We are Chosen
CLICK ME Out of his mouth
comes a sharp sword
with which to strike down the nations.
"He will rule them with an iron scepter."
He treads the wine press
of the fury
of the wrath
of God Almighty.
~ Revelation 19:15
This post is dedicated to the sacred and blessed memoryGreater love has no one man this,
that he lay down his life for his friends.
~ John 15:13THE HISTORY OF MEMORIAL DAY
It was an early fall day in 1864 when Emma Hunter and her friend, Sophie Keller, picked flowers and went to the old cemetery to lay them on the grave of Emma’s father, Reuben Hunter. Dr. Hunter was a young Boalsburg doctor at the time of the Civil War. 
(IMDB)
2007:
"The Palestinian position on these issues is very clear," explained another PA official. "We insist on the right of return for all refugees on the basis of United Nations resolution 194, and the establishment of an independent Palestinian state with all of East Jerusalem, including the Old City, as its capital."Al-Aqsa: PA not averse to OIC rule
RAMALLAH: The Palestinian Authority (PA) would be willing to relinquish Palestinian rights over the Al-Aqsa Mosque compound only if its sovereignty is transferred to the Jeddah-based Organization of the Islamic Conference (OIC) as part of a final-status agreement, sources said yesterday. The OIC is a signatory to the Arab peace initiative.Transferred to the "sovereignty" of a 60 year old propaganda op, to a "nation" that never existed.The Israeli daily Haaretz quoted the Palestinian sources as saying the PA was studying a proposed agreement that would provide the Palestinians with backing from all Muslim states on a historic compromise with Israel.
According to the proposal, the Al-Buraq Wall and the Jewish Quarter of Jerusalem’s Old City would be under Israeli sovereignty, while the Muslim, Christian and Armenian quarters would be transferred to Palestinian sovereignty.
Foreign ministers from Muslim countries meeting here (DAMASCUS) beginning Saturday are slated to examine a conceptual paper on the Organisation of the Islamic Conference's (OIC) future role in maintaining peace, security and resolving conflicts in member states.Still think the Bible is "Metaphorical"?
The paper sets out from the premise that the Muslim world needs to have peacekeeping troops as myriad conflicts are waged within Muslim territories, not to mention that OIC members provide the largest contribution to United Nations (UN) peacekeeping forces, according to an OIC statement.
Damascus is hosting the 36th Session of the Council of Foreign Ministers (CFM) of the Member States of the OIC from May 23 to 25, under the theme "Promoting Islamic Solidarity".
Malaysia will be represented at the gathering by Foreign Minister Datuk Anifah Aman.
The statement said the CFM would discuss a host of political issues, notably the Arab-Israeli conflict, with developments in the holy city of Al-Quds and Israel's relentless aggression against Palestinians topping the meeting's agenda.
Syria says Israel offer to talk useless without GolanIn the course of the talks, Zarifi expressed gratitude to Saudi Arabia for support for holding of the 37th session of foreign ministers of the Organization of the Islamic Conference (OIC) member nations in Dushanbe in 2010.Tajikistan displays activity in cooperation with OIC, says OIC ...
Tajik minister noted that Tajikistan was one of the first in the Central Asian region to host such an important for Muslim countries event.
For his part, Prince Saud Al-Faisal stated that Saudi Arabia was ready to provide assistance to Tajikistan with holding of that session.
King Abdullah's 57-State Solution57 ways to weave your cover
CounterPunch - Petrolia,CA,USA
King Abdullah's '57-State Solution'
Middle East Online - London,UK
What emerged from the meeting is that Obama's priorities regarding Iran, Israel and the Arab world are diametrically opposed to Israel's prioritiesFrance slams Netanyahu's Jerusalem 'forever' vow
Brazil and Turkey Talk Trade and Middle East Peace
Iran to host 'Afghanistan' summit on May 24The statement of the ministers, which should be presented today and to which ANBA obtained access, is going to claim that a new phase has been inaugurated - its priorities being to consolidate and speed up the implementation of cooperation mechanisms - starting with the last Aspa summit, held in March this year, in Doha, Qatar. In the document they agree, for instance, on the creation of an Aspa cultural committee, which will undertake cultural projects between the two regions.
