Tuesday, September 30, 2003

Quartet meeting at UN; Powell to ask members to shun Arafat
Haaretz reports, "Major powers steering Middle East diplomacy urged the Palestinians on Friday to take immediate, decisive steps to stop violence and told Israel to halt settlement activity. Reports ahead of the meeting said that Powell would ask the other participants to tell Palestinian Authority Chairman Yasser Arafat that the time has come to step aside." :: Submitted for your covenant with many (Daniel 9:27) files on the search for Mideast peace.
Philippines risks AIDS epidemic warns health chief
AFP reports, "The Philippines risks an AIDS epidemic should it fail to curb behavior that has produced a rise in sexually-transmitted diseases, Health Secretary Manuel Dayrit warned." :: Submitted for your pestilence files.
MEMRI: Economic Performance in West Bank/Gaza: Highlights from an IMF Report
The International Monetary Fund puts its best face on the sorry economic conditions in the West Bank and Gaza, and manages to blame Israel for most of the troubles of the people living there.::Submitted for your war [Matthew 24:6] files and also your commercial Babylon [Revelation 18] files.
WorldNetDaily: A call for 'United Nations of Religions'
This call came from Kazakhstan, formerly the Kazakh Sovyetskaya Sotsialistichyeskaya Respublika. As you can see, "Religious Babylon" needs no mystical artifact from Babylon or any other city. These people have a desire to create one world religion, and they sell it the same way that others sell a one-world government--as a means by which to establish peace.::Submitted for your Mystery Baylon the Great Mother of Harlots and the Abominations of the Earth [Revelation 17] files.

Monday, September 29, 2003

Iran Acknowledges Enriched Uranium Found
AP reports, "Iran acknowledged Monday that additional traces of weapons grade uranium have been found on its soil but argued they came from abroad a claim U.N. and other experts said cannot be discounted." :: Submitted for your rumors of war and Iran/Persia (Ezekiel 38:5) files.
EU Ministers Support Iraq Handover
AP reports, "The European Union, whose members were bitterly divided over the war to oust Saddam Hussein, disagreed Monday on a timetable for a handover of power to a sovereign Iraqi government. Meeting behind closed doors, the foreign ministers of the 15-member European Union issued a unanimous statement that a transfer of power in Iraq should occur "as soon as feasible" and that the United Nations should play a "vital" role in the transition." :: Submitted for your ten kings (Rev 17:12-14) files on the EU and the Security Council.
The Golden Report - The Evil of Allah.
Just after yet another terrorist attack inside a Jewish West Bank settlement, Jerry Golden serves up another strong dose of the truth. Interestingly, the phrase Allah Achbar actually translates not merely as "God is great" but actually as "God is greater." The use of the comparative is highly instructive--because it shows that Muslims are really saying that their god is greater than our God. But sooner or later God Himself will remind people sharply that putting God to the test is absolutely the wrong thing to do.
Israel considers Iran nuke strike
World Net Daily reports, "Israel's defense forces are raising the prospect of an operation to destroy Iran's suspected nuclear weapons program. Senior government and military officials, alarmed by the failure of the international community to move against Iran, have issued warnings that Israel would consider unilateral action to stop Tehran's development of nuclear weapons, reports Middle East Newsline." :: Submitted for your wars and rumors of war (Matthew 24:6) files.

Sunday, September 28, 2003

A Bug's Death
In this New York Times op-ed, Olivia Judson asks, "With current technology, we could swat the malaria-carrying mosquito for good. But is it worth the risks?" :: Submitted for your pestilence (Luke 21:11) files.

Saturday, September 27, 2003

Islam Inherently Dangerous to West
Agape Press reports, " 'An expert on Islam says incidents such as the recent arrest of Muslim chaplain James Yee serve as reminders of the real nature of that religion and the danger it poses. Robert Spencer of the Heritage Foundation says westerners can peacefully coexist only with Muslims who truly, thoroughly, explicitly and honestly renounce jihad ideology in all the forms in which it appears in Islamic law as a mandate for violence against non-Muslims.' But Spencer says that obviously does not happen often, if at all, so any Muslim is a potential threat. He believes that there is always the possibility that some followers of Islam will take up jihad as a rallying cry and use the Koran and Islamic tradition to recruit others for strikes against the West on that basis. The incident with Chaplain Yee is the latest episode involving Muslims in the military, but many critics of Islam fear it will not be the last. Michael Waller, a researcher at the Center for Security Policy in Washington, says the arrest of Yee -- as well as that of an Arabic translator who also worked with terrorist suspects at Guantanamo Bay -- should be sounding alarms at the Pentagon. The Center's Michael Waller believes that, while some Muslims in the U.S. armed forces may be assets in the war on terrorism, others may be undercover agents for al Qaida. Waller wonders how the Pentagon ever assigned Yee, who studied Islam in Syria, to the most 'highly classified base on Earth.' And New York Senator Charles Schumer is also criticizing the Pentagon for not looking into the Islamic organization that certified Yee as a chaplaincy candidate." :: Submitted for your wars and rumors of war (Matthew 24:6) files.
Reformist Arab Diplomat: 'Are We a Nation that Preaches Morality and Tolerance?'
From MEMRI. This angry Arab, writing under an assumed name, shouts "No!" In one of the most remarkable pieces of self-criticism yet seen in the Arab media, Mr. Mustafa (again, not his real name) basically says that his people are hypocrites--and comes very close to asserting that religion is the primary problem. The trouble is that he condemns all religion, and scoffs at the notion of an afterlife of any kind. Here again is the false dichotomy of our modern age: an assertion that the choice is between evil "religion" and good, sensible, rational modernity. St. Paul said it best in his Second Letter to Timothy [3:1-5, 4:1-4]: people will turn to anything but the Truth in the last days.
Israel, Palestinians Urged on Peace Moves
AP reports, "Progress in Middle East peacemaking depends upon having Palestinian leaders who will crack down on groups such as Hamas, Secretary of State Colin Powell said Friday as he met with U.S. partners in the peace process to assess progress on their "road map" peace plan...In addition to a Palestinian crackdown on terror, Powell and officials representing the United Nations, the European Union and Russia urged Israel to avoid killing civilians in its military operations in Palestinian territories." :: Submitted for your covenant with many (Daniel 9:27) files on the search for Mideast peace.

