Indonesian party seeks anti-porn bill as Ramadan gift

JAKARTA-An Indonesian Islamic party is hoping an anti-pornography bill that has been in parliament for over three years will be passed within a few weeks as a "Ramadan present" for Muslims, a newspaper report said on Friday. Lawmakers in the world's most populous Muslim nation have so far stopped short of passing the bill, which aims to shield the young from pornographic material and lewd acts, because of criticism it would threaten Indonesia's tradition of tolerance."It will be a Ramadan gift," Mahfudz Siddiq, a Prosperous Justice Party (PKS) member of parliament was quoted by the Jakarta Post newspaper as saying. He said the bill was urgently needed because of widespread moral decadence in Indonesia.The fasting month of Ramadan began on September 1 and ends with Eid-al Fitri celebrations a month later.The Jakarta Post said a parliamentary committee deliberating the bill is set to table the final draft in parliament in the next few weeks.A politician from Golkar, the main party in the ruling coalition, said the passage of the bill was inevitable, given the unwillingness of groups supporting it to seek a compromise."Unless there are widespread rallies against the bill across the country, the constellation will not change," Harry Azhar Azis was quoted as saying in the Jakarta Post.Golkar, former president Suharto's political vehicle, is a strongly secular and nationalist party.The draft of the legislation contains provisions that could jail people for kissing in public and criminalize many forms of art or traditional culture that hinge on sensuality.
To read more go to:
http://www.reuters.com/article/worldNews/idUSSP3279920080912
PS:Egypt is the larger comsumer of porn in the Middle East,followed by Syria.
As in the days of Noah...

Muslims watch a lot TV during Ramadan

Paris Muslims break Ramadan fast in soup kitchen

PARIS-It's sunset in the French capital, and hundreds of hungry people are poised to begin their meals at the sounding of a Muslim call to prayer.Elsewhere in the world, the call rings forth from the minarets of mosques, but inside a tent in a gritty part of north Paris, it comes from a tinny radio speaker.For the holy month of Ramadan, a soup kitchen has opened outside Cite Edmond Michelet, a tough public housing project in Paris' notorious 19th arrondissement. On the menu is a traditional dinner, starting with yoghurt and dates."A lot of people can't make ends meet nowadays, but they'd never tell you," said Ali Hasni, 45, a volunteer for the non-profit group "Une Chorba Pour Tous" (Soup for Everyone).France is home to Europe's largest Muslim minority and debate about the integration of these 5 million people into an avowedly secular society is a recurring theme in a political arena where only a handful of Muslims hold government posts.The tower blocks surrounding the tent are a common sight in the French urban landscape.Often run down, the forbidding high-rises are home to many Muslim immigrants who came here to work in the construction boom of the 1960s and 70s, as well as immigrants from other faiths.Many tower blocks were on the frontline in 2005 when mainly immigrant youths rioted across France after two teenagers were accidentally electrocuted in a power sub-station after a run-in with police. Violence has flared sporadically in many such neighborhoods since then. http://www.reuters.com/article/worldNews/idUSL941743220080912
As in the days of Noah....

PESTILENCE WATCH:IRAQ: Cholera claims five lives

Medvedev condemns Georgia NATO membership promise

MOSCOW-Russian President Dmitry Medvedev said on Friday NATO's promise to extend membership to Georgia was unjust, humiliating and intolerable to Moscow.Briefing Russia experts, Medvedev compared Georgia's attack last month on its rebel, pro-Russian enclave of South Ossetia to the al Qaeda attacks on the United States which killed nearly 3,000 people on September 11, 2001.He said Russia-which responded by sending troops and tanks deep into Georgia and routing it in a five-day war-would have acted just as decisively if the former Soviet republic had already had a roadmap for NATO membership instead of just a promise of future entry."NATO won't become stronger this way, global tensions won't be reduced. What if Georgia had a NATO membership action plan? I would not wait for a second in making the decision I made at that time. What would the consequences be? They could be much worse," he said. NATO's treaty provides for member states mutually to defend each other against aggression. The membership action plan does not provide the same protection, but members may nevertheless feel obliged to intervene.Georgian membership would be a destabilizing factor, both for the Western military alliance and for the volatile Caucasus region, Medvedev said in an impassioned presentation to the annual meeting of the Valdai Club, which groups journalists and Russia analysts."The situation is not fair to Russia, it is humiliating to Russia and we are not going to tolerate this any longer."

