Thursday, July 31, 2014

Roaring Waves and Seas

My Way News - Annoying minor floods are increasing on US coasts
My Way News reports: "Along much of America's coasts, the type of flooding that is more annoying than dangerous has jumped more than fivefold in the last 50 years, the federal government reported Monday. Scientists blame rising seas, saying this is one of the ways global warming is changing everyday lives."

Global Community

My Way News - Facebook's Internet.org expands in Zambia
My Way News reports: "The Internet.org app will give subscribers of Zambia's Airtel phone company access to a set of basic Internet services for free. Users of the app won't incur the data charges that can be prohibitive for many people in developing nations. Facebook has already been working with mobile operators around the world to offer its own service free of charge to phone subscribers — think of it as a gateway to the rest of the Internet. [...] Internet.org estimates that about 80 percent of the world's population that isn't online lives at least within basic 2G cellphone range. "

Comment: Getting the developing world online is an important step in creating a truly one-world market with instant access to news and live events.

Pestilence

My Way News - W. Africa Ebola outbreak tops 700 deaths
My Way News reports: "The death toll from the worst recorded Ebola outbreak in history surpassed 700 in West Africa as security forces went house-to-house in Sierra Leone's capital Thursday looking for patients and others exposed to the disease. [...] The World Health Organization is launching a $100 million response plan calling for the deployment of several hundred additional health workers to help the strained resources in deeply impoverished West Africa, where hospital and clinics are ill-equipped to cope with routine health threats let alone the outbreak of a virulent disease like Ebola."

Wednesday, July 30, 2014

Persecution

BBC News - France offers Iraq Christians asylum after Mosul threat
BBC News reports: "The French government says it is ready to offer asylum to Iraqi Christians forced to flee by Islamist militants in the northern Iraqi city of Mosul. Many fled Mosul after the Islamic State (IS) group which seized much of northern Iraq told them to convert to Islam, pay a tax or face death. Iraq is home to one of the world's most ancient Christian communities."

Tuesday, July 29, 2014

Pestilence

My Way News - Top doctor dies from Ebola after treating dozens
My Way News reports: "A leading doctor who risked his own life to treat dozens of Ebola patients died Tuesday from the disease, officials said, as a major regional airline announced it was suspending flights to the cities hardest hit by an outbreak that has killed more than 670 people."

Rumors of War - King of the North

My Way News - US, Europe impose tough new sanctions on Russia
My Way News reports: "Spurred to action by the downing of the Malaysian airliner, the European Union approved dramatically tougher economic sanctions Tuesday against Russia, including an arms embargo and restrictions on state-owned banks. President Barack Obama swiftly followed with an expansion of U.S. penalties targeting key sectors of the Russian economy."

Comment: How will Russia react? Do they think Putin will back down? Stay tuned.

Friday, July 18, 2014

Rumors of War - Persia

My Way News - Iran nuke talks to be extended for 4 months
My Way News reports: "Iran and six world powers failed Saturday to meet their target date for cutting a nuclear deal but agreed to extend the talks until Nov. 24 in a bid to overcome stubborn differences over the size and capacity of activities by Tehran that could be used to make nuclear arms."

Persecution

My Way News - In Iraq, Syria, militants try to govern as a state
My Way News reports: "A Christian woman in Mosul said that on Thursday afternoon, militants called on Christians through loudspeakers to convert to Islam, pay tax or face death by sword and gave a Saturday afternoon deadline. The woman who identified herself as Um Karam said she left Mosul with her family Friday to stay with relatives in a nearby Christian town protected by Kurdish security forces. The patriarch of Iraq's Chaldean Catholic Church, Louis Sako, criticized the conditions imposed on Christians in Mosul."

Comment: Please join me in praying for the persecuted church in Iraq.