Friday, September 26, 2003

Europe's looming Aids 'catastrophe'
The BBC reports, "The World Bank has said that it is imperative that governments in Eastern Europe and Central Asia make a greater political commitment to avert a potentially catastrophic epidemic of HIV/Aids. The region of the former communist bloc has the fastest growing number of HIV/Aids victims in the world and the World Bank says it is putting forward a programme aimed at preventing the situation threatening the destabilisation of their societies." :: Submitted for your pestilence (Luke 21:11) files on HIV/AIDS.
U.S. Remains Leader in Global Arms Sales, Report Says
The New York Times reports, "Americans supplied 45.5 percent of all conventional arms sold last year, and 48.6 percent of those sold to developing nations." :: Submitted for your wars and rumors of war (Matthew 24:6) files.
The Torture and Death of Canadian Photojournalist Zahra Kazemi At The Hands of Iran's Judicial Authority
By Ayelet Savyon, published by MEMRI. Briefly, a Canadian national of Iranian origin died under torture just this last week in Iran. Incredibly, the Iranian officials are now engaging in finger-pointing. Ayelet Savyon gets behind the finger-pointing and nails the officials responsible.::Submitted for your you will be delivered up files.

Thursday, September 25, 2003

Little Chip in the Big Apple!
Business Wire reports, "Applied Digital Solutions, Inc., an advanced technology development company, today announced that New York City's first subdermal VeriChip(TM) "chipping" procedure was performed yesterday (September 24, 2003) at the Company's lower Manhattan Authorized VeriChip Center." :: Submitted for your mark of the beast files on ID tech, RFID chips, and the VeriChip. :: Wow, this is so cool. It is amazing that this kind of technology is rolling out now. Of course, it is not the mark, and there won't be a mark until the Beast and then later the False Prophet are on the scene, but still, the technology is here now, the infrastructure is slowly being put into place. As with all futurist prophecy, it is only a matter of time.
Powerful Quake Injures 243 in North Japan
AP reports, "A magnitude 8.0 earthquake rocked Japan's northern island of Hokkaido early Friday, injuring more than 243 people, knocking out power, derailing a train and touching off an industrial fire." :: Submitted for your quake (Matthew 24:7) files.
Bush Warns Iran After UN Finds Arms-Grade Uranium
Reuters reports, "The U.N. nuclear watchdog has found traces of weapons-grade enriched uranium at a second site in Iran, diplomats said on Thursday, and President Bush warned Tehran it faces global condemnation." :: Submitted for your rumor of war (Matthew 24:6) and Iran/Persia (Ezekiel 38:5) files.
Caricature: Terrorists Hide Behind the UN
From Arutz-Sheva. This is the current opinion in Israel, and the UN have only themselves to blame for this perception. This cartoon would make it seem extremely unlikely that anyone in Israel would ever trust the UN to keep the peace. However, someday some organization--maybe the UN, maybe someone else entirely--will "make a covenant with the many for one seven."
Temple Mount Wall Collapses
From Arutz-Sheva, the Israel National News Service. Included are links to five separate pictures of the collapsed wall, including before and after shots. This big gap in the wall is in full view of any worshipper at the Wailing Wall, something that the WorldNetDaily article on the same subject does not even mention, much less allow you to appreciate fully. WorldNetDaily did, however, warn people once before that a wall in the Temple Mount was about to collapse. The relevancy here is that the Feast of Trumpets is fast approaching, and a total collapse might complete the spectacle of not one stone left upon another and clear the way for a Third Temple.

Wednesday, September 24, 2003

Hamas Rejects Talk of Ceasefire with Israel
AP reports, "The Islamic militant group Hamas on Wednesday rejected calls by more moderate Palestinian leaders for a cease-fire with Israel and said it would not hand in its weapons or join the Palestinian government...Yassin also denounced a speech by President Bush to the United Nations on Tuesday as a declaration of war on Islam." :: Submitted for your battle for Jerusalem (Ezekiel 38:8; Zechariah 12; Luke 21:20) files.
1 Student Dies, 1 Hurt in Minn. Shooting
AP reports, "A freshman opened fire at a high school Wednesday, killing one student and critically wounding a second before a teacher apparently talked the boy into dropping the gun, authorities said." :: Submitted for your wickedness increases (Matthew 24:12) files.
Editorials from the New Iraqi Press: MEMRI Baghdad Dispatch (9)
More samples of editorials from the brand-new Iraqi press, which now is more than just a bunch of government organs, because there are no government organs at the moment.::Submitted for your nation against nation [Matthew 24:7] files.

Tuesday, September 23, 2003

The Golden Report - For Truth Seekers Only!
Jerry Golden asks pointedly why Israel should "not touch Arafat" if everyone agrees that he is a terrorist. A good point to consider as the President of the US addresses the UN today.::Submitted for your war [Matthew 24:6] files.

Monday, September 22, 2003

New Opportunities for the UN
TFF suggested UN reforms: "Most reformers agree on the indispensability of the Security Council - and the shape and direction of needed reforms. The Council needs to dispense finally with the veto - a relic nod to the winners of World War II. Then the permanent seats can be rearranged to accommodate important new world players, including India, Brasil, Japan, South Africa and newly democratic Indonesia with the world's largest Muslim population. To keep the Council's size manageable, the seats of Britain and France could be combined into one rotating seat representing the European Union." :: Submitted for your ten kings files.
Tunisian Intellectual Al-Afif Al-Akhdar On the Arab Identity Crisis and Education in the Arab World
From MEMRI. Mr. Al-Akhdar slams the Arab educational establishment for, in essence, teaching willful ignorance and inciting its students to violence. But in the process he plumps for an "international community of nations" and scoffs at "ethnocentrism" and calls for "the end of Allah's rights and the beginning of human rights". He is an explicit voice of the Moderns against the Anti-moderns. This reviewer finds his criticisms of Islam disturbingly similar to those that Andrew Sullivan, for example, has made against Christianity. These are the exact notes in the siren song of the Beast from the Sea [Revelation 13].::Submitted for your ride a white horse and hail the conquering leader [Revelation 6;1-2] files.

