Saturday, June 30, 2012

My Way News - Syria troops regain key Damascus suburb:
My Way News reports: "Syrian troops flushed out rebels from a key Damascus suburb Saturday, regaining control of a key area just outside the capital after a 10-day assault that left dozens dead, hundreds wounded and caused a major humanitarian crisis [...] World powers meeting in Geneva to push for an end to the bloodshed accepted a U.N.-brokered peace plan for Syria on Saturday, but left open whether President Bashar Assad could be part of a transitional government."
My Way News - Eastern US storms kill 13, cut power to millions:
My Way News reports: "Millions across the mid-Atlantic region sweltered Saturday in the aftermath of violent storms that pummeled the eastern U.S. with high winds and downed trees, killing at least 13 people and leaving 3 million without power during a heat wave [...] Emergencies were declared in Maryland, West Virginia, Ohio, the District of Columbia and Virginia."
My Way News - Report: Iran to deploy submarines in Caspian Sea:
My Way News reports: "Relations between Iran and Azerbaijan have soured in the past year. Iran accuses Azerbaijan of harboring anti-Iranian terrorists linked to Israel's Mossad spy agency. Azerbaijan in return says Iran supports Islamist dissidents. Both countries deny each other's charges."
My Way News - Egypt's new president begins struggle for power
My Way News reports: "Islamist Mohammed Morsi became Egypt's first freely elected president on Saturday, launching his four-year term with a potentially dangerous quest to wrest back from the military the full authority of his office [...]  If Morsi succeeds, the Muslim Brotherhood will likely be emboldened to press ahead with realizing the longtime goal of making Egypt an Islamic state."

Thursday, June 28, 2012

My Way News - European leaders agree on long-term union
My Way News reports: "After tough all-night bargaining, European leaders appeared to salvage what had seemed to be a summit teetering toward failure by agreeing early Friday to use the continent's bailout fund to funnel money directly to struggling banks, and in the longer term to the idea of a tighter union [...] leaders of the 17-nation eurozone also agreed to a joint banking supervisory body. And he said the leaders of the full 27-member European Union agreed to a general long-term plan for a tighter budgetary and political union."

Wednesday, June 27, 2012

My Way News - Heat wave: 1,000 records fall in US in a week
My Way News reports: "Feeling hot? It's not a mirage. Across the United States, hundreds of heat records have fallen in the past week. From the wildfire-consumed Rocky Mountains to the bacon-fried sidewalks of Oklahoma, the temperatures are creating consequences ranging from catastrophic to comical [...] Wildfires pack intense heat, but soaring temperatures and whipping winds are piling on the men and women battling the blazes raging across the Rocky Mountains."

My Way News - Wildfire victims crowd shelters as fight continues
My Way News reports: "Fire crews fought to save the U.S. Air Force Academy and residents begged for information on the fate of their homes Wednesday after a night of terror sent thousands of people fleeing a raging Colorado Springs wildfire. More than 30,000 have been displaced by the fire [...] Overall, there have been fewer fires and less acreage burned for the first six months of the year than for the same period in the previous six years. Some states are seeing fires earlier this year, but Harbour said resources are far from being exhausted."
My Way News - EU to open accession talks with tiny Montenegro
My Way News reports: "European Union foreign ministers recommended on Tuesday that Montenegro open accession negotiations with the bloc later this week, opening the way for the Balkan nation to eventually join the union [...] Despite the financial crisis and structural problems shaking the European Union's foundations, Balkan states are still enthusiastic about joining the 27-nation bloc. Croatia has completed accession negotiations and is slated to become the EU's newest member in 2013."

Tuesday, June 26, 2012

My Way News - Iran focus of Russian president's visit to Israel
My Way News reports: "Israel urged the visiting Russian president on Monday to step up pressure on Iran to curb its suspect nuclear program but there was no sign of any concessions from Vladimir Putin [...] Israel sees Iran as its most dangerous enemy because it is convinced the country's nuclear program is meant to build bombs and not for peaceful purposes such as energy production, as Iran insists. The fears are compounded by Tehran's frequent calls for Israel's destruction, support for anti-Israel militants and arsenal of ballistic missiles."
My Way News - Turkey warns Syria away from its border
My Way News reports: "Turkey warned Syria on Tuesday to keep its forces away from the countries' troubled border or risk an armed response - a furious reply to the downing of a Turkish military plane last week by the Damascus regime."