The ministers are also going to offer, in their final statement in Rio, the support of Aspa to the global "Alliance of Civilizations" conference, which Brazil should host next year. The meeting will serve as a forum for deepening global religious and cultural dialogue. The ministers call on the Aspa countries to participate in the conference.
Jewsus Save Us From the Grand High Whores of the Caliph Fate! UN High Representative for the Alliance of Civilizations Jorge Sampaio warned Thursday that relenting in the fight against discrimination and social exclusion will create conditions for social outbreaks of "unpredictable consequences."Speaking at the opening ceremony of an international forum entitled Cultures Encounter: Listen to Integrate, Sampaio said some governments have devaluated cultural diversity on the pretext of the global financial crisis.
"In this time of sharp crisis, it is necessary, more than ever, for the authorities not to relegate the policies of good governance of cultural diversity, because they will create conditions for social outbreaks of unpredictable consequences," Sampaio said.
Good governance of cultural diversity cannot just be a celebration for one day or one year, and it must be the work of a generation, Sampaio added.
Gorbachev laments Russian rollback on democracy
Gorbachev accused Russia's current government of trying to consolidate its grip on power and stifle opposition voices, but avoided specific mention of President Dmitry Medvedev or his predecessor Vladimir Putin, who is now prime minister.Gazprom prepays Ukraine for 2009 gas transit to Europe"We have seen the step-by-step monopolization of political activities," Gorbachev said at a conference marking the 20th anniversary of the first democratically elected Soviet parliament.
The exercises were held at the proving ground of the Dosang training center. The exercises brought together around sixty task unit heads and experts from the Astrakhan, Orenburg, Yamal and Central blowout response forces of Gazprom gazobezopasnost including a group from the departmental fire-fighting service of Gazprom dobycha Astrakhan. The invited party comprised representatives from Kazakhstan Emergency Ministry leadership and Wintershall Holding AG specialized subdivisions.CNN asks: Why does Russian energy giant Gazprom wield such power?
This account, as I have said, deals with prisons in Romania, but the procedures used there have been and are used wherever the anti-humans have gained control. Identical procedures, together with such improvements as may have been suggested by their experiments and delights in Romania and other captive nations, will be used everywhere that their power is extended including, of course, the United States, if that nation reaches the goal toward which it is presently moving at a vertiginous speed. If the Americans succumb, they will remember this book as a prophecy that was completely fulfilled.
TURKMENISTAN: NEW ECONOMIC PROTOCOL SIGNED WITH TURKEYKazakh prosecutors said Thursday that anyone caught buying, selling or reproducing a book written by President Nursultan Nazarbayev's former son-in-law would be prosecuted.Kazakhstan's Book Ban And The Issue Of 'Prior Restraint'
The International Monetary Fund said its Deputy Managing Director Takatoshi Kato will visit Kazakhstan on May 28 after analysts said the country may need cash to stabilise its banks and to prevent shocks to its economy.One more step to Kazakhstan-Europe rapprochementIts oil-dominated economy and highly leveraged banks have been hit hard by the global economic crisis that has put to an end a decade of strong growth in the ex-Soviet republic.In a transcript of a briefing by External Relations Director Caroline Atkinson published late on Thursday, the IMF said one of its senior managers would visit Kazakhstan next week."Deputy Managing Director Takatoshi Kato is traveling to Kazakhstan ... for a discussion with the authorities and to attend a meeting of the Central Bank Governors Club for Central Asia, the Black Sea Region and the Balkan Countries," she said.