Sunday, September 21, 2003

Gates Donates $168M for Malaria Research
AP reports, "Touring a malaria clinic where they sat on reed mats while coddling babies, Bill and Melinda Gates announced a $168 million grant Sunday to accelerate research into malaria, a disease that kills over a million people each year, most of them young African children." :: Submitted for your files on pestilence (Luke 21:11).
Pagans fight for divine rights of old Greek gods
Scotland on Sunday reports, "Leaders of the 'return of the Hellenes' movement say they have 2,000 'hard-core' practising followers, about 5,000 who travel to Mount Olympus, 100km southwest of the city of Thessaloniki in northern Greece, for the annual celebration, and 100,000 'sympathisers' who support their ideas." :: Submitted for your false christs files.

Saturday, September 20, 2003

The Golden Report - A trip to the Dead Sea.
The waters of the Dead Sea have been receding, and the recession has lately accelerated. Jerry Golden mentions a prophecy that says that an earthquake "will cause fresh water to run into the Dead Sea from the Temple Mount." In fact, seismic activity in the region is at its highest in history.::Submitted for your earthquakes in divers places [Matthew 24:7-8] files.

Friday, September 19, 2003

U.S. Tanks Patrol Iraqi City After Ambush
U.S. tanks and armored fighting vehicles rumbled through Saddam Hussein's hometown and its outskirts early Saturday in a show of force following a coordinated ambush against American forces that killed three soldiers and wounded two. :: Submitted for your war (Matthew 24:6) files.

Global Finance Heads Ponder Rich-Poor Gap
AP reports, "Global economic leaders will discuss rebuilding Iraq and cutting off terror funds at a weekend summit, and an official said Friday the World Bank will push to narrow the gap between rich and poor nations...The G8 ministers are expected to reiterate their commitment to choking off terror funding. A key way forward, bank officials said, will be creating more jobs in the Middle East, where unemployment remains chronic in many countries." :: Submitted for your ten kings (Rev 17:12-14) files.

VeriChip Corp. Signs Distribution Agreement for Brazil
Business Wire reports, "Applied Digital Solutions, Inc., an advanced technology development company, today announced that its wholly owned subsidiary, VeriChip Corporation, has signed a five-year, exclusive distribution agreement with Metro Risk Management Group, LLC, for the country of Brazil. About the size of a grain of rice, VeriChip(TM) is the world's first subdermal, radio frequency identification (RFID) microchip that can be used in a variety of security, financial, emergency identification and other applications." :: Submitted for your mark of the beast (Rev 13:16-18) files.
The Golden Report - Rosh Ha Shannah
A fairly good synopsis of the Hebrew holiday whose name translates as "Day of Judgment"--also know as "The Day of Trumpets." It's worth noting that Trumpets is the only Hebrew holiday that has not yet had a prophesied event occur within it. For that reason, many (though by no means all or even most) end-times scholars expect the Rapture, in the year in which it occurs, to coincide with the Feast of Trumpets.::Submitted for your consideration as you consider God's admonition to come up hither. [Revelation 4:1]
China Denies Troops Moved to Korea Border
AP reports, "China denied moving 150,000 soldiers to its border with North Korea because of nuclear tensions, insisting Thursday the frontier was calm and it was working with its reclusive neighbor to safeguard 'stability and tranquility' there." :: Submitted for your rumor of war (Matthew 24:6) files.

Carter: Peace Still Possible in Mideast
AP reports, "Former President Carter said Wednesday that lasting peace still is possible in the Middle East despite dismal signs from the region in recent weeks." :: Submitted for your covenant with many (Daniel 9:27) files.

Experts Fear N. Korea May Have More Nukes
AP reports, "Some American intelligence analysts are becoming increasingly concerned that North Korea may have three, four or even six nuclear weapons instead of the one or two the CIA now estimates." :: Submitted for your wars and rumors of war (Matthew 24:6) files.

Wednesday, September 17, 2003

U.N. Says 'Ozone Hole' Hits Record Size
AP reports, "The ozone hole over the Antarctic this year has reached the record size of 10.8 million square miles set three years ago, the United Nation's weather organization said Wednesday." :: Submitted for your fear for the future (Luke 21:26) files.
N. Korea Accuses Japan of 'Aggression'
AP reports, "North Korea accused Japan on Wednesday of plotting 'aggression' and blamed it for souring relations a year after a historic summit that some saw as a step toward ending a decades-old Cold War rivalry." :: Submitted for your war (Matthew 24:6) files.

Purported Saddam Tape Urges Resistance
AP reports, "In an audiotape broadcast Wednesday, a speaker purporting to be
Saddam Hussein urged Iraqis to escalate attacks on Americans and called on U.S. and other coalition forces to leave the country "as soon as possible and without any conditions." :: Submitted for your rumors of war (Matthew 24:6) files. :: Psst, want to hear a rumor? Saddam is still alive.
Bush: No Proof of Saddam Role in 9-11
AP reports, "President Bush said Wednesday there was no evidence that Saddam Hussein was involved in the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11, 2001 - disputing an impression that critics say the administration tried to foster to justify the war against Iraq." :: Submitted for your rumors of war (Matthew 24:6) files.
MEMRI News Tickers for September 2003
Here you can see some of the latest headlines from the Middle East. While reform voices still make themselves heard, the Muslim war hawks are definitely in the saddle, in Iran, Egypt, and elsewhere.::Submitted for your war [Matthew 24:6] files.