To read more go to:

http://www.reuters.com/article/worldNews/idUSLC66333720080912

As in the days of Noah...

Iranian foreign minister in Russia for talks

MOSCOW-Iranian Foreign Minister Manouchehr Mottaki is to meet his Russian counterpart for talks on Friday, the Russian Foreign Ministry said.Mottaki will hold discussions with Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov, a Foreign Ministry official told Reuters, without giving further details.Russia, a permanent member of the United Nations Security Council, has played a prominent role in negotiations with Tehran over its nuclear ambitions.

http://www.reuters.com/article/worldNews/idUSLC51716820080912

As in the days of Noah....

Putin put it straight

Russia's Medvedev: armed action on Iran unacceptable

MOSCOW-A military solution to the standoff over Iran's nuclear ambitions is unacceptable and there is no need at the moment for new sanctions, Russian President Dmitry Medvedev said on Friday.But Medvedev said Russia continued to support a diplomatic drive led by European Union foreign policy chief Javier Solana to offer Tehran a package of incentives in return for it reining in some of its nuclear activities.Western states are anxious that a rift between Moscow and the West over Russia's intervention in Georgia may shatter the fragile international coalition that has been applying pressure on Iran over its nuclear program."We should not take any unilateral steps. It is not acceptable to opt for a military scenario. It would be dangerous," Medvedev told the Valdai Club, a panel of journalists and academics who specialize in Russia. "The key is that negotiations be pursued... They have been quite positive," Medvedev said. "We should not adopt any additional sanctions now."Iranian Foreign Minister Manouchehr Mottaki was in Moscow on Monday for talks with his Russian counterpart Sergei Lavrov, the two countries' first high-level contact since Russia angered the West last month by sending troops and tanks into Georgia.Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin has said Western states will have to tackle Iran without Russia's help if they withdraw cooperation in other areas as punishment for the Kremlin's actions in Georgia.The United States and other Western powers say they suspect Iran is seeking a nuclear bomb under cover of its civilian nuclear program. http://www.reuters.com/article/worldNews/idUSLC71319120080912
As in the days of Noah...

No base in Venezuela for Russian bombers

U.S. plans to expel Venezuelan envoy, official says

WASHINGTON-The United States will expel Venezuela's ambassador in Washington to retaliate for the oil-exporting Latin American nation's decision to oust the U.S. envoy in Caracas, a U.S. official said on Friday."The plan is to kick him out," said the U.S. official, who asked not to be identified.In an escalating diplomatic battle between Washington and Latin America's left-wing leaders, Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez expelled the American ambassador on Thursday, a day after Bolivia asked the U.S. envoy in La Paz to leave.Bolivia accused the U.S. ambassador of instigating violent protests in the poor Andean nation, a charge the U.S. State Department dismissed as baseless.It was unclear whether the United States would succeed in expelling the Venezuelan ambassador. Chavez on Thursday said he was recalling the envoy, who could be pulled out before being formally notified that he was "persona non grata" by the U.S. State Department.Chavez on Thursday repeated a threat he has often made to cut off Venezuela's oil supply to the United States, its biggest customer. Venezuela has some of the largest reserves outside the Middle East and, despite Chavez's clashes with the Bush administration, is a major supplier to the United States.

http://www.reuters.com/article/worldNews/idUSWAT01003420080912

As in the days of Noah...

Venezuela Expells US Ambassador and Other Brain Ramblings

First of all I would like to apologize to all of you that have watched the previous video in spanish and were able to understand what this THUG(Chavez)said.His choice of words in the lowest Ive heard of a head of state in spanish in a long time....and believed me...Ive known dictators and looney tunes "coup heads of state" in South America.He basically curses the US to his teeth--it is shocking...Pretty much like infamous Rev Wright :"God----America...that is in the Bible" line....I wonder If may be,just may be Wright would like to move to a place like Chavez' Venezuela...after all they speak the same language....And I bet you Chavez then would attend church gladly!!!!Anyways...I decided to post the video for two reasons:
--To show all the low quality of the thug that is running the show in Venezuela;who has total disregard for their own people--of course unless they are "companeros"(COMRADES)
--To portray how low and how left South America is rapidly turning.Most of the presidents in power right now have ties with narcos and/or are so corrupt and leftist that their only one goal is to CHANGE their countries into places like China or Russia.They dont care about the people...We can add North Korea too,to the mix....really wonderful....