AIG CEO Liddy Leaves 'Terrible Job' for SuccessorLiddy was appointed to AIG by then-Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson, who was CEO of Goldman SachsGoldman Sachs, JPMorgan and Morgan Stanley apply to repay TARP funds
Missile Defense Agency Faults Raytheon on WarheadThe Raytheon warhead is the critical weapon in the $35.5 billion U.S. network of ground-based interceptor missiles linked by satellites, radar and communications. The 28 missiles are in silos at Fort Greely, Alaska, and Vandenberg Air Force Base, California, as a defense against North Korean missiles.Credit card law could hurt most reliable customersRaytheon is the world’s largest missile maker. The warheads are assembled at its plant in Tucson, Arizona, and the lapses there are similar to the “many other” problems over the past year with other missile defense contractors, said O’Reilly, the agency’s new commander.
An aide to Rep. Steve Israel denied Friday that White House chief of staff Rahm Emanuel threatened adverse political consequences if the Huntington Democrat went forward with a 2010 primary challenge to New York's appointed junior senator, Kirsten Gillibrand.NASAA and other regulators want in on systemic risk oversight
Two days before pulling the plug a week ago on the Senate campaign he was set to launch, Israel went to the White House to discuss his plans with Emanuel, Israel's chief of staff Jack Pratt confirmed Friday.
The Republican National Committee will conclude a special session with a much-anticipated vote on a resolution to re-brand the Democratic Party as the "Democrat Socialist Party." ANP senior producer, Harry Hanbury, roamed the RNC meeting with a camera and spoke with committeemen and state chairs to hear their thoughts on the vote and their ideas about both parties.
From April 2003 to December 2004 he (Bolden) was Senior Vice President of TechTrans International Inc., of Houston, TX. He is currently the CEO of JACKandPANTHER LLC, a small business enterprise providing leadership, military, and aerospace consulting as well as motivational speaking.I wish I had more time today to research this guy but I am sure it will all lead to the same old place.
Mr. Bolden is a member of the Board of Directors of Marathon Oil Corporation, GENCORP Inc., Blue Cross Blue Shield of South Carolina, and the Bristow Group Inc. He is a Trustee of the University of Southern California.
The New Socialism: Global Collectivist Society Is Coming OnlineReport suggests that America can learn much from Israeli example on public crisis preparedness. It’s a widely accepted truism in American politics that an engaged citizenry is the best defense. Yet, when it comes to emergency preparedness, the American public remains incredibly unengaged in the process, largely lacking both the knowledge and the opportunity to participate proactively and constructively.US Government Seeks Swine Flu Vaccine for 20 Million
Out of his mouth comes a sharp swordChoo choo, MFers.
with which to strike down the nations.
"He will rule them with an iron scepter."
He treads the winepress
of the fury of the wrath of God Almighty.
~Revelation 19:15
This post brought to you by your local Godbag Christofascist Jew "But I did obey the LORD," Saul said. "I went on the mission the LORD assigned me. I completely destroyed the Amalekites and brought back Agag their king. The soldiers took sheep and cattle from the plunder, the best of what was devoted to God, in order to sacrifice them to the LORD your God at Gilgal."
But Samuel replied:
"Does the LORD delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices
as much as in obeying the voice of the LORD ?
To obey is better than sacrifice,
and to heed is better than the fat of rams.
For rebellion is like the sin of divination,
and arrogance like the evil of idolatry.
Because you have rejected the word of the LORD,
he has rejected you as king."
Then Saul said to Samuel,
"I have sinned. I violated the LORD's command and your instructions.
I was afraid of the people and so I gave in to them.
Now I beg you, forgive my sin and come back with me, so that I may worship the LORD."
But Samuel said to him,
"I will not go back with you.
You have rejected the word of the LORD, and the LORD has rejected you as king over Israel!"
~ 1 Samuel 15
In order to sacrifice them to the LORD your God at Gilgal :The Gilgal: The Galilee, the circuit, the cycle, the whirlwind, the wheel; the place of Elijah's fabled school of prophecy, the place of Honi the Circle Maker & Yeshua the Nazarene, the House of the Perpetually Rolling Wheel.