Tuesday, September 16, 2003

Canada Ponders How Best to Stem West Nile Spread
Reuters reports, "Canadian health officials are studying why the West Nile virus has proliferated in the Prairie province of Saskatchewan this year, and how best to prevent its spread in years to come, a prominent entomologist said on Tuesday." :: Submitted for your pestilence files.
The Trouble With Islam
And what is the trouble with Islam? According to Irshad Manji, web-mistress and author with a new release scheduled under the above title, the trouble is that "while every religion has its share of literalists,...only in Islam is literalism...mainstream." See also the article in WorldNetDaily describing the angry denunciations of her work before it has even hit the shelves, the protective measures she has taken, and the mentoring of her by Salman Rushdie, author of The Satanic Verses. She calls for something radical enough: that Islam must cast off its fundamentalistic streak.

What she evidently fails to realize, however, is that she might as well ask Islam to cease to be. If the fundamentals of a faith are the problem, then the faith itself is the problem. I would ask all readers to pray that Ms. Manji will take the only step that will actually save her soul and accept Christ.::Submitted for your war [Matthew 24:6] files.

Monday, September 15, 2003

Radio-Tagged Codes to Hit Supply Lines
AP reports, "Backers of new radio-tagged product codes, a kind of souped-up wireless bar code, are heralding this as the week the technology finally moves off the drawing board and into the physical world. Unlike traditional bar codes, "Radio Frequency Identification" [or RFID] tags don't need to pass under a laser reader. They're already commonly used by drivers with 'speed passes' at toll booths, U.S. military quartermasters and ranchers tracking livestock..." :: Submitted for your mark of the beast files on ID technology. :: In the near future, it may be possible to put every product and every person on the Net, interacting in real-time. How's that for a brave new world?
Palestinian Liberal Columnist On: The Palestinian 'All or Nothing' Policy
From MEMRI. As is true of liberals everywhere, pragmatism and compromise are this columnist's stock-in-trade. On the surface, this seems quite reasonable. In fact, however, he ignores the hard reality that Arabs have always been an all-or-nothing kind of people, and that the real beef with Israel is not territorial at all, but religious. Else, why didn't the Arabs ever take an interest in the region that Emperor Hadrian renamed Palestine until Jews started moving back there in large numbers?::Submitted for your war and rumor of war [Matthew 24:6] files.

Sunday, September 14, 2003

Israel Official: Killing Arafat an Option
AP reports, "The second-ranking official in the Israeli government said Sunday that killing Yasser Arafat is an option, as thousands of Palestinians took to the streets across the West Bank and Gaza Strip promising to protect their leader." :: Submitted for your files on wars and rumors of war (Matthew 24:6) and the battle for Jerusalem (Ezekiel 38:8; Zechariah 12; Luke 21:2).
Saudis move F-15s near Israel's border
World Net Daily reports, "Saudi Arabia has transferred much of its advanced F-15 fighter-jet fleet to the northern air force base at Tabuk near the Israeli border and within striking distance of the Jewish state, in an apparent violation of the kingdom's pledge to the United States." :: Submitted for your files on wars and rumors of war and the battle for Jerusalem (Ezekiel 38:8; Zechariah 12; Luke 21:2).
Population Explosion Sparks Ethiopia Hunger
IRIN reports, "Food insecurity in Ethiopia is not simply a result of drought, a new study suggests. Rapid population growth and cultural practices linked to polygamy make it difficult for food production to keep up with demand." :: Submitted for your files on famine (Matthew 24:7).
Amicably divided, big powers to pursue Iraq accord
Reuters reports, "The world's five most powerful nations emerged divided on Saturday from a 'candid' debate on Iraq's political future, with France and the United States poles apart on how quickly power should be returned to the people." :: Submitted for your ten kings (Rev 17:12-14) files on the U.N. Security Council.
The Golden Report - A trip to the Temple Mount.
This article contains three excellent pictures of some of the structures that might possibly provoke the war to come [Matthew 24:6].::Submitted also for your leave out the outer Temple court [Revelation 11:1-2] files.

Saturday, September 13, 2003

The Golden Report - When will enough be enough? How many more Jews must be murdered by Yasser Arafat before he is removed?
A good question. Jerry Golden, of course, is weighing in on the whole controversy that The Jerusalem Post stirred up with their editorial specifically stating that Arafat should be killed. The frustration he expresses, at the way Israel cannot simply act against him on their own, is understandable.::Submitted for your war [Matthew 24:6] and ride a red horse [Revelation 6:3-4] files.
WorldNetDaily: Santa helping Uncle Sam in terror war
Specifically, our troops often spent their own money to buy better than government-issue equipment. How interesting! Roman soldiers used to equip themselves completely, before the consul Gaius Marius, beginning at 108 BC, recruited among a class of soldiers who couldn't afford to do such a thing. He thus introduced the concept called GI into the military lexicon.
WorldNetDaily: Elite unit ready to snatch Arafat
This article states that the particular special-forces unit of the IDF has been waiting for two years to get orders to execute. The debate in the Israeli government is, as you can imagine, highly contentious. Could this start a full-scale war? [Matthew 24:6]
Israeli-Palestian Violence at Jerusalem Shrine
Reuters reports, "Israeli police stormed the square outside the al-Aqsa mosque, one of Islam's holiest sites, on Friday after Palestinians angry at Israeli plans to expel Yasser Arafat stoned worshippers at Judaism's Western Wall below. Israeli police...said four policemen were slightly wounded and treated by medics near the holy site Muslims call al-Haram al-Sharif (Noble Sanctuary) and Jews revere as Temple Mount. :: Submitted for your files on the Temple Mount (Matthew 24:15; 2 Thess.2:4; Daniel 9:27).