Monday, June 25, 2012

My Way News - Israel jittery after Brotherhood victory in Egypt
My Way News reports: "The Muslim Brotherhood victory in Egyptian presidential elections, announced Sunday, has raised fears in Israel that its strategic 1979 peace agreement with its southern neighbor could be in danger. In contrast, in the Hamas-ruled Gaza Strip, ecstatic residents flocked into the streets, fired guns in the air and handed out candy in celebration [...] The Muslim Brotherhood, founded in Egypt in 1928, is a pan-Arabic movement that favors creation of a Muslim state that encompasses the entire Middle East."

Friday, June 22, 2012

My Way News - Israel to press visiting Putin on Iran
My Way News reports: "When Vladimir Putin visits Israel next week, the world may want to pay attention: The Iranian nuclear program will top the agenda - and the steely Russian president, widely viewed as coddling the Iranians, may hold the key to avoiding a potential slide into another Middle East war [...] Israel sees Iran as its most dangerous foe because it is convinced that Iran's nuclear program is meant to build bombs and not produce energy, as Iran claims. The fears are compounded by Iran's frequent calls for Israel's destruction, support for anti-Israel militants and arsenal of ballistic missiles."

Thursday, June 21, 2012

My Way News - Syrian Christians feel vulnerable as country burns
My Way News reports: "Christians, who make up about 10 percent of Syria's population, say they are particularly vulnerable to the violence sweeping the country of 22 million people. They are fearful that Syria will become another Iraq, with Christians caught in the crossfire between rival Islamic groups."
My Way News - Iran claims it defused cyberattack on nuke sites
My Way News reports: "An Iranian news agency says the country's experts have defused a "massive" cyberattack on Iran's nuclear facilities. The semiofficial ILNA news agency says the attack came after Iran and world powers met earlier this week in Moscow to discuss Iran's nuclear program."
My Way News - SKorea sees big demand for fastest mobile network:
My Way News reports: "South Korea, already known for having the world's speediest fixed-line broadband Internet, was not the first to use the fourth generation mobile technology known as Long Term Evolution. The United States already eclipses South Korea in the number of LTE smartphone users. But the proportion of the population using it is higher and rising faster in South Korea than in any other part of the world as mobile operators are making a big push to attract subscribers."

Tuesday, June 19, 2012

My Way News - Egypt's Mubarak on life support amid crisis
My Way News reports: "The Muslim Brotherhood, emboldened by its claim that its candidate won the election, sent tens of thousands of supporters into the street in an escalation of its confrontation against the ruling generals who invoked sweeping powers this week that give them dominance over the next president. Some 50,000 protesters, mostly Islamists, protested in Cairo's Tahrir Square, chanting slogans in support of Brotherhood candidate Mohammed Morsi and denouncing the generals."
My Way News - Turmoil in Pakistan after prime minister dismissed:
My Way News reports: "Pakistan's top court dismissed the prime minister from office on Tuesday [...] The move was likened by some to a 'judicial coup' in a country with a history of destabilizing conflicts between the courts, the army and elected governments. It comes as Pakistan faces near economic collapse, power shortages and its own struggle against Islamist militants behind attacks that have killed thousands of people over the last five years."

Monday, June 18, 2012

More unrest hits Nigeria after church attacks, riots kill 52 - Yahoo! News
Yahoo News reports: "Fresh explosions and gunfire rocked a northeastern Nigerian city on Monday, a day after suicide attacks claimed by Islamists and reprisal violence by rampaging Christian mobs left 52 people dead [...] Boko Haram claimed responsibility for three suicide attacks on churches in Kaduna state on Sunday which led to deadly rioting, while police blamed the group for the violence that broke out in Damaturu."
My Way News - Gazans welcome claim of Islamist victory in Egypt
My Way News reports: "Palestinians in the Gaza Strip on Monday welcomed the claim of a Muslim Brotherhood victory in Egypt's presidential election, distributing sweets, praising God and expressing hope for a new era of warm relations between Gaza and Egypt. Gaza, a small, densely populated territory, borders Egypt's Sinai Peninsula. The strip's ruling militant Hamas group is a local offshoot of the Muslim Brotherhood and draws inspiration from the Egyptian organization."