I can see Putin's Hand behind all these moves in Venezuela.Especially after the Georgia-South Ossetia situation.Medvedev won't shut up and keeps running his mouth up and down and trying to turn the Georgia situation into a russian soup opera,with comments today such as: "NATO's promise to extend membership to Georgia was unjust, humiliating and intolerable to Moscow."as Lavrov is spending more time on a plane that at home,trying to either buy alliances with other countries or reaffirm them...or just bully them.

Why sending a bomber to Venezuela now?Why did Morales expelled the Us ambassador now?Why did Venezuela the same and also insulted us?(which by the way is normal in Chavez low IQ and vulgar demeanor-proper of an angry communist).I know Putin and Medvedev keep stirring the situation and lie to their teeth when he (Putin)says-for example- that: "Today there are no ideological contradictions. There is no basis for a Cold War," Putin told a group of reporters at a three-hour lunch briefing at his retreat in the Black Sea resort of Sochi."There is no basis for mutual animosity ... Russia has no imperialist ambitions,"he said. Well is it a surprise?I dont think so....it comes from the Head of the KGB...!These guys are professional LIERS and MEAN BUSSINESS:look to what happened to Magomed Yevloyev....When Putin is bothered or in danger by somebody...he just...have them...KILLED.....!!!Russia is using NUTJOB CHAVEZ to put pressure on the US in any way possible.Now Chavez came threatening to cut oil exports to the US.We need to be FOREIGN OIL INDEPENDANT HERE NOW in the US....while democrat controlled congress leaded by looney Pelosi keeps telling us that DRILLING WON'T WORK...It is a known fact that Pelosi lives in an alternate reality and that democrats can't run anything LESS the Congress.She should be institutionalized ASAP...Im serious...

In Bolivia Morales--that started showing signs of Chavez's paranoid syndrome--decided to kick the Us ambassador after acussing him--us the US--of backing protests on him....SIGH....See... the problem with these blind dictators is that they disregard their own people as smart enough to realize that their countries are getting socialized,that their individual liberties are taken from them and that ultimately THEY DONT LIKE IT!!!!!that's why they PROTEST!!!!Bolivians dont deserve this.Bolivian people are noble and suffered.And they have this unqualified Morales to RULE?ANd he is not qualified because he is an indian--not at all...he is just a puppet.Doesn't have what it takes to be the president of the Bolivian people.Period.

Proven fact is that since looney tunes Chavez came to power all hell has broken loose in South America and for some reason he thinks he is he ONE the UNIFIER of South America against big satan.....that should be...us--THE US.He wants to bring communist utopia to South America...and sad to say...he is advancing his agenda,to the dismay of democaracy and freedom lovers in the continent.

I think as much as liberalism is a mental disorder--communism is the psychotic manifestation of that disorder.Whenever men put themselves in the throne of their hearts everything goes down...Whenever men reject GOD...then everything thing goes downhill.The chaos many nations are in is just because they have gone that path of simply FORGETTING GOD...As it is written:

"The LORD is known by the judgment which he executeth: the wicked is snared in the work of his own hands. Higgaion. Selah.
The wicked shall be turned into hell, and all the nations that forget God..."(Psalm 9:16-17)

Listen....you dont have to agree with me or the Bible.you have a free will given by God to do and be and choose whatever you want...BUT IF you want an explanation as to why things are the way they are in many nations in these last days,I can give you a biblical explanation--as a christian and is right there in Psalm 9:17...Yes I think we are walking through Ezekeil chapter 8...BUT as the Lord says this is just:"....the beginning of sorrows--the time is not yet"So while we sojourn down here is going to be very interesting to watch what unfolds in the political world arena...

One last word:IF you are saved,washed by His blood,born again of the Spirit and walking with Him daily and obedient to Him--take courage!!!!You are not alone...THere are millions of us right now sojourning with you till that day!!!!!

Thank you for listening to my brain rumblings....

As in the days of Noah.....