PA Peace Plan: Iran to Share Rule over Temple MountPA sources said giving up claims to the Temple Mount and handing over control to the 57-member Saudi-based Islamic Conference Organization is conditional on Israel’s agreeing to a final status agreement.Iran, which is classified as Persian and not an Arab country, is part of the Islamic group. Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu has opposed agreeing to a new PA state without knowing ahead of time what it would entail."Obama Plan" to make Jerusalem Old City an "international zone"
The reports say that the new plan is basically an upgrade of the Saudi peace initiative, about which both Israel and the US have reservations in its current formulation. Obama's plan will reportedly include the establishment of a demilitarized sovereign Palestinian state with east Jerusalem as its capital. The plan will also call for the Old City of Jerusalem to become an international zone under UN control.Obama Wants Palestinian State Within 4 Years
United States President Barack Obama will call for a Palestinian state to be formed within four years and the internationalization of Jerusalem's Old City in an address to the Muslim world next month.Ha'aretz: Obama is dividing Jerusalem
The U.S. president plans to use his much-anticipated June 4 address from Cairo to launch a comprehensive Middle East peace plan he devised with Jordanian King Abdullah II.
According to a report published Wednesday in the London-based daily al-Quds al-Arabi, the Obama-Abdullah plan calls for a demilitarized Palestinian state with east Jerusalem as its capital, the internationalization of Jerusalem's Old City and a series of territorial exchanges between Israelis and Palestinians.
The Palestinian Authority (PA) has been assured that US President Barack Obama's new peace plan includes a Palestinian state with its capital in Jerusalem.Israel PM: Jerusalem will not be divided:
PA officials told the Israeli newspaper Yediot Ahronot that the US intends to stand by its policy that East Jerusalem should be the Palestinian capital. Obama is expected to roll out the peace plan in Cairo on 4 June.
Acting Prime Minister Silvan Shalom responds to reports of US president's plans to make east Jerusalem Palestinian capital saying it will 'forever remain the eternal capital of the State of Israel'. Opposition leader Tzipi Livni says, 'We won't keep Jerusalem by saying no to everything'Russian FM to visit Syria amid push for peace
Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov, whose country has been pressing to revive the dormant Middle East peace process, is to visit Syria at the weekend, Russian diplomatic sources said on Thursday.Nasrallah: Israel is the source of all wars in the Middle EastLavrov arrives on Friday to attend as an observer a ministerial meeting of the Organisation of the Islamic Conference (OIC), which opens on Saturday in the Syrian capital and runs to Monday, they said.
Russia, a member of the Middle East diplomatic quartet and president of the 15-member Security Council for May, has been pressing for years to host an international Middle East peace conference.
The source of the conflict in the Middle East is the Palestinian issue," he said during a speech commemorating the "Nakba," an Arabic term meaning "catastrophe," and referring to plight of the Palestinians following the War of Independence in 1948. "The Zionist entity is not legitimate, and will not be legitimate in any situation," Nasrallah said. "Its existence is the heart of the Middle East the central reason for the breaking out of every war and crisis in the region."
Ahmadinejad made that clear in his comments Wednesday. "They thought we would retreat but that will not happen. I told them you can adopt 100 sets of sanctions, but nothing will change," he stated.Italian foreign minister cancels trip to Iran
A statement by the Foreign Ministry in Rome cited a problem over the meeting place for talks with President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad. It said Ahmadinejad wanted the meeting in Semnan — site of the missile launch — instead of in the capital, Tehran.The statement said the foreign minister, Franco Frattini, "expressed his strong regret over the missed opportunity to explore possible ways for Iran to be involved in stabilizing Afghanistan and Pakistan."Iran, Pakistan to hold more IPI talks
Iran and Pakistan will hold another round of negotiations on the Iran-Pakistan-India gas pipeline at a meeting scheduled Saturday in Tehran, officials said.Zardari to attend Iranian hosted summit
Pakistani President Asif Ali Zardari will visit Tehran to attend a tripartite summit of the Iran-Afghanistan-Pakistan presidents. The visit will take place on May 24, Pakistani Foreign Ministry spokesman Abdul Basit told IRNA Tuesday.Groups Seek to Stop Public Financing of New Towers at Ground Zero
He added that Zardari would also hold talks with senior Iranian officials on ways to improve relations and economic cooperation, border security and a gas pipeline agreement.
