 58 counties, San Diego and Fresno counties are among the highest for both chlamydia and gonorrhea cases.

The program runs on a $5,000 annual budget supported by federal tax dollars, CNN affiliate KSWB reported.

The health council says it operates the country's largest Title X system in the country, providing sexual and reproductive health care for more than 1 million Californians a year. It also receives support from grants and individual and corporate donations, the group said.

The federal Title X Family Planning program, enacted in 1970, provides contraceptive services and preventative health care. By law, priority is given to people from low-income families, according to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.

FDA OKs morning-after pill for ages 15 and up

CNN's Travis Sattiewhite contributed to this report.


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Paul Farmer: "To Repair the World: Paul Farmer Speaks to the Next Generation"


Wednesday, May 1, 2013 - 11:06 a.m.



Dr. Paul Farmer, co-founder of Partners In Health, an organization that builds hospitals and provides heathcare to countries afflicted by poor health conditions, attends to one of his patients in rural Haiti.
(PRNewsFoto/Austin College)



Diane speaks with renowned physician and social activist Paul Farmer. In his latest book, he encourages young people to tackle the greatest challenges of our times, from global health and poverty to climate change.

Guests
Paul Farmer
co-founder of Partners in Health and chair of the Department of Global Health and Social Medicine at Harvard Medical School.

Related Items


To Repair the World: Paul Farmer Speaks to the Next Generation

Read An Excerpt

Excerpt from "To Repair the World: Paul Farmer Speaks to the Next Generation" by Paul Farmer. Copyright 2013 by Paul Farmer. Reprinted here by permission of University of California Press . All rights reserved.


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Mayday! Mayday! Happy Birthday Illuminati!


1'st of May. Let's give some more power to the Illuminati!


2005 05 01

By Henrik Palmgren | red-ice.net


Adam Weishaupt ( February 6, 1748 - November 18, 1811) was the German founder of the Order of the Illuminati.


The Lightbringers - The Illuminati 1

The Lightbringers - The Illuminati 2

The Lightbringers - Why Celebrate 1st of May


Audio excerpts from: The Lightbringers - The Emissaries of Jahbulon by Jüri Lina

He was born and raised in Ingolstadt, where he attained the rank of Professor of Canon Law in 1772. Though he was educated by Jesuits and was clearly influenced by the discretion, loyalty and the hierarchic obedience of the Society of Jesus and was for a time a member of their order, his appointment as Professor of Natural and Canon Law at the University of Ingoldstadt in 1775 offended them. He broke with them and became increasingly liberal in his religious and political views, favoring deism and a kind of millennial natural order that swept aside states and organized religion.

With the help of Baron Adolph von Knigge, on May 1, 1776 Weishaupt formed the "Order of Perfectibilists", which was later known as the Illuminati. Some claim that this founding date is the origin for the date of the Communist May Day observance. He adopted the name of "Brother Spartacus" within the order. Though the Order was distinctly not egalitarian or democratic, its declared mission was the development of morality and virtue and the creation of an association of good men to oppose the progress of evil, by any means necessary. "Sin is only that which is hurtful, and if the profit is greater than the damage, it becomes a virtue," Weishaupt wrote: the ends justified the means. The actual character of the society was determined by its traditionalist enemies to be an elaborate network of spies and counter-spies, though with the high goal of ensuring virtue. Each isolated cell of initiates reported to a superior, whom they did not know, a party structure that was later effectively adopted by some later groups, including more recently by the early Ba'ath party in Syria and Iraq.

Weishaupt was initiated into Freemasonry Lodge "Theodor zum guten Rath", at MunichMunich ( German: Munchen ) is the state capital of the German Bundesland of Bavaria. Behind Berlin and Hamburg, Munich is Germany's third largest city with a population of about 1. 261 million ( as of 2003). It is located on the river Isar. History The se in 1777. He worked at first to divest Freemasonry of its pseudohistorical mumbo-jumbo and reform it. Weishaupt had no use for other occultisms in general: "It is by this scale that we must measure the mad and wicked explanations of the Rosycrucions, the exorcists and Cabalists. These are rejected by all good Masons, because incompatible with social happiness." His project of "illumination, enlightening the understanding by the sun of reason, which will dispel the clouds of superstition and of prejudice" was an unwelcome reform. Soon however he had developed gnostic mysteries of his own, with the goal of perfecting human nature through re-education to achieve a communal state of nature, freed of government and organized religion. He began working towards incorporating his system of Illuminism into that of Masonry, with the aim of spreading his ideals throughout the world. "I did not bring Deism into Bavaria," he wrote, "more than into Rome. I found it here, in great vigour, more abounding than in any of the neighboring Protestant States. I am proud to be known to the world as the founder of the Illuminati."