U.S official expelled from Venezuela

U.S. sanctions Chavez aides in growing crisis

CARACAS/WASHINGTON-The United States imposed sanctions on aides to Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez on Friday in retaliation for his expulsion of the U.S. ambassador, escalating a crisis that raises the specter of a possible oil supply cutoff.The diplomatic moves and Chavez's threat to cut off oil shipments to the United States sent the OPEC nation's debt prices tumbling and plunged relations between the superpower and one of its top energy suppliers to their lowest point in years. Chavez warned on Thursday that if he stops selling oil to the United States, world crude prices would immediately double to above $200 a barrel.The socialist leader leads a growing bloc of left-wing leaders in Latin America and has diversified Venezuela's oil customers in recent years, particularly increasing supply to China.He said his decision to expel the U.S. ambassador on Thursday in an expletive-laden tirade against "Yankees," was made to support Bolivia's leftist president who is facing violent protests against his government that he blames on interference by Washington. Washington struck back on Friday with sanctions against two Chavez aides, including Venezuela's former Interior Minister Ramon Rodriguez, for allegedly aiding Marxist guerrillas in Colombia.It is also possible Chavez knew sanctions were coming against his officials and wanted to take the offensive. Rodriguez resigned unexpectedly last week, and Chavez often uses a strategy that his best form of defense is attack when he is assailed.Washington was also preparing on Friday to eject Venezuela's top diplomat in the United States, a U.S. official said, although Chavez tried to preempt that move by telling him to pack his bags and come home a day earlier.
To read more go to:
http://www.reuters.com/article/topNews/idUSN1151209320080912
As in the days of Noah....

3-way Diplomatic Crisis Brews in South America

Venezuela insults United States, expels ambassador

CARACAS-Venezuela's President Hugo Chavez has thrust the OPEC nation into its worst diplomatic crisis for years by expelling the U.S. ambassador in a growing feud between Washington and Latin America's leftist leaders. Chavez, who calls ex-Cuban leader Fidel Castro his mentor, also on Thursday repeated a threat he has made often to cut off Venezuela's oil supply to the United States."Go to hell, s--- Yankees, we are a dignified people, go to hell a hundred times,"(1) Chavez shouted at a political rally to thousands of roaring supporters dressed in red.Chavez is the most radical of a growing number of leftist governments in Latin America that to a greater or lesser degree oppose Washington's traditional dominance in Latin America.Venezuela has some of the largest oil reserves outside the Middle East and despite Chavez's clashes with the Bush administration, is a major supplier to the United States, which is its biggest customer.Chavez said Thursday's move was made in support of his close ally President Evo Morales of Bolivia, where violent anti-government protests have killed eight people."The Yankee ambassador in Caracas has got 72 hours to get out of Venezuela, in solidarity with Bolivia," Chavez said.Morales, a leftist Aymara Indian, this week expelled the U.S. ambassador in the poor Andean nation after accusing him of instigating the protests.Chavez said Washington was behind an alleged plot by retired military officers to kill him and said it had plans to bomb him from planes marked as Venezuelan."If there was an aggression against Venezuela there would be no oil for the people or for the government of the United States," the former paratrooper said.The United States has rejected the allegations by Chavez and Morales. It retaliated against Bolivia on Thursday by ordering its ambassador to Washington to leave. Chavez told his own ambassador to the United States to come home before he was thrown out.The U.S. State Department said it had not been officially notified of the expulsion.Chavez was briefly ousted in a 2002 coup that was initially welcomed by Washington. Even after the coup Chavez did not go so far as to expel the U.S. ambassador.In a busy week even for the outspoken socialist, Chavez allowed two Russian long-range bombers to land in Venezuela and played audio tapes live on television that appeared to show military officers conspiring against him.He also cut U.S. flights to Venezuela and warned he would support "armed movements" to back Morales in the event of a coup against him.Chavez frequently calls the United States an aggressive empire and has aligned himself with Russia. Moscow is also sending warships for naval exercises later this year in its first such move since the Cold War.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20080912/ts_nm/venezuela_chavez_dc

PS:(1)This is what you get when you deal with thugs like Chavez.I feel for the people of Venezuela--really...He's gonna turn into another Mugabe IF he stays long enough on the "throne"....

As in the days of Noah...

PESTILENCE WATCH:Health officials warn against drug-resistant strain Of 'Super Lice'...