CNPC mulls 200000-bpd Henan refinery to use Middle East oilThe informant began working last June with James Cromitie, one of the four Newburgh, N.Y., men arrested Wednesday night as they planted what they believed were real explosives at synagogues in the Bronx, according to the complaint.
Cromitie met with the informant in Newburgh, about 70 miles north of New York, and told him he was upset about the war in Afghanistan because his parents had lived there, according to the complaint.
Cromitie also allegedly said he was angry about the deaths of numerous Muslims in Afghanistan and Pakistan at the hands of U.S. military forces.
China National Petroleum Corp (CNPC) is considering building a 200,000 barrel-per-day refinery in central China's Henan province that would be fed with Middle East crude oil, a local newspaper reported.
June 8 looms large for all TARP banksA lot will happen the week of June 8. For one thing, that's the earliest that banks who want to repay TARP funds will be notified. We'll hear a lot of speculation between now and then as to who will be among the first to repay the funds, but there will be no official word before then. So far, Goldman Sachs and Morgan Stanley have applied to repay the $10 billion each received. JPMorgan Chase and a few others are also candidates for early repayment.POGO Calls on Congress to Oversee Conflicts of Interest for Bailout Asset Managers
The Federal Deposit Insurance Corp is talking with lawmakers about speedy legislation giving it power to wind down troubled bank holding companies, but not a broader range of financial firms.Is The Federal Reserve Overreaching?The Federal Reserve and U.S. Treasury Department have some disagreement with the FDIC about exactly what new powers the agency should gain, said a source, speaking anonymously because the meetings have been private.
Unfortunately, the evidence is that a central bank subject to political control is more likely to pursue policies that will make us like Zimbabwe.SEC Votes to Propose New Investor Powers
A divided Securities and Exchange Commission split along party lines Wednesday, voting 3-2 to propose new rules that would empower shareholders in certain cases to nominate directors to corporate boards.(FED) Testimony by David W. WilcoxThe proposal, which SEC Chairman Mary Schapiro has made among her top priorities on the agenda for the year, serves to give shareholders a more direct way to address concerns they may have about issues such as executive compensation or a company's risk management practices.
Executive compensation has become a controversial issue during the financial crisis, especially after it was revealed that American International Group, which received a bailout, paid bonuses to employees in the division that nearly caused its collapse.
In addition, it is important to note three key characteristics of the Federal Reserve’s responses to the financial crisis thus far. First, the statutory authority under which the Federal Reserve has taken many of its policy actions sets a high bar for the exercise of extraordinary powers. In particular, before lending can be extended under section 13(3) of the Federal Reserve Act, the Board of Governors must find that "unusual and exigent circumstances" prevail. This provision assures that the Federal Reserve will not be involved in financial markets in these extraordinary ways unless market functioning is significantly impaired. Second, the Federal Reserve has been mindful of the need to protect both it and federal taxpayers from credit losses.Bank of America earned $ 7.3 billion
Charles E. F. Millard, who until January ran the federal agency that insures the private pension plans of 44 million Americans, today refused to testify before a Senate panel that is investigating his role in the awarding of contracts under which the Pension Benefit Guaranty Corp.'s insurance fund was being shifted into riskier investments.The Implications of US DebtMillard invoked his Fifth Amendment right against self-incrimination as the agency reported that its deficit had tripled in the last six months to $33 billion, even as it faces the prospect of taking over pension plans of automakers and other troubled companies. The increased deficit was due to a combination of factors, including $3 billion in investment losses during the recent stock market crash and a variety of obligations.