Weishaupt's radical rationalism, sweeping away nations and religions, private property and marriage, with the vocabulary used by the French Revolution, was not likely to appeal, even to an establishment more liberal than the Wittelsbachs'. Writings that were intercepted in 1784 were interpreted as seditious, the Society was banned by Bavaria's government in 1784, Weishaupt lost his position at the University of Ingolstadt and fled Bavaria. He received the assistance of Duke Ernest of Gotha, and lived in Gotha writing a series of works on Illuminism, including A Complete History of the Persecutions of the Illuminati in Bavaria ( 1785), A Picture of Illuminism ( 1786), An Apology for the Illuminati ( 1786), and An Improved System of Illuminism ( 1787). He died there in 1811, though his later career was so obscure that some sources place the year of his death at 1830.

A century after his death, occultist interest in Weishaupt and the Bavarian Illuminati picked up, through the writings of Aleister Crowley. Modern adepts trace the imagery of symbolism like the eye in the pyramid, and embrace the secrecy of the Illuminati traditions but ignore the specifics of Weishaupt's published essays and correspondence.

Mayday for the distress signal May Day is a name for various holidays celebrated on May 1 (or in the beginning of May). Labour association Mumbai, are common. The holiday is most often associated with the commemoration of the social and economic achi
http://www.economicexpert.com/a/Adam:Weishaupt.html


Socialist Connection to the Illuminati

Was Lenin a Freemason?

Whether Lenin was a freemason as early as in the 1890s is not yet possible to determine but he worked in the same way as subversive groups usually do. The Illuminati, the Grand Orient, B'nai B'rith (Sons of the Covenant), and other Masonic lodges were all interested in agitating the workers towards certain "useful" goals.

It is important to stress that Lenin and his henchmen did not work for a living. They could still afford to travel around Europe (then relatively more expensive than now) and live in luxury. These professional revolutionaries had only one task - to agitate the workers. Lenin's later activity shows clearly how he followed Adam Weishaupt's line.

Several sources reveal that Lenin became a freemason whilst abroad in 1908. One of these sources is a thorough investigation: Nikolai Svitkov's "About Freemasonry in Russian Exile", published in Paris in 1932. According to Svitkov, the most important freemasons from Russia were Vladimir Ulyanov-Lenin, Leon Trotsky (Leiba Bronstein), Grigori Zinoviev (Gerson Radomyslsky), Leon Kamenev (actually Leiba Rosen-feld), Karl Radek (Tobiach Sobelsohn), Maxim Litvinov (Meyer Hennokh Wallakh), Yakov Sverdlov (Yankel-Aaron Solomon), L. Martov (Yuli Zederbaum), and Maxim Gorky (Alexei Peshkov), among others.

According to the Austrian political scientist Karl Steinhauser's "EG - die Super-UdSSR von morgen" / "The European Union - the Super Soviet Union (USSR) of Tomorrow" (Vienna, 1992, p. 192), Lenin belonged to the Masonic lodge Art et Travail (Art and Labour). The famous British politician Winston Churchill also confirmed that Lenin and Trotsky belonged to the circle of the Masonic and Illuminist conspirators. (Illustrated Sunday Herald, 8 February 1920.)

Lenin, Zinoviev, Radek and Sverdlov also belonged to B'nai B'rith. Researchers who are specialised in the activities of B'nai B'rith, including Schwartz-Bostunich, confirmed this infor-mation. (Viktor Ostretsov, "Freemasonry, Culture and Russian History", Moscow, 1999, pp. 582-583.)

Lenin was a freemason of the 31st degree (Grand Inspecteur Inquisiteur Commandeur) and a member of the lodge Art et Travail in Switzerland and France. (Oleg Platonov, "Russia's Crown of Thorns: The Secret History of Freemasonry", Moscow, 2000, part II, p. 417.)

When Lenin visited the headquarters of Grand Orient on rue Cadet in Paris, he signed the visitors' book. (Viktor Kuznetsov, "The Secret of the October Coup", St. Petersburg, 2001, p. 42.)

Together with Trotsky, Lenin took part in the International Masonic Conference in Copenhagen in 1910. (Franz Weissin, "Der Weg zum Sozialismus" / "The Road to Socialism", Munich, 1930, p. 9.) The socialisation of Europe was on the agenda.

Alexander Galpern, then secretary of the Masonic Supreme Council, confirmed in 1916 that there were Bolsheviks among the freemasons. I can further mention Nikolai Sukhanov (actually Himmer) and N. Sokolov. According to Galpern's testimony, the freemasons also gave Lenin financial aid to his revolutionary activity. This was certified by a known freemason, Grigori Aronson, in his article "Freemasons in Russian Politics", published in the Novoye Russkoye Slovo (New York, 8-12 October 1959). The historian Boris Nikolayevsky also mentioned this in his book "The Russian Freemasons and the Revolution" (Moscow, 1990).