Wars and Rumors of War - Jerusalem Security

My Way News - Israel pushes in Gaza, expanding ground operation
My Way News reports: "Israeli troops pushed deeper into Gaza on Friday in a ground offensive that officials said could last up to two weeks as the prime minister ordered the military to prepare for a 'significantly' wider campaign. [...] Officially, the goal remains to destroy a network of tunnels militants use to infiltrate Israel and attack civilians. [...] Frustrated by Hamas' refusal to accept an Egyptian-brokered truce agreement and the failure of a 10-day campaign of more than 2,000 airstrikes to halt relentless rocket fire on Israeli cities, Israel launched a ground offensive it had previously been reticent to undertake to further weaken Hamas militarily."

Death of the Oceans

My Way News - Obama opens Eastern Seaboard to oil exploration
My Way News reports: "The Obama administration is reopening the Eastern Seaboard to offshore oil and gas exploration, approving seismic surveys using sonic cannons that can pinpoint energy deposits deep beneath the ocean floor. [...] The sonic cannons are often fired continually for weeks or months, and multiple mapping projects may operate simultaneously. [...] underwater microphones have picked up blasts from these sonic cannons over distances of thousands of miles, and the constant banging — amplified in water by orders of magnitude — will be impossible for many species to avoid."

Comment: Once again humans demonstrate how badly we mismanage the planet that God has given us.

Thursday, July 17, 2014

Wars & Rumors of War

My Way News - Israel invades Gaza after Hamas rejects truce
My Way News reports: "The heavy thud of tank shells, often just seconds apart, echoed across the Gaza Strip early Friday as thousands of Israeli soldiers launched a ground invasion, escalating a 10-day campaign of heavy air bombardments to try to destroy Hamas' rocket-firing abilities and the tunnels militants use to infiltrate Israel. [...] Israel launched the offensive late Thursday after becoming increasingly exasperated with unrelenting rocket fire from Gaza on its cities, especially following Hamas' rejection of an Egyptian cease-fire plan earlier in the week. Palestinian militants have fired more than 1,500 rockets at Israeli cities since fighting began. [...] Israeli public opinion appears to be nearly at a breaking point over the rockets."

Wednesday, July 16, 2014

Earthquakes

My Way News - Earthquakes cause minor damage in central Oklahoma
My Way News reports: "Two early morning earthquakes rattled residents in central Oklahoma on Tuesday and caused minor damage at local businesses. The U.S. Geological Survey reports that a magnitude 3.8 earthquake struck about 2:20 a.m. 3 miles northeast of Harrah, a city of about 5,000 people about 20 miles east of Oklahoma City. That was followed nearly two hours later by a magnitude 3.9 temblor 5 miles northeast of the community."

My Way News - Answers on link between injection wells and quakes
My Way News reports: "States where hydraulic fracturing is taking place have seen a surge in earthquake activity, raising suspicions that the unconventional drilling method could be to blame, especially the wells where the industry disposes of its wastewater."

Rumors of War - King of the North

My Way News - US, Europe escalate economic sanctions on Russia
My Way News reports: "Struggling to defuse the persistent crisis in Ukraine, both the U.S. and European Union imposed new economic sanctions on Russia Wednesday, with President Barack Obama declaring that Russian leaders must see that their actions supporting rebels "have consequences." Though the American and European sanctions were coordinated, they nonetheless exposed fissures in what the West has tried to project as a united front in its monthslong effort to isolate Russian President Vladimir Putin."

Rumors of War - Jerusalem Security

My Way News - Israel, Hamas agree to Gaza 'humanitarian' pause
My Way News reports: "Israel and Hamas agreed to a five-hour U.N. brokered 'humanitarian' pause to their 9-day-long battle, offering the most encouraging sign yet that the fierce fighting could come to an end. [...] Israel previously had halted its fire for six hours Tuesday after Egypt put forward a cease-fire proposal that unraveled. Abu Zuhri said Wednesday his group had formally rejected the plan, bemoaning what he called little support from the Arab world."