Friday, September 12, 2003

Gas is Below $1.70 First Time in 2 Weeks
But the point is that gasoline in the USA has not sold at such a high price before in our history. This is not a matter of price manipulation; what we see here is an example of scarcity, and just the sort of famine that Jesus Himself predicted for the last days [Matthew 24].::Submitted for your ride a black horse [Revelation 6:5-6] files.
WorldNetDaily: Arafat: Is it time to exile or kill him?
Actually, The Jerusalem Post is the paper that asked--and answered--that question. They specifically said:
The world will not help us. We must help ourselves. We must kill as many Hamas terrorists as possible.
And yes, they did go on specifically to call for Arafat's execution.

For a level-headed paper that has built a reputation for a generation or more, this sentiment is quite an escalation. Dire warnings of reprisals are rife in the region, as one might expect.::Submitted for your war and rumor of war [Matthew 24:6] files.
WorldNetDaily: Poll: More Americans think Islam violent
Specifically, thirty-four percent of Americans, according to an ABC News poll, think that Islam encourages violence. A total of forty-three percent think that Islam does not teach respect for the beliefs of non-adherents.

But here's the catch: only one-third of Americans claim any working knowledge of Islam. If this finding is correct, then people are not studying Islam nearly as closely as they should. If they did, even more people would realize that Islam teaches not only violence, but also an active disrespect for the beliefs (or lack of them) of non-adherents. Islam also teaches an active disrespect for the law, in that Islam fails to recognize any lawful authorities other than Islamic authorities, and declares that treaties with non-Muslims are not only ill-advised but in fact are non-binding. [Surah 9:1 and following]

But what can you expect of a man-centered religion? Christianity teaches people that God will repay, and man need not and should not; Islam commands its followers to do the repaying. Christianity teaches respect for all in authority, on the theory that God will remove any authorities that prove abusive without man's help; Islam teaches its followers to respect no authority but themselves and even to dishonor treaties. Christianity tells people to let go and let God; Islam tells its followers to mix it up and get it on.

The contrast between God-centered and man-centered belief cannot be more stark--unless you want to contrast Christianity with secular humanism. And indeed, how do secular humanism and Islam differ? Only in one salient particular: while Islam tells you that everything you do is a sin if it is not followed to the letter, secular humanism merely looks for a way to tax it.::See the Letters to the Romans, Corinthians I and II, and the Ephesians.
Egyptian Opposition Weekly: Egypt's Problem is Mubarak Himself
From MEMRI. The charges against Mubarak are either of squandering of public resources or of out-and-out financial chicane. The columnist points out that Mubarak has served longer than anyone as President of Egypt. But he did not assassinate his predecessor, Anwar el-Sadat. Muslim fundamentalists did that, and they are still active--and they might (though I have no evidence on this point) even be the force behind this very column.::Submitted for your war and rumor of war [Matthew 24:6] files.

Thursday, September 11, 2003

SAS Tests Biometrics at Swedish Airport
AP reports, "Hoping to simplify passenger arrivals and departures and improve security, Scandinavian Airlines Systems said Wednesday it will test using biometric technology at an airport in northern Sweden." :: Submitted for your mark of the beast (Rev 13:16-18) files on biometric ID technology.
Official: N. Korea Developing New Missile
AP reports, "North Korea appears to be developing a new intermediate-range ballistic missile capable of reaching the United States. The missile hasn't been tested....Their new missile may have a range of 9,400 miles, a distance within the range of any U.S. state or territory, two U.S. government officials said." :: Submitted for your wars and rumors of war (Matthew 24:6) files.
The Think Tank of the Arab League: The Zayed International Centre for Coordination and Follow-Up Closes - Part III
From MEMRI.Evidently MEMRI created a stir with their reporting on the Zayed Center, to the point that it became an embarrassment to the government of the United Arab Emirates. Now they have closed the Center. This shows that MEMRI is definitely a player.::Submitted for your war and rumor of war [Matthew 24:6] files.
WorldNetDaily: The real 9-11 conspiracy
Paul Sperry, WorldNetDaily's Washington bureau chief, charges that the real 9-11 conspiracy was not that the Bush administration had advance knowledge of the attack, (they did not, and arguably they might have obtained such knowledge and prevented it), but rather that they used the attack as an excuse to further their friends' oil interests. The basis of his accusation is that the Bush administration has missed several key terrorism-fighting opportunities in order to be nice to certain countries that have a corner (or nearly a corner) on a vital natural resource. Conspiracy remains unproven--but it does appear that the Bush administration is trying to serve two masters [Luke 16].
WorldNetDaily: D.C. mosque tied to 9-11 extols martyrdom virtues
The mosque in question is in Falls Church, Virginia. Many Muslims have flocked to Northern Virginia from abroad, and their loyalty is, frankly, suspect. But perhaps Muslims, violent as their religion commands them to be, will be but the foils of the Beast from the Sea [Revelation 13]. It is surely no accident that one of the things said about this Beast will be that no one can make war with him--thus marking him as a military hero and leader.
WorldNetDaily: Latino group threatening U.S.?
The group involved is either the Movimiento Estudiantil Chicano de Aztlan or a group closely allied with them. This story contains a link to a radical separatist Net rag called La Voz de Aztlan (literally, The Voice of Aztlan). I would remind all readers that a breakup of the United States of America into smaller units, each with its own vote in a one-world legislature or cabinet-like body, would suit the interests of the Beast from the Sea [Revelation 13].