In 1914, two Bolsheviks, Ivan Skvortsov-Stepanov and Grigori Petrovsky, contacted the freemason Alexander Konovalov for economic aid. The latter became a minister in the Provisional Government.

Radio Russia also spoke of Lenin's activities as a freemason on 12 August 1991.

Extracts from: http://www.geocities.com/jyrilina/english/scorpion.html


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Never On A Sunday


Rahm Emanuel


By Edward McClelland
| Tuesday, Apr 30, 2013 | Updated 1:30 PM CDT








So, good for Mayor Rahm Emanuel in getting Chicago Parking Meters LLC to create a parking Sabbath in most neighborhoods. Having to pay for parking on a Sunday was a reminder of one of America’s most unflattering characteristics: it’s a place where everything is for sale, and where someone’s trying to make a buck off you, seven days a week. No one should get a parking ticket for going to church.
It’s a good time, though, to revisit how Mayor Daley's parking giveaway has not only fleeced the motorists of Chicago, but has perverted the original purpose of parking meters. Parking meters were not invented to make money for municipalities. They were invented to make money for businesses, by keeping cars circulating throughout the day. Without meters, a motorist could park in the street in front of a store all day, preventing new customers from finding a spot. Fees were minimal, because the idea was simply to discourage loitering. But, with the sale of the meter concession, street parking went from serving merchants to becoming a business itself. And not just a business, but a business whose very existence is at the expense of the merchants it was originally designed to serve. Chicago Parking LLC’s meters are discouraging the commerce they are supposed to facilitate, as drivers head to the suburbs, where the parking is cheaper -- or free -- and the meter maids less aggressive.

At least now your neighborhood hardware store/vacuum cleaner repair shop/bike shop/pharmacy have a partial reprieve. They can open on Sunday.


Putin blasts the Netherlands over Pedophile Association


2013-04-12 /



By World Mathaba


Website of Dutch pedophile association Martijn




On the occasion of his visit to the Netherlands on April 8, Russian president Vladimir Putin blasted the country for having an association which promotes pedophilia and defends pedophiles. Putins words came as a response to many critical voices from the Netherlands regarding the alleged restriction of the rights of homosexuals in Russia. Putin denied that Russia is going to restrict these rights. In his own words, Putin "also is the president of the gay".

In addition to the president's statement, Russian TV channel 1TV broadcast a documentary by journalists Ivan Blagoi, Kyril Boet Erin and Julia Zagranitshnova earlier this week on the Dutch pedophile association. Following is the translated and supplemented transcript of the documentary (video in Russian language below).

Introduction: "The association Vladimir Putin mentioned is called Martijn. Many members of the association are convicted of sexual crimes against children or have been sentenced for sexual offences. Even in an extremely tolerant country as the Netherlands, the existence of association Martijn concerns many citizens. The association had to cease its activities, but they however may remain free to spread their ideas. Our correspondent investigated the reasons why the pedophile association is able to be this powerful."

[Russian journalist arrives at the house of the chairman of Martijn in the Dutch town of Hengelo, Overijssel]

"In this house, one hundred kilometers from Amsterdam, lives one of the founders of the association. As we can see, the neighbours don't have too much sympathy for him: look at the smashed window and the broken doorbell. There is no nameplate on the door and behind the window is a video camera; he must have noticed us already. His name Marthijn Uittenboogaard, he is the chairman and founder of the pedophile association that he named after himself. The association has over 600 members and supports sexual relations between adults and minors, and advocates for the legalization of pedophile and sexual relations between grownups and children. The members don't feel ashamed to express how much they suffer from the law that forbids them to abuse children."


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The Stirrings Of A New World Order!


Volume XXXII Issue V May 2013
Last Trumpet Ministries, PO Box 806, Beaver Dam, WI 53916
Fax: 920-887-2626 Internet: http://www.lasttrumpetministries.org



"And God saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every imagination of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually."Genesis 6:5


"The earth also was corrupt before God, and the earth was filled with violence. And God looked upon the earth, and, behold, it was corrupt; for all flesh had corrupted his way upon the earth."

Genesis 6:11-12


"And as it was in the days of Noe, so shall it be also in the days of the Son of man. They did eat, they drank, they married wives, they were given in marriage, until the day that Noe entered into the ark, and the flood came, and destroyed them all. Likewise also as it was in the days of Lot; they did eat, they drank, they bought, they sold, they planted, they builded; But the same day that Lot went out of Sodom it rained fire and brimstone from heaven, and destroyed them all. Even thus shall it be in the day when the Son of man is revealed."