Federal financial fascism on the march:Brazil - China's 'Real' Threat to Dollar
A federal government backstop to the states and localities is being contemplated. Sooner or later America’s fiscal policies will cause a sell-off of the dollar, at which time it will be probably unbearably tempting to trick up some international chaos in the form of some sort of war or terrorist event to drive investors back to the good old greenback. In this context, Paul Krugman’s lecturing of the Chinese on currency valuations (who took us off the gold standard, Paul?) is truly bellicose. See Krugman in China for this story.
Pop Goes the PipelineOn April 9, a major pipeline that carries Turkmenistan's vast natural gas resources to Russia exploded in a massive fireball. According to the Turkmen Foreign Ministry, the blast was caused by a "reckless and irresponsible" decrease in the amount of gas drawn from the pipeline by Russia's state-owned energy company, Gazprom. Pipeline and energy infrastructure explosions are a common occurrence in the former Soviet Union, with hundreds of sometimes devastating incidents every year.Iraq eyes gas exports to Europe via Arab pipeline
Iraq is in talks to possibly export surplus natural gas through the Arab Gas Pipeline to the Middle East and Europe, its oil minister said on Wednesday.Israel to open embassy in Turkmenistan"We are in talks to connect the Iraqi surplus to this pipeline to export it to Arab states and then to Europe," Hussain al-Shahristani said, referring to a pipeline now linking Egypt to Syria but that may later connect to Europe.Shahristani spoke during a news conference with Egyptian Oil Minister Sameh Fahmy, who was making a visit to Baghdad.
The former director of one of Uzbekistan’s largest industrial enterprises has been detained in Moscow on suspicion of financial wrongdoing.UZBEKISTAN: Bible banned in Karakalpakstan
Vadim Kucherov, who is also a former member of Uzbekistan’s upper house of parliament, was taken into custody on May 19 at the request of the Uzbek authorities.
He is suspected of embezzlement and abuse of authority, the Russian daily newspaper Kommersant reported on May 20."The detention of the individual under an international warrant is a technical issue. We get information; we perform an order of detention and inform the initiator of the search.
The fate of the detainee is decided by a Russian court," a spokesperson for Moscow’s Criminal Investigation Department told the newspaper.
Nurulla Zhamolov, the senior religious affairs official in Karakalpakstan Region in north-western Uzbekistan has banned the Bible, the Mel Gibson film "The Passion of the Christ", and other religious literature, Forum 18 News Service has learnt. The bans state that the material – which also include a hymn book, a Bible Encyclopaedia, a Bible dictionary, and a children's Bible - is "banned for import, distribution or use in teaching." The material was confiscated during police and NSS secret police raids and it remains unclear what further activity the authorities may undertake following the bans, or how widely they will be used. No officials in the region or the capital Tashkent were willing to discuss the raids and the country's harsh censorship of religious literature, which applies to religious literature of all faiths. The latest known prisoners of conscience studied the works of Said Nursi, a Turkish Muslim theologian whose works are banned.Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan try to form drug dealing network in Russia
Russian special services said it thinks that the terrorist Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan is trying to become a 'dealer' of Afghan drugs in Russia and Central Asia, Russian Federal Drug Control Service Director Viktor Ivanov said at an SCO meeting dedicated to countering Afghan drugs in Moscow on Tuesday.
"It is known that the Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan controls passes at the Tajik-Kyrgyz-Uzbek border and services channels of exchanging money to drugs and arms both in their own interests and the interests of their Afghan partners," Ivanov said.
Again with Igor's Flying Mystery Balls... UK Petrol Firm Expands in Central Asia With More Acreage in TajikistanIgor Bronikov, a director of a well-known local IT company saw the object with his family and believes they witnessed an alien craft. A journalist from the Russian language newspaper 'Regnum' who was in Tashkent at the time saw the object as well and also thinks it was UFO of possible alien origin. He noted that the lower sphere disappeared and re-appeared from time to time.The object eventually travelled away from the city in a south-east direction.