Wednesday, September 10, 2003

Russia Reports Rise in HIV Cases
AP reports, "The number of Russians registered as having contracted HIV has reached 250,000 and efforts to slow the rapid spread of AIDS in the country have failed, officials said Wednesday." :: Submitted for your pestilence (Luke 21:11) files.
Learning to Live With Biometrics
Wired reports, "Use of biometric ID systems has been on the rise in the private sector for some time. Companies from Hertz to Pepsi use finger-, hand- or iris-scanning systems to identify employees and sometimes customers. This year, biometrics system revenues will top $928 million, according to the International Biometric Group. In 2004, sales are expected to top $1.5 billion. Not surprisingly, privacy advocates are worried about the use of biometrics in public schools, where minors are the ones being scanned." :: Submitted for your mark of the beast (Rev 13:16-18) files on biometric ID technology.
The Golden Report - A Vision 9-10-03
The vision he describes looks a lot like Armageddon--a timely warning that God is not mocked, or trifled with.
WorldNetDaily: Saddam ordered Najaf bombing
Well, we knew that all along, didn't we?::Submitted for your war and rumor of war [Matthew 24:6] files.
Syrian Foreign Ministry Spokeswoman Glorifies Martyrs and Martyrdom
From MEMRI This pretty much says where the Arabs are really coming from, in a way that you simply will not read about in the mainstream press (the Fishwrap Axis, because you can wrap fish with their product, but do little else with it that is any good). What a bunch of hypocrites these Arabs are. How can people of good will make a lasting peace with people who take such attitudes? Of course, we know what's really coming. We can expect to see them participating in the Gog-Magog War [Ezekiel 38-39].
MALAYSIA tests ID chips for embedding in bodies
Silicon.com reports, "The Malaysian government has acquired rights to chips that can embed identity tags into cash, passports or even human bodies. The government has acquired intellectual property rights to the chip - now dubbed the Malaysian Microchip (MM from Japanese research and development (R&D) company FEC, which designed it. The chip can replace barcode tags in retail goods, and can be inserted into the human body, animals, bullets, credit cards and other items for verification purposes, said the report." :: Submitted for your mark of the beast files on implanted ID chips.

Tuesday, September 09, 2003

Asteroid Scares: Why They Won't End
According to this Space report, the sensational report last week (also noted here) about a doomsday asteroid headed for Earth was not the first, nor will it be the last. As they put it, "A clear pattern emerges from the asteroid scares. Odds of an impact are widely reported, then within days or hours new data turns up to bring the chances to zero...there will be plenty more opportunities for asteroid hunters to interact with the media. The pace of discovery increases each year." :: Submitted for your files on signs in the heavens and stars (Luke 21:11 & 21:25).
Twin Suicide Bombings Kill 15 Israelis
AP reports, "Twin Palestinian suicide bombings — one at a bus stop crowded with soldiers near Tel Aviv, the second five hours later at a popular Jerusalem nightspot — killed at least 15 Israelis and wounded and maimed dozens as the region grappled with a new wave of savage bloodletting." :: Submitted for your battle for Jerusalem files.
The Golden Report - Arafat must go
Jerry Golden has it exactly right: Yasser Arafat is causing nothing but trouble, has never caused anything but trouble, and would have to leave the scene for any lasting peace to obtain. But we know, do we not, that no lasting peace will obtain this side of Armageddon--and especially not in that region.::Submitted for your war and rumor of war [Matthew 24:6] and blood up to the horses' bridles for two hundred Roman stadia [Revelation 14] files.
Al-Qa'ida Website Back On-Line, Publishes Book About its War on the U.S.
From MEMRI. Sometimes your worst enemies will tell truths that your own leaders prefer to deny. Read here what the organization calling itself "The Base" has to say to its own potential recruits. This article even includes a link to the Al-Qaeda web site.::Submitted for your war and rumor of war [Matthew 24:6] files.

Monday, September 08, 2003

U.S. Tries New Treatment for West Nile Infection
Reuters reports, "U.S. researchers said on Monday they were trying out a new treatment for West Nile virus, using antibodies from Israelis who have survived infection." :: Submitted for your pestilence (Luke 21:11) files on the spread of the SARS virus.
Britain Sends Troops to Iraq, More to Come
Reuters reports, "Britain said Monday it was sending around 1,200 extra troops to Iraq to tackle escalating violence and promised to deploy around the same number later to help restore the country's crippled infrastructure." :: Submitted for your wars and rumors of war (Matthew 24:6) files.
The Golden Report - To Be Torah Observant????
Those who think that observing the Torah will save you need to think twice! In the first place, the Torah lists 613 separate commands, and you couldn't possibly keep them all--and I do not for one moment concede that these commands are "all there is to it." In the second place, only the shed Blood of Jesus Christ can save anyone.::Submitted for your salvation belongs to the Lamb [Revelation 7:8-15] files.
WorldNetDaily: Saudi-terror complicity
The House of Saud knew full well about the World Trade Center Incident before it happened. Joseph Farah presents a taste of the evidence he presented in greater detail in his subscriber-based service, "The G2 Bulletin." ("G2" stands for "command staff officer in charge of intelligence for a command of brigade size or larger.")

Joe Farah, a Lebanese Christian, has said time and again that Islam is not a religion of peace, and that America has been dependent on the Saudis for far too long. When he speaks of "cutting apron strings," he really means to drill for oil where we have known reserves, reserves that we do not use for fear of disturbing a sensitive environment, and to investigate any technologies that would eliminate waste of energy and allow us to deliver energy more efficiently. Maybe it's time we listened.

But more to the point, this is another sign that world history is converging on the Middle East--right where the Bible said it would [Daniel, Zechariah, Nahum, Revelation, etc.].
WorldNetDaily: President's address to America
Specifically, this is President George W. Bush's address to the nation, which he made at 00:30 UTC on 9/8/2003, or 8:30 p.m. EST on Sunday 9/7/2003. His address in really to "his fellow Americans" and not really to "our friends throughout the world." But much of his speech is aimed directly at members of the UN Security Council: "It wouldn't hurt you to help, and the last thing you need is for the whole world to see you for the churls that you are--so how about pitching in and doing something positive for a change?" He also lays it on the line: a free Iraq would be the beginning of the end for the enemies of peace. Bush's speech does, however, have one central problem, and that is his continual refrain that "Islam is a religion of peace." Even a cursory examination of certain surat of the Koran will prove that Islam is anything but that.::Submitted for your war and rumor of war [Matthew 24:6] files.