My Way News - Egyptian military moves to retain power after vote: Islamist candidate Mohammed Morsi claimed a hollow victory Monday in Egypt's presidential vote just hours after the country's military rulers stripped the office of its most important powers [...] The generals, who deny having effectively staged a coup and rendering the elected president a mere figurehead, will maintain authority over the crafting of laws and the drafting of a new constitution."

Comment: The Muslim Brotherhood has come to power in Egypt...or have they? The situation seems far from settled as the election ends. There are many questions left unanswered. What will happen to the peace treaty with Israel? Will Egypt become an Islamic state and drive out the Christian minority?
My Way News - 13 wounded in clashes in north Lebanon camp:
My Way News reports: "Lebanese security officials say three soldiers and 10 Palestinians have been wounded in clashes inside a refugee camp in the country's north. The clashes broke out Monday in the Nahr el-Bared camp during the funeral of a Palestinian who was killed in a confrontation Friday."

Comment: The country of Lebanon keeps Palestinians in camps. In camps! They've done that for decades with no hope of change in sight. Where's the outrage?  Oh, that's right, it's ok because they are not Israel so they can do whatever they want to Palestinians and the world will not care.
My Way News - Militants cross into Israel from Egypt, 1 killed:
My Way News reports: "Militants crossed from Egypt's turbulent Sinai desert into southern Israel on Monday and opened fire, killing an Israeli worker, defense officials said. Two assailants were shot dead in a gunbattle with Israeli troops responding to the ambush [...] Several hours after the attack, an Israeli airstrike killed two men on a motorcycle in the northern Gaza Strip near the Israeli border."

Thursday, June 14, 2012

My Way News - Putin says Russia needs new strategic bomber
My Way News reports: "President Vladimir Putin says Russia needs a new strategic bomber and will develop it despite high costs [...]  Russia's air force has several dozen Soviet-built Tu-95 four-engine turboprop bombers whose design dates back to the 1950s and just over a dozen more modern supersonic Tu-160 bombers."
My Way News - Iran shrugs off oil sanctions at OPEC meeting
My Way News reports: "Iran's oil minister on Thursday shrugged off the tightening international squeeze on his country's oil exports, declaring that Tehran was not feeling the pinch and warning that an energy-hungry world could not do without Iranian oil and natural gas."

My Way News - Iran's dreams for influence stymied in Egypt
My Way News reports: "With a struggling economy, Egypt is in dire need of financial help from Saudi Arabia and other Gulf Arab nations whose relations with Tehran are fraught with tensions over its disputed nuclear program, its perceived support for the majority Shiites in Sunni-ruled Bahrain and occupation of three Gulf islands claimed by the United Arab Emirates."
My Way News - Magnitude-4.1 quake shakes Southern California
My Way News reports: "Southern California has been shaken by a small earthquake centered in Orange County. A preliminary report from the U.S. Geological Survey says the magnitude-4.1 quake struck at 8:17 p.m. Wednesday at a depth of about three miles. It was centered eight miles northeast of Anaheim, where a red carpet premiere was under way for the new Cars Land attraction at Disney's California Adventure. Several attendees tweeted that they felt it."

Wednesday, June 13, 2012

My Way News - Syria overruns rebellious village, violence spikes
My Way News reports: "Syrian forces overran a mountain enclave near the Mediterranean coast Wednesday, seizing the territory back from rebels as a serious escalation in violence signaled both sides are using more powerful weapons. With the bloodshed ramping up, France joined the U.N. peacekeeping chief in declaring Syria was in a state of civil war."