RIYADH: Decks have been cleared for the recruitment of hundreds of Tajik workers who lost their jobs in Russia and elsewhere due to the global economic crisis.The first group of workers will possibly be deployed in Saudi Arabia.
Obama Approves Nuclear Energy Program for UAEFISA-court authorizations for national security and counter-terrorism wiretaps dropped last year by almost 300, a new Justice Department report to Congress shows. But the FBI’s use of “national security letters” to get information on Americans without a court order increased dramatically, from 16,804 in 2007 to 24,744 in 2008. The 2008 requests targeted 7,225 U.S. people.FY 2010 Budget for the Department of State: Hillary Clinton
And that's why we're requesting $323 million for the Civilian Stabilization Initiative, and that includes expansion of the Civilian Response Corps....Civilian Stabilization Initiative Library
Civilian Stabilization Initiative?Palestinian Authority
INL is working with the U.S. Security Coordinator in Jerusalem to enhance the capabilities of the Palestinian Authority Security Forces in the West Bank. Our assistance is focused on providing basic, leadership, and refresher training for the National Security Forces and the Presidential Guard. We are also upgrading their training facilities and providing non-lethal equipment to support their operations. Another INL project involves working with the Palestinian Authority to develop a Strategic Planning Directorate in the Ministry of Interior to enhance the Ministry’s long-term capacity for planning, oversight, and reform.
SUBJECT: Mananagement of Interagency Efforts Concerning Reconstruction and Stabilization Introduction The purpose of this Directive is to promote the security of the United States through improved coordination, planning, and implementation for reconstruction and stabilization assistance for foreign states and regions at risk of, in, or in transition from conflict or civil strife.I decided to add the word DOMESTIC to the term "Civilian Stabilization Initiative" and do another search:
Policy: The United States has a significant stake in enhancing the capacity to assist in stabilizing and reconstructing countries or regions, especially those at risk of, in, or in transition from conflict or civil strife, and to help them establish a sustainable path toward peaceful societies, democracies, and market economies. The United States should work with other countries and organizations to anticipate state failure, avoid it whenever possible, and respond quickly and effectively when necessary and appropriate to promote peace, security, development, democratic practices, market economies, and the rule of law. Such work should aim to enable governments abroad to exercise sovereignty over their own territories and to prevent those territories from being used as a base of operations or safe haven for extremists, terrorists, organized crime groups, or others who pose a threat to U.S. foreign policy, security, or economic interests.
In the Reconstruction and Stabilization (R&S) community, the terms "interagency" and "whole-of-government" generally refer to the Department of Defense (DoD), Department of State (DoS), and the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID), plus a few domestic agencies. In recognition of their dominant role, the 2006 National Security Strategy calls them the "3 D’s" of defense, diplomacy and development. The "4th D" means the remainder of the interagency community, composed of hundreds of departments, agencies, boards, commissions, and programs in the following categories.There's an "R & S Community"? Who knew?
The House of Representatives and the Senate Foreign Relations Committee have both approved bills (HR 1084 and S 613) to authorize the new office and create a cadre of civilian professionals to provide reconstruction assistance in crisis situations. Unfortunately, Senator Tom Coburn (R-OK) has placed a legislative hold on the bill, blocking a floor vote in the Senate. In his budget request for FY 09, President Bush has requested $249 million for the “Civilian Stabilization Initiative,” which would fund S/CRS and a three-tiered civilian response corps comprised of:
A 250-person rapidly deployable contingent, pulled primarily from State and USAID, as well as various other civilian agencies (i.e. Agriculture, Commerce, Justice, and Treasury);
A 2000-person standby contingent pulled from various federal agencies, but without rapid deployment capabilities;
A 2000-person voluntary reserve corps, which would draw U.S. civilians from state and local governments, and the private sector.
This corps would give civilians the opportunity to serve and support critical peacebuilding missions abroad.
In a bizarre turn of events, the Bush administration and a number of peace groups have found common ground on S/CRS. Washington based peace and security advocacy groups that strongly opposed the Bush Administration’s pre-emptive war on Iraq have now found themselves lobbying Congress to support the Administration’s funding request for S/CRS and the civilian response corps.