Sunday, September 07, 2003

Southern Baptists Applaud Mel Gibson "Passion"
The Jesus Journal reports, "Mel Gibson's representation of the sufferings of Jesus Christ in the upcoming movie The Passion surpasses all earlier efforts by cinematographers, according to Southern Baptists who were invited to view a rough cut of the film in Dallas." :: Submitted for your gospel preached to all files.
Terror attack on grid would collapse U.S.
The Washington Times reports, "Government scientific advisers and officials painted a grim picture Thursday of the consequences of a terror attack on the nation's power grid, saying that any outage that lasted longer than a couple of days would reduce urban centers to chaos and collapse the economy." :: Submitted for your fear and trepidation for the future (Luke 21:26) files.
World's smallest microchip unveiled
Aljazeera reports, "Malaysia has bought the rights from a Japanese firm to the world's smallest microchip that can be embedded in everything from currencies to human bodies.Announcing this on Thursday, Malaysian Prime Minister Mahathir Muhammad said the microchip would boost the global “anti-terror” war. Mahathir said the revolutionary miniature chip, developed by Japan's FEC Inc., could be combined with current technology to "greatly prevent the possibilities of terrorist acts" as well as banknote and document counterfeiting. Chief executive Kunioki Ichioka told reporters that the chip can also be inserted into the human body, animals, bullets, credit cards and other items for verification purposes, and can replace price bar codes used to tag products." :: Submitted for your mark of the beast (Rev 13:16-18) files on ID chip technology.
Abbas Resignation Imperils Peace Plan
AP reports, "Shocked by the resignation of Palestinian Prime Minister Mahmoud Abbas, the Bush administration said Saturday the Palestinians must find a new leader who stands apart from 'a corrupt few tainted by terror' and will continue to seek peace based on a U.S.-backed blueprint." :: Submitted for your covenant with many files on the search for Mideast peace.
Abbas Resignation Imperils Peace Plan
AP reports, "Shocked by the resignation of Palestinian Prime Minister Mahmoud Abbas, the Bush administration said Saturday the Palestinians must find a new leader who stands apart from 'a corrupt few tainted by terror' and will continue to seek peace based on a U.S.-backed blueprint." :: Submitted for your covenant with many files on the search for Mideast peace.
Abbas Resignation Imperils Peace Plan
AP reports, "Shocked by the resignation of Palestinian Prime Minister Mahmoud Abbas, the Bush administration said Saturday the Palestinians must find a new leader who stands apart from 'a corrupt few tainted by terror' and will continue to seek peace based on a U.S.-backed blueprint." :: Submitted for your covenant with many files on the search for Mideast peace.
Abbas Resignation Imperils Peace Plan
AP reports, "Shocked by the resignation of Palestinian Prime Minister Mahmoud Abbas, the Bush administration said Saturday the Palestinians must find a new leader who stands apart from 'a corrupt few tainted by terror' and will continue to seek peace based on a U.S.-backed blueprint." :: Submitted for your covenant with many files on the search for Mideast peace.
Abbas Resignation Imperils Peace Plan
AP reports, "Shocked by the resignation of Palestinian Prime Minister Mahmoud Abbas, the Bush administration said Saturday the Palestinians must find a new leader who stands apart from 'a corrupt few tainted by terror' and will continue to seek peace based on a U.S.-backed blueprint." :: Submitted for your covenant with many files on the search for Mideast peace.
Abbas Resignation Imperils Peace Plan
AP reports, "Shocked by the resignation of Palestinian Prime Minister Mahmoud Abbas, the Bush administration said Saturday the Palestinians must find a new leader who stands apart from 'a corrupt few tainted by terror' and will continue to seek peace based on a U.S.-backed blueprint." :: Submitted for your covenant with many files on the search for Mideast peace.

Friday, September 05, 2003

Defending Muslim Women from Beatings
From MEMRI. Specifically, a columnist in _Al-Sharq Al-Awsat_ states that the last thing that Muslims need is for any of them actually to defend the practice of a husband striking his wife physically. Interestingly, the Koran does prescribe wife-beating. Surah 4:14 does in fact state, "And [as to] those on whose part you fear disobedience, admonish them, expel them from the bed, and beat them." This is no "conspiracy theory."

Understand this: Wife-beating is unacceptable and inexcusable. The Bible even tells husband and wife both not to expel one another from the marriage bed, unless they both agree to such prolonged abstinence as a form of fasting. [I Corinthians 7:1-7] The Bible admonishes a woman to defer and even to submit to her husband, but also constrains the husband to treat his wife in a loving manner. That is not a matter of "equality," but of simple decency, and of the proper model of the relationship between Christ and His church.

What's troubling about this "reformist" column is that its author makes the same kinds of arguments in support of reform that we hear today in Christian circles as arguments for women in elderships, deaconships, and even bishoprics, recognition and even blessing of homosexual unions, winking and nodding at adultery, and much other extra-biblical "reform" that is nothing less than a taking of a pick-ax at the foundations of the church. Indeed, that is all that reformist voices in Islam are left with. This is not even a matter of the fundamental documents having been written for a now-superseded culture. In the first place, you have many voices in Islam wanting to get "back to the Koran" in every particular, including the one above. In the second, the desert tribal culture that is the background of the Koran survives to this day. (Many who have traveled in the Middle East report a sensation of having stepped through Irwin Allen's Time Tunnel to a time twelve or thirteen hundred years past.) And in the third, wife-beating was never acceptable by any objective standard whatsoever. More to the point, the entire Koran is a pack of lies from beginning to end.

I would ask all who read this the same thing that a deacon at my present church asked me: Why should we base our trust of another religion on the departure, by that religion's so-called adherents, from their own fundamental documents? It's absurd--and yet it is the foreign policy of the United States today.::Submitted for your itching ears [2 Timothy 4:2-4] files.