Helicopter allegations roil U.S.-Russia ties - The Washington Post:
The Washington Post reports: "While insisting that Iran diplomacy remains on track, officials in Washington and Moscow acknowledged damage to bilateral ties a day after the Obama administration publicly accused Russia of selling attack helicopters to Syrian President Bashar al-Assad. The allegation drew a chorus of denials and denunciations from Russian leaders, some of whom accused Washington of mistaking a shipment of refurbished or repaired helicopters for new ones. "

Tuesday, June 12, 2012

My Way News - Egypt Christians rally behind rival of Islamists
My Way News reports: "Many Christians see the vote as a clear-cut choice between a secular state and one in which an Islamist agenda slowly takes root [...] The region's turmoil has deeply unsettled the Middle East's Christians. Syria's Christian minority, for example, has largely stuck by President Bashar Assad, fearing the strength of Muslim hard-liners in the uprising against his rule. For a worst-case scenario, Christians can look to Iraq, which many Christians have fled after their community and others were repeatedly targeted by extremist militants in the chaotic years after Saddam Hussein's 2003 toppling."
My Way News - Annan wants powers to 'twist arms' over Syria
My Way News reports: "U.N. envoy Kofi Annan has asked governments with influence to 'twist arms' to stop escalating violence in Syria, amid few signs that international pressure is having any measurable effect on the fighting [...] He didn't specify the countries that might still have leverage with the Assad regime, but Russia, China and Iran are considered Syria's closest and strongest allies."
My Way News - Tens of thousands protest Putin despite crackdown
My Way News reports: "Undeterred by a sudden escalation in the Kremlin's crackdown on the opposition, tens of thousands thronged Moscow's tree-lined boulevards Tuesday in the first mass protest against Vladimir Putin since he returned to the presidency in May."

Monday, June 11, 2012

My Way News - Powerful quake shakes areas of Greece and Turkey
My Way News reports: "A powerful earthquake shook Greece's island of Rhodes and southwestern Turkey on Sunday. No deaths or serious damage were reported, but officials said six people were hurt in Turkey by jumping out of buildings."

My Way News - Up to 100 feared dead in Afghan earthquake:
My Way News reports: "As many as 100 people are feared dead in an earthquake and landslide that buried more than 20 houses in northern Afghanistan on Monday, officials said."
My Way News - Attacks strike Nigeria churches, kill at least 6
My Way News reports: "A suicide car bomber detonated his explosives Sunday outside a church in central Nigeria as gunmen attacked another church in the nation's northeast, killing at least six people and wounding dozens of others in the latest attacks targeting Christian worshippers in a nation increasingly divided by faith, officials and witnesses said. A radical Islamist sect known as Boko Haram claimed the attacks."

Comment: Please join me in praying for the persecuted church in Nigeria. 
My Way News - Spain relieved, angry over humiliating bank rescue
My Way News reports "Spain on Saturday became the fourth - and largest - of the 17 countries that use Europe's common currency to request a bailout. This is a big blow to a nation that a few years ago took pride as the continent's economic superstar only to see it become the hot spot in the eurozone debt crisis. Its economy is the eurozone's fourth largest after Germany, France and Italy."
My Way News - Iran's Ahmadinejad wounded but wily in final year
My Way News reports: "The one-time favored son of Iran's theocracy - its flame-throwing populist in a common man's wind breaker or bureaucrat's off-the-rack suit - is now limping into his last year in office sharply weakened and in the unexpected position as an outcast among hard-liners."

Friday, June 08, 2012

Merkel says EU ready to act as Spain downgraded - Yahoo! News:
Yahoo News reports: "Speaking after talks in Berlin with British Prime Minister David Cameron - who called for 'urgent action' to tackle the debt crisis - Merkel said Germany stood ready, alongside the other 16 euro zone countries, to do whatever was necessary [...] As the EU's biggest economy and largest contributor, Germany holds the key to how the bloc comes to Spain's rescue, and whether Europe is able to agree on a banking union with a joint deposit guarantee and a bank resolution fund, as envisaged by the European Central Bank and the European Commission."

Thursday, June 07, 2012

My Way News - In China, 1 in 10 TB cases are drug-resistant
My Way News reports: "One in 10 cases of tuberculosis in China cannot be treated by the most commonly-used drugs, driven by a lack of testing and misuse of medicine, according to a national survey that showed for the first time the size of the drug-resistant epidemic."

My Way News - Officials probe E. coli outbreak in 6 states
My Way News reports: "A mysterious and scattered outbreak of the E. coli bacteria is linked to 14 illnesses, including a child's death, health officials say [...] The reported illnesses were spread across six states. Georgia had five cases, Louisiana four, Alabama two, and Tennessee, Florida and California each had one."