NEW YORK-If there is one childhood rite of passage that withstands the test of time, it's head lice. Even though the bugs carry no diseases and don't cause any actual harm, they're universally loathed. And now, they're becoming more difficult to treat. As school starts, health officials and parents are bracing for this year's bout with what some are calling "super lice." Some of the bugs have become drug-resistant, and no longer respond to common anti-lice medications. About the size of a sesame seed, head lice are six-legged parasites that live on the human head. And nits – eggs that females glue onto hairs near the scalp – can be difficult to spot. "The nits are usually sort of like a clear-looking, light color, tannish," says Dr. Kenneth Gottesman of St. Luke's-Roosevelt Hospital. The itchy condition is most common in daycare centers and nursery schools because of the close interaction among children. The tiny bugs can easily jump from head to head. For now, doctors are still recommending traditional treatments because not all lice are resistant. "If one person in the family is diagnosed with lice it's very important to make sure every family member's checked," says Gottesman. Home remedies like olive oil and mayonnaise applied to the scalp have not been scientifically proven, but probably won't hurt. Remember, don't share combs, brushes, or hats. Also, wash bedding and clothing daily during treatment. There are some new and promising treatments awaiting approval by the Food and Drug Administration in the coming months. They're thought to be effective against the "Super Lice" and work in just 30 minutes rather than the usual 12 hours.
To watch the video click on the URL below:
http://wcbstv.com/video/?id=117348@wcbs.dayport.com
http://wcbstv.com/health/super.lice.children.2.815400.html
As in the days of Noah...

Weather Service Warns of 'Certain Death' in Face of Ike

Ike Churns Closer to Texas Coast

IKE:The wall of water being pushed through the Gulf Mexico by Hurricane Ike is already flooding Galveston,Texas.

The AccuWeather.com Hurricane Center reports that Ike today will flood neighborhoods and entire coastal communities along the Texas Gulf Coast. The storm surge will pose the biggest threat to life and property as Ike barrels toward landfall early on Saturday. The massive Category 2 hurricane with maximum sustained winds of 105 mph covers almost all of the Gulf and is larger than Hurricane Katrina before it made landfall in 2005. Ike is on a collision course for the upper Texas coast, with landfall forecast for early on Saturday morning between Sargent and Galveston. If Ike maintains that track, Galveston and Houston will be in the potentially lethal northeast quadrant of the storm. While the Galveston Bay area faces the potential of widespread devastation, Ike will spread destructive wind, rain and a storm surge more than 200 miles from its center. Hurricane and tropical storm warnings cover most of the Texas coast and extend to the border of Mississippi and Alabama. Ike will strengthen into a dangerous Category 3 hurricane over the warm waters of the Gulf of Mexico today. Maximum sustained winds will be at least 111 mph, with higher gusts, around the wall of Ike's eye at the time of landfall. The storm surge has already reached the Texas coast. A massive surge as high as 20 feet above normal tides will slam the coast, pushed by hurricane strength winds. The surge will threaten the seawall on Galveston Island, which is as high as 17 feet. The western end of the island is unprotected by the seawall, and there are several spots in the city where the top of the seawall is much less than 17 feet high. The surge will push through Galveston Bay as far north as the Houston Ship Canal, flooding the low-lying areas between Galveston and Houston.

Winds will continue to intensify through Saturday, gusting over 100 mph in Houston, Galveston and surrounding areas. Mobile homes will be demolished, most homes will suffer major damage and even homes built to withstand hurricanes could be damaged. The skyline of Houston will be blasted by hurricane strength winds, which will cause significant glass damage. Seven out of the 10 tallest buildings in Texas are in downtown Houston. The nation's fourth largest city is home to 7 of the 10 tallest buildings in Texas and 28 buildings that stand over 500 feet tall. Torrential rain and tornadoes will add to the devastation from the upper Texas coast to the Mississippi Valley. As much as a foot of rain will spark dangerous flooding and flash flooding across Texas as Ike moves to the north after landfall. More than one million people have evacuated the Texas Gulf Coast, including all of Galveston and Matagorda counties.

To read more go to:

http://www.accuweather.com/news-top-headline.asp?partner=accuweather&traveler=0&date=2008-09-12_08:04

As in the days of Noah...