Luke 17:26-30


"Be ye not unequally yoked together with unbelievers: for what fellowship hath righteousness with unrighteousness? and what communion hath light with darkness? And what concord hath Christ with Belial? or what part hath he that believeth with an infidel? And what agreement hath the temple of God with idols? for ye are the temple of the living God; as God hath said, I will dwell in them, and walk in them; and I will be their God, and they shall be my people. Wherefore come out from among them, and be ye separate, saith the Lord, and touch not the unclean thing; and I will receive you."

II Corinthians 6:14-17


In this issue of the Last Trumpet Newsletter, we will thoughtfully consider recent current events which indicate that we are now seeing the stirrings of a rising one world government and the establishment of a new world order. For thousands of years, powerful and ambitious individuals have sought to implement a system of a single one world government, one world religion, and one world monetary system. Despite mankind's endeavors, we know that God stands in firm opposition to such a societal system. In fact, God is so opposed to a one world government that He divided the continents of this world in the days of Peleg, according to Genesis 10:25. This event, which would eventually be referred to as the continental drift by scientists, made it impossible for a true one world government to be established prior to this modern age. However, this did not dissuade powerful men throughout history from attempting to establish expansive empires, which they hoped would encompass every nation of the world. One such example is none other than Adolf Hitler, who declared in a speech on January 30, 1941, "The year 1941, will be, I am convinced, the historical year of a great European New Order." (1) Needless to say, Hitler's ambitions were not confined to Europe, and if he had been successful in conquering his continent of origin, he certainly would have continued his reign of terror against other regions of the world as well.

On September 11, 1990, American President George Bush would also speak of a new order; one he hoped would impact the entire world. In a speech addressing a joint session of Congress, President Bush declared, "We stand today at a unique and extraordinary moment. The crisis in the Persian Gulf, as grave as it is, also offers a rare opportunity to move toward a historic period of cooperation. Out of these troubled times, our fifth objective - a new world order - can emerge: freer from the threat of terror, stronger in the pursuit of justice, and more secure in the quest for peace. An era in which the nations of the world, East and West, North and South, can prosper and live in harmony. A hundred generations have searched for this elusive path to peace, while a thousand wars raged across the span of human endeavor. Today that new world is struggling to be born, a world quite different from the one we've known." (2)

To this day we continue to hear world leaders call for a new world order. In fact, American Vice-President Joe Biden recently gave a speech in which he stated, "The affirmative task we have now is to create a new world order." He further went on to say, "Because the global order is changing again, and the institutions of the world worked so well in the post-World War II era for decades, they need to be strengthened, and some need to be changed." (3) Changes in the global economy have already begun to occur. For example, the nations of Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa, which are commonly known by the acronym BRICS, are taking steps to establish a new monetary system within their group of nations. Recent developments within this pact of countries prompted India's trade minister to say that BRICS will "have a defining influence on the global order of this century." (4)

Sadly, one of the underlying principles of the globalist one world system is a belief that children are a resource which belongs not to their parents, but to society in general. This collectivist ideal was recently promulgated by Dr. Melissa Harris-Perry, who hosts a television program on MSNBC. In a promo for her show, Harris-Perry made the following statement: "We have never invested as much in public education as we should have because we've always had kind of a private notion of children: your kid is yours and totally your responsibility. We haven't had a very collective notion of these are our children. So part of it is we have to break through our kind of private idea that kids belong to their parents or kids belong to their families, and recognize that kids belong to whole communities." (5)

There have been warning signs in recent days indicating that children in the United States are being groomed to renounce their rights as American citizens and accept a globalist one world government. For example, a fourth grade school teacher at Cedar Hills Elementary School in Jacksonville, Florida, reportedly instructed her students to write the following words on a piece of paper during a class she taught in January 2013: "I am willing to give up some of my constitutional rights in order to be safer or more secure." (6) The methodical structure of the sentence which the children were instructed to compose bears all the traits of indoctrination and brainwashing. Needless to say, some of the children's parents were not pleased when they heard of this assignment. "I believe in our Constitution. I am a veteran; I served for six-and-a-half years proudly and I served to protect our rights. Now whenever I have someone coming in and trying to pollute my child's mind with biased opinions… there's no education in that," declared the father of one of the school's students. (7)

A New World Pope!