My Way News - Gonorrhea growing resistant to drugs, WHO warns
My Way News reports: "A sexually transmitted disease that infects millions of people each year is growing resistant to drugs and could soon become untreatable, the World Health Organization said Wednesday. "
My Way News - Spring fever: US smashes heat record for season
My Way News reports: "Call it spring's fever. Federal records show the U.S. just finished its hottest spring on record [...] The first five months of 2012 were the hottest start to a year in U.S. weather record history. The 12-month period starting last June is also the hottest on record."

Wednesday, June 06, 2012

My Way News - Israel accuses Iran of nuclear deception
My Way News reports: "Renewing its criticism of Iran's atomic agenda, Israel's delegate to the International Atomic Energy Agency accused Tehran on Wednesday of working secretly on nuclear weapons while pretending it does not want such arms, under a strategy of 'deception, defiance and concealment.'"

Tuesday, June 05, 2012

My Way News - China says it's not protecting Syria's Assad
My Way News reports: "China is not trying to protect Syrian President Bashar Assad and will respect the will of the country's people on its future, China's U.N. ambassador said Monday. Li Baodong told reporters that China is calling on all parties in Syria to immediately implement international envoy Kofi Annan's six-point peace plan, stop the killings and launch an inclusive political process to restore peace and stability to the country."
My Way News - Eyes turn skyward as Venus travels across the sun
My Way News reports: "None of us will likely see Venus pass, like a moving beauty spot, across the face of the sun again. From the U.S. to South Korea, people around the world turned their attention to the daytime sky on Tuesday and early Wednesday in Asia to make sure they caught the rare sight of the transit of Venus. The next one won't be for another 105 years."
My Way News - New TV series awards bunker to winning survivalist:
My Way News reports: "The Spike television network is airing a competition this fall to award a fortified bunker to a family that believes the end of the world is near. Seriously. The network said Tuesday that its six-episode series called 'Last Family on Earth' will feature survivalists competing to show how tough and resourceful they are. The winner gets an underground bunker in an undisclosed location."

Comment: I guess they didn't get the memo that the Mayan doomsday gas been cancelled. 

Monday, June 04, 2012

My Way News - Rare sighting: Venus to trek across face of sun
My Way News reports: "It's a spectacle that won't repeat for another century - the sight of Venus slowly inching across the face of the sun. The silhouette of Venus will march across the face of the sun on Tuesday from the Western Hemisphere (Wednesday from the Eastern Hemisphere). Known as a transit of Venus, this won't happen again until 2117."
My Way News - Quake sways tall buildings in Indonesia's capital:
My Way News reports: "A strong earthquake swayed tall buildings in Indonesia's capital Monday afternoon but caused no tsunami or apparent damage. Office workers said the swaying was felt for about 10 seconds in high-rise buildings around the city of 9 million people. Even two-story homes shook strongly. No damage or casualties have been reported."
My Way News - Tokyo cult attack suspect relieved by her arrest:
My Way News reports: "Naoko Kikuchi is a former member of the Aum Shinrikyo cult that released the nerve gas sarin in Tokyo's subways in 1995, killing 13 people and injuring more than 6,000. The cult had amassed an arsenal of chemical, biological and conventional weapons in anticipation of an apocalyptic showdown with the government [...] The cult, renamed Aleph, once had 10,000 members in Japan and claimed another 30,000 in Russia. It still has hundreds of members."
My Way News - Stay or go? Some towns are eyeing retreat from sea
My Way News reports: "Up and down the California coast, some communities are deciding it's not worth trying to wall off the encroaching ocean. Until recently, the thought of bowing to nature was almost unheard of. But after futile attempts to curb coastal erosion - a problem expected to grow worse with rising seas fueled by global warming - there is growing acknowledgment that the sea is relentless and any line drawn in the sand is likely to eventually wash over."

Comment: Better leave now people, it's only going to get worse. 

Friday, June 01, 2012

My Way News - Strong magnitude quake hits eastern Indonesia
My Way News reports: "A strong earthquake has hit eastern Indonesia. There are no immediate reports of damage or casualties. Indonesia's Meteorology and Geophysics Agency says the 6.2 magnitude quake struck at 3:56 local time (0656 GMT) Friday in the eastern province of Papua Barat on Papua island. It struck about 18 kilometers (11 miles) under the earth's surface and was centered about 72 kilometers (45 miles) southeast of the town of Tambraw."