Tuesday, July 15, 2014

Rumors of War - Security of Jerusalem

My Way News - Israel: Hamas to pay price for its 'no' to truce
My Way News reports: "Israel resumed its heavy bombardment of Gaza on Tuesday and warned that Hamas 'would pay the price' after the Islamic militant group rejected an Egyptian truce plan and instead unleashed more rocket barrages at the Jewish state. Late Tuesday, the military urged tens of thousands of residents of northern and eastern Gaza to leave their homes by Wednesday morning, presumable a prelude to air strikes there."

Monday, July 14, 2014

Rumors of War - Jerusalem Security

My Way News - Egypt proposes cease-fire between Israel, Hamas
My Way News reports: "Egypt presented a cease-fire plan Monday to end a week of heavy fighting between Israel and Hamas militants in the Gaza Strip that has left at least 185 people dead, and both sides said they were seriously considering the proposal. The late-night offer by Egypt marked the first sign of a breakthrough in international efforts to end the conflict."

Saturday, July 12, 2014

Signs in the Moon

My Way News - Heads up! Supermoon is here
My Way News reports: "Because our celestial neighbor is relatively close to Earth, these full moons will appear to be unusually large. That distance varies because the moon follows an elliptical orbit. When it's close and full, it appears bigger and brighter than normal, although the difference can be hard to detect. [...] Two other supermoons will come later this summer on Aug. 10 and Sept. 9."

Friday, July 11, 2014

Earthquakes

My Way News - Strong quake hits Japan, triggering small tsunami
My Way News reports: "A strong earthquake hit Japan's northern coast Saturday near the nuclear power plant crippled in the 2011 tsunami. At least one person was injured and a small tsunami was triggered, but no damage was reported."

Rumors of War - Jerusalem Security

My Way News - As deaths rise, no end seen to Israeli offensive
My Way News reports: "Asserting it has broad international support for a fierce military offensive in the Gaza Strip, Israel is showing no signs of ending the operation, vowing to press on until there is a halt to rocket attacks from the seaside territory. But a mounting Palestinian civilian death toll is beginning to draw international criticism and could quickly put the brakes on the campaign."

Comment: The world hates it when Israel defends itself. I would suggest an alternative headline to this news report could be: As deaths rise, no end seen to Palestinian rockets.

This alternative headline would be true, just with a different focus, but that slight change reveals the bias in the original headline. Why do you suppose they would choose to put the emphasis on Israel perpetrating an offensive?

I think the problem is much of the Western media have either been fooled into or been willing participants in creating the false narrative of Palestinian victimhood. Sometimes I want to confront our media and ask them if they realize that Israel is an ally of the United States. Do they realize that the Palestinians are not? That the Palestinians celebrated 9/11? I remember that, why don't they? The media seem to act as if it's the Palestinians we should be rooting for. It's just a strange phenomenon to observe. It's not political correctness really, it's something far more sinister, because the truth is so very obvious it takes much more effort to deny it. Why would they want to support the Palestinians? Whose interests are served? It can't be for ratings or ad sales. And it can't be in the name of peace, because Hamas (the "armed wing" of the Palestinian political establishment based in Gaza) is opposed to the peace talks and advocates the destruction of Israel), so encouraging Israel to crack down on (or destroy) Hamas would promote the prospects of a peace settlement with Fatah (Hamas' traditional rival), the group Israel has been negotiating with all along. This offensive makes sense. Why Western media can't see that is mystifying. I think there is something more to it, something spiritual.

Thursday, July 10, 2014

Rumors of War - Jerusalem Security - Covenant With Many

My Way News - Obama offers US help negotiating Israel cease-fire
My Way News reports: "President Barack Obama offered the help of the United States on Thursday in negotiating a cease-fire to end escalating violence between Israel and Hamas, as world leaders warned of an urgent need to avoid another Israeli-Palestinian war that could engulf the fragile region. [...] The offer to help bring about a cease-fire could draw the U.S. deeper into a conflict the U.S. fears could destabilize the region, but precisely what role the U.S. would play remains unclear."