The present age in which we live is truly unlike any other point in human history. We are now seeing unprecedented changes within the structure of one of the world's most influential religions. In the aftermath of the resignation of Pope Benedict XVI in February 2013, it was announced that the outgoing Roman Catholic pope would be known as the "emeritus pope," and he would continue to wear white papal clothing in addition to retaining the title of "your holiness" by the religion's adherents. Thus, for the first time, there are two concurrently living popes, a situation which those involved with the Catholic system admit is quite unusual. "According to the evolution of the Catholic doctrine and mentality, there is only one pope. Clearly it's a new situation, but I don't think there will be problems," stated Giovanni Maria Vian, the editor of the Vatican newspaper known as L'Osservatore Romano. (8) Swiss theologian Hans Kueng was less optimistic about the arrangement. "With Benedict XVI, there is a risk of a shadow pope who has abdicated but can still indirectly exert influence," Kueng stated. (9)

On March 13, 2013, Cardinal Jorge Mario Bergoglio of Argentina became the successor of Benedict XVI. The new pope, which has chosen to be known as Pope Francis, is the first ever Jesuit to be appointed to this position. (10) Bergoglio's rise to the papacy was a surprise and has left many people wondering what changes may be in store for the Roman Catholic Church. "On the one hand, Jesuits aren't supposed to be in positions of authority. On the other hand, they're supposed to be obedient to the church," stated the Jesuit Joseph Fessio, founder of Ignatius Press. (11) Thomas Reese, a journalist for the National Catholic Reporter, elaborated further. "This is all new ground. We never had a Jesuit pope, so I think we are all trying to figure out how this works, and it was a total surprise to everybody: surprise to the Jesuits, surprise to the media, probably a surprise to Pope Francis. This is something we'll just work out as time goes on," Reese said. (12)

Pope Francis has already exhibited a tendency to play by his own rules. For example, controversy arose in March 2013 when he publically washed the feet of women in a ceremony that is traditionally reserved for men only. (13) This has caused some conservative Catholics to voice their displeasure, while others, even non-Catholic people, have praised his actions. It has become apparent that the Catholic system will likely be undergoing many changes in the days to come.

The new Pope has also expressed a desire to unify the world's religions, including Christian denominations, Islam, and Judaism. In essence, Pope Francis seems hopeful to establish a one world religion. In a speech given in March 2013, Francis declared the following, "In this work (peace building), the role of religion is fundamental. It is not possible to build bridges between people while forgetting God. But the converse is also true: it is not possible to establish true links with God while ignoring other people. Hence it is important to intensify dialogue among the various religions, and I am thinking particularly of dialogue with Islam." (14) In another speech, Pope Francis declared that he and Islam worship the same God. "I then greet and cordially thank you all, dear friends belonging to other religious traditions; first of all the Muslims, who worship the one God, living and merciful, and call upon Him in prayer, and all of you. I really appreciate your presence: in it I see a tangible sign of the will to grow in mutual esteem and cooperation for the common good of humanity," the pope said. (15) Francis even reached out to those who are without religion, stating, "They are our precious allies in the commitment to defend human dignity, build a more peaceful coexistence among people and protect nature with care." (16)

Prominent figures amongst various religions have offered praise to Pope Francis for his all-inclusive approach. "I feel a great deal of excitement and optimism and hope. He is deeply committed to the Catholic-Jewish relationship," said Rabbi David Rosen, who is the International director of Inter-religious Affairs for the American Jewish Committee. (17) Sumer Noufouri, an official at the Islamic Center of the Republic of Argentina, also offered his praises, stating that Pope Francis is a "respectful, pro-dialogue person who knows Islam." Noufouri further went on to say that the cooperation between Islam and the Catholic Church in Argentina "is a model of dialogue and coexistence that, God-willing, could be exported to the world." (18)

The ambition of Pope Francis to unite the world's religions is incompatible with Biblical doctrine. In the Apostle Paul's second epistle to the Corinthians, chapter 6, verses 14-17, we are specifically told not to join together with unbelievers. "Be ye not unequally yoked together with unbelievers: for what fellowship hath righteousness with unrighteousness? And what communion hath light with darkness? And what concord hath Christ with Belial? Or what part hath he that believeth with an infidel? And what agreement hath the temple of God with idols? For ye are the temple of the living God; as God hath said, I will dwell in them, and walk in them; and I will be their God, and they shall be my people. Wherefore come out from among them, and be ye separate, saith the Lord, and touch not the unclean thing; and I will receive you." If we want God to receive us, we cannot condone or accept false religion. It is interesting to note that a recent cover for Time Magazine featured a picture of Pope Francis with the caption "New World Pope." (19) While the magazine editors may have been attempting to denote that Francis is the first pope to originate from the Americas, which was once considered the new world, there could also be a double meaning, insinuating that this is a pope of the new world order.

As It Was In The Days Of Noah!

In Luke 17:26 we find the following warning from Jesus regarding the end times. "And as it was in the days of Noe (Noah), so shall it be also in the days of the Son of man." Genesis, chapter 6, describes the state of the world during the days of Noah, declaring in verse 5 that "the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every imagination of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually." In verse 11 we read, "The earth also was corrupt before God, and the earth was filled with violence." We are now living in a time when the hearts of many men and women are full of wickedness, and just as it was in the days of Noah, the earth is again filled with violence.