DoD #2 William RAYTHEON Lynn alert:Deputy Secretary of Defense William Lynn denied that KBR received any such bonuses for work....Swine flu outbreak reveals military plans, gaps
The rapid spread of swine flu from Mexico surprised Pentagon officials, who had been focused on a possible Asian-borne pandemic in a response plan that would give the military a last-resort role in helping to impose quarantines and border restrictions.Pandemic Contingency Plan?Drafted and overhauled several times in recent years, the military's closely guarded plan for an influenza pandemic assumed that officials would have more time before the flu hit U.S. shores. The Associated Press obtained briefing documents about the military's pandemic contingency plan.
Russia says vaccine against A/H1N1 flu virus under researchFederal Agency Pandemic Planning Implementation Plans
The National Strategy for Pandemic Influenza Implementation Plan contains over three hundred actions for Federal Departments and Agencies, almost all with timelines and measures of progress. The December 2006 Summary of Progress contains a list of actions due to be completed within 6 months of the release of the National Strategy for Pandemic Influenza Implementation Plan, followed by a summary of progress (in italics) prepared by the relevant Department(s) and Agency(ies) for this report. The assessment is indicated directly after the action number. Note: The Summary refers to chapters four through nine because they contain action items; chapters one, two and three do not.
- December 2006 Summary of Progress
- Progress Checklist
Individual Department and Agency Reports (as available):
In the Secret Meetings of the Gnu Whirled Odor Department:SNIPIn THE GUARDIAN, UK:
Timothy Geithner, USA, Secretary of the Treasury
James Steinberg, Deputy Secretary of State, USA.
Keith B. Alexander, Director of the NSA, USA
Roger Altman, USA
Donald E. Graham Washington Ρost Company
Richard Holbrooke, USA
Niall Ferguson, Harvard Business School, USA
Vernon Jordan, USA
Robert Kagan, USA
Henry Kravis, USA
Marie-Josée Kravis, USA
Jessica Mathews, Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, USA
James L. Jones, National Security Advisor, USA
Craig Mundie, Microsoft, USA
Richard Perle, Αmerican Εnterprise Ιnstitute, USA
David Petraeus, Commander, U.S. Central Command, USA
David Rockefeller, USA
Dennis Ross, USA
Barnett Rubin, USA
Lawrence Summers, USA
Peter Thiel, USA
Paul Volcker, USA
James Wolfensohn, USA
Paul Wolfowitz, USA
Fareed Zakaria, USA - Newsweek
Robert Zoellick, World Bank, USA
SNIP
Right now, all I want to do is to go home. I'm sitting here scared to go to the loo. I don't like the look of the stairs. I'm thinking of giving the bellboy €20 to stand outside while I pee. When I filled out my report in Sintagma police station, with the nice captain, he was obviously using the wrong paperwork because there was a box where it said: "Name of item lost." It was a lost property form. I wrote "innocence".Vatican seeks answers for low turnout for pope's Jerusalem mass
Roman Catholic Church officials say they would like an explanationYou gotta be freaking kidding me right?
from Israel
for the poor turnout at Pope Benedict XVI's open-air mass in Jerusalem last week.
The Forgotten FaithfulParents gather to nurture nonbelief
Followers of Jesus for nearly 2,000 years, native Christians today are disappearing from the land where their faith was born.
Saudi prepares fresh evacuation from volcano zone
RALEIGH, N.C. -- On Sunday mornings, when many of their contemporaries are taking their seats in church pews, a group of young parents mingle in the living room of a suburban home while their children run around playing games.This congregation of Raleigh-Durham, N.C., triangle residents has no creed or ceremony, just a desire to get together and offer each other support for rearing children without religion. Taking their cue from a primer of the same name, they call themselves Parenting Beyond Belief, and they meet nearly every Sunday, in a city park, an indoor playground or in people's homes.