Thursday, September 04, 2003

Medium-Sized Earthquake Jolts Bay Area
AP reports, "A medium-sized earthquake sent a sharp, short jolt through the San Francisco Bay area Thursday evening. Police said they received no reports of major damage or injuries." :: Submitted for your quake (Matthew 24:7) files.
CDC Readying for Possible New SARS Season
AP reports, "A new surveillance system and improved tests are in place in case SARS re-emerges in the United States this fall, federal health officials said. Officials of the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, speaking Wednesday evening at a monthly meeting of researchers, said they don't know if SARS will reappear this fall or winter, but they believe the virus easily could return." :: Submitted for your pestilence (Luke 21:11) files on the SARS virus.
Killer' Asteroid will Miss
Universe Today reports, "Additional observations from astronomers have decreased the likelihood to virtually zero that Asteroid 2003 QQ47 will strike the Earth in 2014. The asteroid was first discovered on August 24 by thLINEAR observatory and astronomers put its odds at 1 in 909,000 at hitting the Earth, but the additional observations on Monday night extended those odds to 1 in 2.2 million, which is below the background risk of asteroid strikes on any given year. If the 1.3 km asteroid were to strike the Earth, it would cause immense damage on a continental scale... but it won't." :: Submitted for your signs in the heavens (Luke 21:11) and fear for the future (Luke 21:26) files.
Inquiry and Analysis Series - No. 99: The Damascus Blood Libel (1840) as Told by Syria's Minister of Defense, Mustafa Tlass
From MEMRI. In light of more recent whoppers from Mr. Tlass, I thought it appropriate to post MEMRI's extensive Inquiry and Analysis into the controversy surrounding the Damascus Blood Libel and Mr. Tlass' book repeating it.::Submitted for your war and rumor of war [Matthew 24:6] files.
Syrian Defense Minister: Lebanese Resistance Is Justified, My Book 'The Matzah of Zion' Is Not Antisemitic
From MEMRI Talk about having it backwards! To begin with, if Saudi Arabia "suffers from terrorism," then the only "suffering" that I see comes from a family feud--the feuding family being, of course, the House of Saud. And "Lebanese resistance to occupation"? Oh--does he mean the occupation of Lebanon by Syria? And why can't we stop calling it "Palestine"? "Palestine" is "Philistia" with a Roman post-nasal drip problem. Emperor Hadrian gave that ridiculous name to Judea after Simon bar Hochva's admittedly ill-advised rebellion.

This is also, by his own admission, the same man who wrote the libelous screed titled The Matzah of Zion, a repeat of the 1841 Damascus Blood Libel. But again, why are we surprised? He tells bigger lies than Bill Clinton did. "All ethnic groups live in peace in the Arab region" is right up there with "I did not. Have. Sexual. Relations. With that woman." Not to mention "The American forces are nowhere near Baghdad!"::Submitted for your war and rumor of war [Matthew 24:6] files.
Syrian Gov't Media: Israel Bombed Baghdad's U.N. Headquarters, Jordanian Embassy, Abu Gharib Prison and Water Main
From MEMRI. Ridiculous, of course, and what does this say about where Syria stands? The Syrians note--correctly--that it serves no rational Arab interest for the UN to take a hit, and especially not the Jordanians, nor Iraq's infrastructure. But who said that Arabs do things rationally? They just don't want to admit that Arabs are guilty of anything worthy of reproach, that's all.::Submitted for your war and rumor of war [Matthew 24:6] files.
The Golden Report - The near future doesn't look so good! That is unless you are looking up.
Yasser Arafat has recently declared that the "Road Map" is dead--no surprise, either from Arafat or that the plan would never have worked anyway. While I am not sure that "the Illuminati" are anything more than a product of F. Anton Wilson's imagination (misappropriated without attribution or due royalty in violation of his copyright, I might add), I'll be the first to suggest that George W. Bush's foreign policy toward Israel is misguided and counterproductive. It might also be the prelude to the Gog-Magog War [Ezekiel 38-9].

Wednesday, September 03, 2003

Egyptian Ministry of Culture Publication: The Prophet Muhammad's 'Night Journey' was Not to Jerusalem but to Medina
From MEMRI. The Ministry of Culture is now saying that a correct reading of the Koran does not describe a "Night Journey" from Mecca to Jerusalem. The "Night Journey" was to Medina, not Jerusalem, and was the very same as the "Hijra" or "Hegira" that is the epochal starting point of the Muslim calendar. If true, this severely weakens Muslim claims to the Temple Mount and even exposes them as interlopers. But we knew that all the time, did we not? Question for everyone: Why is this coming out today? Could someone be laying the basis for the Covenant with the Many [Daniel 9:27]?
The Scotsman - International - Malay Islamic leader warns lipstick and perfume are rape risks
Now I would be the last to suggest that we need a Muslim to tell Christian women--or any other women--about modest dress. Still, the Bible itself makes that point. The Bible also puts the onus on men to mind their eyes and hands.

Sexual sin has been a problem for man since the beginning, but the problem is especially acute when men and women live in the relatively close quarters of an organized city. That might be part of the reason why God initially told Abraham and Isaac and Jacob to stay out of cities and not build any of their own.::Submitted for your adultery in your heart [Matthew 5:28] and repented they not of their sexual immoralities [Revelation 9:21] files.

Tuesday, September 02, 2003

Asteroid Heading for Earth, May Hit in 2014
Reuters reports, "A giant asteroid is heading for Earth and could hit in 2014, U.S. astronomers have warned British space monitors." :: Submitted for your fear and trepidation for the future (Luke 21:26) files on near-Earth asteroids.

Monday, September 01, 2003

NEWS.com.au | 'Dog is dead' sparked Najaf arrests (September 1, 2003)
Specifically, Iraqi bystanders caught those two sending their boastful e-mail, grabbed them, and turned them in to the Najaf Police. This goes to show that foreign infiltration of terrorists is occurring, and that ordinary Iraqis for the most part do not support terrorist infiltration or their missions.::Submitted for your war and rumor of war [Matthew 24:6] files.
Egyptian Government Daily Al-Ahram: The U.S. is Behind the Najaf Bombing
Oh, now we've heard everything. The same Egyptian government who lends credence to Holocaust denial now says that American forces assassinated Ayatollah al-Hakim to provide yet another pretext for our continued presence in Iraq.::Submitted for your war and rumor of war [Matthew 24:6] files.