A tragic example of the violence that is far too common in these distressing days occurred on April 15, 2013, in Boston, Massachusetts. As participants ran in a footrace known as the Boston Marathon, two bombs exploded near the finish line, which injured over 260 people and claimed the lives of three individuals. (20) This event was soon labeled a terrorist act by government officials. "Any event with multiple explosive devices - as this appears to be - is clearly an act of terror," stated a White House official. (21) Barack Obama was quick to condemn the attack. "We still do not know who did this, or why, and people shouldn't jump to conclusions before we have all the facts. But make no mistake: We will get to the bottom of this. And we will find out who did this, we'll find out why they did this," Obama said shortly after the bombings. (22) In the aftermath of the attack, fear gripped the city of Boston as the police and authorities hunted for the individuals responsible. It was later announced that the police were searching for two suspects known as Tamerlan Tsarnaev, age 26, and Dzhokhar Tsarnaev, age 19, in connection with the bombings. (23) The two men, which were brothers, moved to the United States from Kyrgyzstan and were known to be practicing Muslims. (24) The older of the two brothers, Tamerlan, was shot and killed in a confrontation with the police on April 19, 2013. The younger brother, Dzhokhar, was later apprehended while hiding in a boat located on a residential property (25) and was taken to a hospital where he is in serious but stable condition as of this writing. (26)

According to reports, the boys' father, Anzor Tsarnaev, refuses to believe that his sons are guilty of the crimes of which they have been accused. "I will never believe my boys could have done such a terrible thing. I have no doubt they were set up," Mr. Tsarnaev declared. (27) Meanwhile, some Islamic factions were happy to hear of the bombings. "American blood isn't more precious than Muslim blood. Let the Americans feel the pain we endured by their armies occupying Iraq and Afghanistan and killing our people there," said Mohammad al-Chalabi, a Muslim extremist with ties to al-Qaida. (28)

It is worthwhile to note that the Boston Marathon bombings and the ensuing manhunt for the suspects brought the city of Boston to its knees. As thousands of heavily armed police marched through the streets with others riding in armored vehicles, the city was locked down and the citizens were told not to leave their homes. (29) Public transportation in the city also ceased to operate. One witness described the scene as follows: "Some of the people were commuting to Boston, and they found out on the bus that they couldn't take the train, or any traveling at all, and then when we got into Boston, South Station was completely closed. So we had to turn around, and it was just weird on the streets. It was eerie, guns everywhere, you know with the police officers. It was a little scary. I've never seen it like that." (30) Boston Mayor Tom Menino defended his decision to lock down the city in what was a de facto form of martial law. "It was for the benefit and public safety of the individuals," Mayor Menino said. (31) Could this be a preview of things to come in the United States of America?

Sadly, incidents of violence and brutality have been occurring in other areas of the United States as well. For example, twenty-eight teenagers were arrested on March 30, 2013, in the Magnificent Mile region of downtown Chicago, Illinois, after a large mob of young people began assaulting pedestrians on the street. "You have over three to four hundred teenagers with mob action, jumping on individuals that are downtown. Multiple people have been arrested and I caution those parents that get this call about your child being arrested - maybe you need to check your child," said community activist Andrew Holmes. (32) On that very same weekend, there were also twenty-five shootings throughout the city, two of which were fatal. (33) Mob violence has also become a problem in Jacksonville, Florida. It was reported on April 6, 2013, that a 56 year-old man was senselessly beaten by a gang of ten to fifteen teenagers as he attempted to carry his groceries home. The violence only stopped after witnesses called 911 and the perpetrators fled. (34) When I read of so much violence occurring on a day-to-day basis, I cannot help but feel that the words of Jesus have been fulfilled. The days in which we live are strikingly similar to the days of Noah.

As It Was In The Days Of Lot!

In recent years, the homosexual lifestyle, and same-sex marriage in particular, have come to the forefront of American culture. The movement seems to have gained unstoppable momentum as support for this way of life continues to grow. Although we understand as Christians that we cannot condone homosexuality, the recent impetus for those in favor of it is not surprising to those who have read the Bible. In fact, Jesus warned us that homosexuality would be common in the end times. In Luke 17:28:30 we read the following: "Likewise also as it was in the days of Lot; they did eat, they drank, they bought, they sold, they planted, they builded; But the same day that Lot went out of Sodom it rained fire and brimstone from heaven, and destroyed them all. Even thus shall it be in the day when the Son of man is revealed." We know from Genesis, chapter 19, that homosexuality was one of the serious sins committed in Sodom and Gomorrah. Therefore, the fact that homosexuality has gained so much support in this modern era is actually a fulfillment of prophecy and an indicator that Jesus is coming soon.