My Way News - Israel's 'Iron Dome' changes the face of battle
My Way News reports: "Israel's 'Iron Dome' defense system has emerged as a game-changer in the current round of violence with Hamas militants in the Gaza Strip, shooting down dozens of incoming rockets and being credited with preventing numerous civilian casualties. By shooting down more than 90 percent of its targets, the system is ensuring Israel's decisive technological edge that has helped it operate virtually unhindered in Gaza."

Pestilence

My Way News - WHO: Basic hygiene can help prevent MERS spread
My Way News reports: "A World Health Organization official on Thursday urged millions of Muslims making the pilgrimage to Mecca, Saudi Arabia, to exercise basic hygiene as mass gatherings pose risks of spreading the Middle East respiratory syndrome. The U.N. agency has recorded 827 cases of MERS and 287 deaths, mostly in Saudi Arabia. The virus is believed primarily acquired through contact with camels and spread among humans through body fluids and droplets."

Wednesday, July 09, 2014

Rumors of War - Jerusalem Security

My Way News - Israeli city in rocket range from both directions
My Way News reports: "Israeli experts have long warned that — thanks to ample Iranian missile shipments — the entire country was within rocket range of its adversaries. Israel on Tuesday began a massive air campaign against Gaza to try to eliminate that scenario."

Comment: This is a very sad and dangerous development. While many misguided Western media outlets continue to portray the Palestinians as helpless victims, please join me in praying for the people of Israel, the targets of those Palestinian rockets.

Tuesday, July 08, 2014

Pestilence

My Way News - UN: 50 new Ebola cases in 2 African nations
My Way News reports: "The U.N. health agency says there have been 50 new Ebola cases in Sierra Leone and Liberia since last week as the disease, among the deadliest in the world, keeps spreading in West Africa. The World Health Organization says 34 new cases were reported by Sierra Leone and 16 by Liberia since July 3. [...]  The agency says as of Sunday, there have been 844 cases of Ebola in the three countries, including 518 deaths."

Rumors of War - Security of Jerusalem

My Way News - Rockets hit Israeli heartland as offensive begins
My Way News reports: "Israel on Tuesday launched its largest offensive in the Gaza Strip in nearly two years, carrying out a blistering aerial assault on scores of targets and killing 25 people in what officials called an open-ended operation aimed at ending weeks of heavy rocket fire. As Gaza militants unleashed salvos on cities including Jerusalem and Tel Aviv, Israel mobilized forces along the border for a possible ground invasion."

Comment: Praying for Israel.

Monday, July 07, 2014

Jerusalem Security

My Way News - Israeli army launches offensive on Gaza Strip
My Way News reports: "The Israeli army said it launched an offensive operation early Tuesday against the Gaza Strip to quell rocket attacks, and a Palestinian official said Israeli airstrikes injured at least nine Palestinians. The Israeli airstrikes come after Gaza militants fired dozens of rockets at southern Israel on Monday, setting off air raid sirens and forcing hundreds of thousands of Israelis to stay indoors."

Thursday, July 03, 2014

Jerusalem Security - Rumors of War

My Way News - Israel rushes forces to southern border with Gaza
My Way News reports: "The Israeli military rushed additional forces to its southern border with the Gaza Strip on Thursday, vowing to halt a growing wave of rocket fire from the Palestinian territory, while new clashes erupted in east Jerusalem in response to the death of an Arab boy who Palestinians say was killed by Israeli extremists. Israel said the show of force on the Gaza border was a defense measure. But persistent rocket fire raised the prospects of a tough Israeli response, with the military saying more than 40 rockets or mortar shells were fired from Hamas-controlled Gaza on Thursday."