Support for the homosexual lifestyle sometimes comes from people you would expect to oppose it. In fact, some members of the Republican Party, which is typically understood to be conservative, have publically proclaimed their approval for same-sex marriage. In March 2013, Rob Portman, a Republican from Ohio, became the first senator to publically support same-sex marriage. The change in his stance came after it was revealed to him that his son is a homosexual. "I have come to believe that if two people are prepared to make a lifetime commitment to love and care for each other in good times and in bad, the government shouldn't deny them the opportunity to get married. That isn't how I've always felt. As a congressman, and more recently as a senator, I opposed marriage for same-sex couples. Then something happened that led me to think through my position in a much deeper way," Senator Portman wrote in an editorial piece for the Columbus Dispatch. The senator further went on to write, "Knowing that my son is gay prompted me to consider the issue from another perspective: that of a dad who wants all three of his kids to lead happy, meaningful lives with the people they love." (35)

Strategists within the Republican Party predict that same-sex marriage will become a divisive issue within the party itself in the coming years. "I do think the party is moving in that direction, and at some point it's going to come to a head. My sense is that a platform fight within the party is still eight to ten years away, but that moment is coming," opined Republican strategist Matt Mackowiak. (36) Other Republican members of Congress who have expressed support for same-sex marriage include Senator Mark Kirk of Illinois, Representative Richard Hanna of New York, and Representative Ileana Ros-Lehtinen of Florida. (37)

Certain religious figures within mainstream Christianity have also embraced same-sex marriage. Amongst them is Rob Bell, the former pastor of a mega-church in Grandville, Michigan. Addressing an audience at Grace Cathedral Church in San Francisco, Bell reportedly said, "Yes, I am for marriage. I am for fidelity. I am for love, whether it's a man and a woman, a woman and a woman, a man and a man. I think the ship has sailed and I think that the church needs to just… this is the world that we are living in and we need to affirm people wherever they are." (38) On March 27, 2013, a minister from St. Paul, Minnesota, known as Oliver White, made an appearance on Sean Hannity's radio program to debate in favor of same-sex marriage. During the show, White declared that Jesus was wrong to define marriage as between a man and a woman. He then insisted that Jesus would take a different approach in these modern times. "If Jesus were alive today, he would be more inclined to say, 'you know, I didn't know it all…'" (39) Perhaps Oliver White has never read Revelation 1:18 in which Jesus declares, "I am he that liveth, and was dead; and, behold, I am alive for evermore, Amen; and have the keys of hell and of death." Jesus Christ is very much alive today and He has not changed His stance on same-sex marriage.

Earthquakes In Divers Places!


As usual, the earth has continued to rumble in recent days. In fact, numerous earthquakes, some of which were quite significant, were reported in the month of April 2013. On April 17 more than twelve earthquakes, including a quake with a magnitude of 6.2, struck a volcanic island south of Tokyo, Japan. (40) Another quake, measuring 5.8 in magnitude, struck the nation of Japan that very same day in the northeastern region of the country. (41) Also on April 17, an earthquake, measuring 5.0 in magnitude, occurred in the Yunnan Province of China (42), and a 6.8 magnitude quake was recorded in Papua New Guinea. (43) Just one day prior on April 16, a major earthquake, measuring 7.8 in magnitude, struck the border of Iran and Pakistan and claimed the lives of at least thirty-five people. (44) In the United States, five quakes, the most significant measuring 4.3 in magnitude, shook the state of Oklahoma. (45) However, the most deadly earthquake of recent days occurred on April 20, 2013, in the Sichuan province of China. Sadly, this devastating quake, which measured 6.6 in magnitude, claimed the lives of nearly 200 individuals, and injured over 12,000 more. (46)

It is not unusual for clusters of earthquakes to occur in localized areas. However, I could not help but notice that many of the significant quakes which occurred in April happened between the 16th and 20th day. Unlike typical earthquake clusters, these quakes occurred all over the world, or as Jesus said in Matthew 24:7: "in divers places." The fact that the earth is now shaking on an almost constant basis is another indicator of the perilous times in which we live.

In closing, I wholeheartedly encourage every reader of this newsletter to reach out to God. With so many distressing things happening in this world on a daily basis, we need our Saviour now more than ever. Thankfully, our Creator is never far away. As it says in James 4:8, "Draw nigh to God, and he will draw nigh to you." If you have not yet fully given your heart to God, I urge you to do so now.

Thank you to all who support this ministry. I cannot fully express with words how much I appreciate your kindness and generosity. Please remember that we are here if you need prayer. If you have any prayer requests, we will gladly carry your petitions before the thrown of the Almighty. Our teams of intercessors always give each request individual attention. Grace and peace be unto you in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ.Samuel David Meyer

Acknowledgements
01. Jewish Virtual Library, http://jewishvirtuallibrary.org, "Hitler's Speech at the Berlin Sports Palace, January 30, 1941"
02. Address Before a Joint Session of Congress, September 11, 1990, By George Bush.
03. World Net Daily, April 7, 2013, By Aaron Klein, http://wnd.com.
04. Ibid.
05. CNS News, April 8, 2013, By Michael James, http://cnsnews.com.
06. The Blaze, April 12, 2013, By Madeleine Morgenstern, http://theblaze.com.
07. Ibid.
08. Associated Press, February 26, 2013, By Nicole Winfield, http://bigstory.ap.org.
09. Ibid.
10. Christian Science Monitor, March 13, 2013, By Robert Marquand, http://csmonitor.com.
11. Religion News Service, March 15, 2013, By Alessandro Speciale, Vatican City.
12. Ibid.
13. Religion News Service, March 30, 2013, By Alessandro Speciale, Vatican City.
14. Reuters News Service, March 22, 2013, By Philip Pullella, Vatican City.
15. Zenit, March 20, 2013, By Pope Francis (Translated by Peter Waymel), Vatican City.
16. Reuters News Service, March 20, 2013, By Philip Pullella, Vatican City.
17. Ibid.
18. Pittsburg Post-Gazette, March 17, 2013, By Ann Rodgers, Vatican City.
19. Time Magazine, March 13, 2013, By How Chua-Eoan, http://world.time.com.
20. Reuters News Service, April 23, 2013, By Scott Malone, Boston, MA.
21. New York Post, April 15, 2013, By Josh Margolin, Kirstan Conley, and Andy Soltis, Boston, MA.
22. The Ticket, April 15, 2013, By Olivier Knox and Rachel Rose Hartman, http://news.yahoo.com.
23. The Atlantic Wire, April 19, 2013, By Alexander Abad-Santos, http://theatlanticwire.com.
24. Los Angeles Times, April 20, 2013, By Andrew Tangel and Ashley Powers, http://latimes.com.
25. Huffington Post, April 19, 2013, By Steven Hoffer, http://huffingtonpost.com.
26. Christian Science Monitor, April 21, 2013, By Brad Knickerbocker, http://csmonitor.com.
27. Los Angeles Times, April 19, 2013, By Sergei L. Loiko, http://latimes.com.
28. Associated Press, April 15, 2013, By Jamal Halaby, Amman, Jordan.
29. Los Angeles Times, April 19, 2013, By Joe Tanfani, Devin Kelly, and Michael Muskal, Boston, MA.
30. The Post and Courier, April 20, 2013, By Natalie Caula, http://postandcourier.com.
31. International Business Times, April 21, 2013, By Ryan Villarreal, http://ibtimes.com.
32. NBC News, April 1, 2013, By Alexandria Fisher, http://nbcchicago.com.
33. Huffington Post, April 1, 2013, By Joseph Erbentraut, http://huffingtonpost.com.
34. First Coast News, April 6, 2013, By First Coast News, Jacksonville, FL.
35. The Columbus Dispatch, March 15, 2013, By Rob Portman, http://dispatch.com.
36. Christian Science Monitor, March 16, 2013, By Mark Guarino, http://csmonitor.com.
37. The Washington Post, April 2, 2013, By Sean Sullivan, http://washingtonpost.com.
38. The Christian Post, March 18, 2013, By Nicola Menzie, http://christianpost.com.
39. Breitbart, March 27, 2013, By Larry O'Connor, http://breitbart.com.
40. AsiaOne, April 17, 2013, By AFP, http://asiaone.com.sg, Tokyo, Japan.
41. Reuters News Service, April 17, 2013, By Kaori Kaneko, Tokyo, Japan.
42. First Post, April 17, 2013, By First Post, http://firstpost.com, Beijing, China.
43. Reuters News Service, April 17, 2013, By Paul Tait, Sydney, Australia.
44. Reuters News Service, April 16, 2013, By Gul Yousafzai, Quetta, Pakistan.
45. The Christian Science Monitor, April 16, 2013, By Allison Terry, http://csmonitor.com.
46. Yahoo News, April 22, 2013, By Tammy Lee Morris, http://news.yahoo.com.

Special Note: A new tribute website for Pastor David J. Meyer can now be accessed at http://pastormeyer.org.

Comments regarding this newsletter or topic suggestions may be submitted to editor@lasttrumpetnewsletter.org.
If you would like to submit a prayer request, you may send email to prayer@ltmmail.org or mail it to our postal address.



Source: http://lasttrumpetnewsletter.org/2013/05_13.html