Wednesday, July 02, 2014

Kings of the East

My Way News - China, South Korea summit to deepen economic ties
My Way News reports: "The economic relationship between China and South Korea looks like it couldn't be better as Xi Jinping arrives in Seoul Thursday for his first presidential visit to the Korean Peninsula. [...] The South Korean presidential office said the two leaders will discuss the opening of a market to directly exchange the won and the yuan. South Korean policymakers have said they would like to make Asia's fourth-largest economy a major center for trading the yuan, vowing to complete infrastructure for such a market by the end of this year. That strikes a chord with Beijing which is inching toward making the yuan an international currency and an alternative to the dollar."

Rumors of War - Nations in Distress - King of the North

My Way News - Putin under pressure as fighting rages in Ukraine:
My Way News reports: "When the mutiny in the east began in mid-April following Russia's annexation of Crimea, some Kremlin strategists might have thought that they could keep the tensions on a slow burner to wring concessions from the Kiev government. But as the battles intensified and the death toll climbed into the hundreds, the anger it has generated is making it increasingly difficult to de-escalate the crisis. Hawkish members of Putin's inner circle have become increasingly demanding, and there are increasing signs of discord at the top of the Russian leadership. Even if Putin did try to soften his stance, it is far from clear that his lieutenants would carry out his orders. [...] Putin has become a hostage of his own game of raising the stakes and fiery rhetoric, and it could be hard for him to soften his posture toward Ukraine without eroding his power."

Jerusalem Security

My Way News - Palestinians say Israeli extremists killed teen
My Way News reports: "The Palestinians accused Israeli extremists of abducting and killing an Arab teenager and burning his body Wednesday, sparking hours of clashes in east Jerusalem and drawing charges that the youth was murdered to avenge the killings of three kidnapped Israeli teens. [...] Israel captured [won] east Jerusalem, home to virtually all of the city's Palestinian population, in the 1967 Mideast war and annexed the area. The Palestinians seek the area as the capital of a future state, and tensions in the volatile eastern sector often boil over into violence."

Tuesday, July 01, 2014

Pestilence

My Way News - Ebola deaths in West Africa rise to 467
My Way News reports: "The World Health Organization says West Africa's Ebola outbreak has claimed 467 lives as the death toll continues to climb in all three countries reporting cases. In a statement Tuesday it said 759 people have been infected in Guinea, Liberia and Sierra Leone."

War - Nations in Distress

My Way News - Pro-Russian rebels capture police HQ in Ukraine
My Way News reports: "The Interior Ministry headquarters in eastern Ukraine's largest city fell to pro-Russia separatists Tuesday after a five-hour gunbattle that erupted hours after the Ukrainian president ended a cease-fire.[...] In Tuesday's clashes, rebels fought for more ground, and badly trained and disorganized government troops seemed incapable of crushing the mutiny. [...] In Brussels, the European Union's 28 governments decided Tuesday they were not ready to hit Russia with a new round of sanctions over Ukraine and put off a decision until Monday, according to an EU official."

Jerusalem Security

My Way News - As Israel buries teens, new threats against Hamas
My Way News reports: "Israel's prime minister threatened Tuesday to take even tougher action against Hamas following an intense wave of airstrikes in the Gaza Strip, as the country buried three Israeli teens it says were kidnapped and killed by the Islamic militant group. [...] Thousands of Israelis have died in wars and violence with the country's Arab neighbors over the years, but these killings struck a nerve, largely because of the young ages of the victims and the fact that they were unarmed civilians. [...] Hamas has long encouraged its members to kidnap Israelis, believing hostages could be used to win the release of thousands of Palestinian militants held in Israeli prisons."

Comment: Praying for Israel.

War - Nations in Distress

My Way News - Militant urges Muslims to build Islamic state
My Way News reports: "In a recording posted online Tuesday, Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi declared he wants to turn the enclave his fighters have carved out in the heart of the Middle East into a magnet for militants. He also presented himself as the leader of Islam worldwide, urging Muslims everywhere to rise up against oppression."