Ike's projected path

Hurricane Ike threatens Texas with wall of water

GALVESTON, Texas-Hurricane Ike moved on Friday within 24 hours of striking the densely populated Texas coast near Houston with a possible 20-foot (6-meter) wall of water in what may be the worst storm to hit Texas in nearly 50 years.Ike was a Category 2 storm with 105 mph (168 kph) winds and likely will come ashore late on Friday or early on Saturday as a dangerous Category 3 storm on the five-step intensity scale with winds of more than 111 mph (178 kph), the National Hurricane Center said.The National Weather Service warned that persons not heeding evacuation orders "may face certain death" and many homes of average construction on the coast will be destroyed.Hundreds of thousands fled the island city of Galveston and low-lying counties under mandatory evacuation orders and authorities urged holdouts to move before Ike's winds started to make car travel dangerous."If you think you want to ride out the storm, and you're looking at a 20-foot wall of water coming at you, you better think again," said Houston Mayor Bill White, whose sprawling city of 2 million encompasses low areas in extreme danger.In Galveston-site of a 1900 hurricane that was the deadliest weather disaster in U.S. history-residents nervously eyed the surf pounding the sea wall and splashing over the coast road early Friday."I've never seen it like that before. I'm scared, I'm leaving," said motel manager Roy Patel. He had boarded up the office of the Economy Motel on the sea front and was headed out to the mainland by car.In central Houston, the administrative hub of the nation's oil industry around 50 miles inland from Galveston, businesses closed and boarded up windows Thursday night in preparation for possible hurricane-force winds and flooding. But officials said most residents should "shelter in place" since the city is some 50 feet above sea level.
To read more go to:
http://www.reuters.com/article/newsOne/idUSN9645380320080912
As in the days of Noah...

Chertoff: Ike 'A Very Large and Dangerous Storm'

Ike's Size Will Cause Extra Large Storm Surge

HOUSTON-Hurricane Ike's gargantuan size-not its strength-will likely push an extra large storm surge inland in a region already prone to it, experts said Thursday.Ike's giant girth means more water piling up on Texas and Louisiana coastal areas for a longer time, topped with bigger waves. So storm surge-the prime killer in hurricanes-will be far worse than a typical storm of Ike's strength, the National Hurricane Center said.And because coastal waters in Texas and Louisiana are so shallow, storm surge is usually larger there than in other regions, according to storm experts. A 1900 hurricane following a similar track to Ike inundated Galveston Island, killing at least 8,000 people-America's deadliest storm."It's a good recipe for surge," said Benton McGee, supervisory hydrologist at the U.S. Geological Survey's storm surge center in Ruston, La. "We're already seeing water being piled up in the Gulf. On top of that you're going to have water forced into the bays along the coast."The National Hurricane Center is forecasting a 20-foot surge-a rapid rising of water inundating areas and moving inland-for a large swath of Texas and the Louisiana coasts. Above that, the center predicts "large and dangerous battering waves." Waves could be 50 feet tall, said hurricane center spokesman and meteorologist Dennis Feltgen.Some computer models have waves topping out at 70 feet, but the waves usually break well before hitting shore, so the maximum usually doesn't get quite that high."It's going to do tremendous damage over a large area even if its doesn't strengthen anymore," predicted former hurricane center director Max Mayfield.That's directly due to Ike's size. Experts are trying to figure out when they've seen a storm this wide. Ike's tropical storm force winds stretch for 510 miles, and weather radar from Galveston to Key West can see its outer bands. That's about 70 percent larger than an average hurricane."Because of the very large expanse of hurricane force winds, Ike will create a storm surge well in excess of what would normally be associated with a storm of its intensity," the National Hurricane Center warned late Thursday afternoon.Areas that have a hurricane warning-Morgan City, La., to Baffin Bay, Texas-can expect storm surges up to 20 feet. Areas with a tropical storm warning-Baffin Bay to Port Mansfield, Texas, and Morgan City to the Mississippi-Alabama border-can expect five to seven feet of storm surge, Feltgen said.The size and relatively slow speed means more water keeps building, pushing inland for hours after Ike hits the coast, McGee said.
To read more go to:
http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,421302,00.html
As in the days of Noah..

Ike Nears,Texas Hospitals Evacuated

Massive Wall Of Dust Swallows Valley

PHOENIX-A 50-mile long wall of dust swallowed the Valley in one of the biggest dust storms in years. A dust storm warning is in effect until 7 p.m.The dust storm developed west of the Valley late Thursday afternoon and is expected to move to the northeast through the Phoenix metro area through 7 pm.Expect reduced visibilities below 1/4 mile, first arriving across the west Valley, south Phoenix and Chandler.A dust storm warning is issued when winds have generated large areas of blowing dust or blowing sand that have substantially reduced visibilities to 1/4 mile or less, resulting in hazardous driving conditions in some areas.Be ready for a sudden drop in visibility to near zero. Use extra caution and slow down while driving, as objects on and near roadways will be seen only at close range.Refresh for more late-breaking details.
http://www.kpho.com/video/17453770/
http://www.kpho.com/news/17453592/detail.html?treets=pho&tml=pho_break&ts=T&tmi=pho_break_1_07490209112008
As in the days of Noah...

Haïti: Storm-stricken Gonaives struggles to cope

Floods in Northern Iraq kill three, wash away homes

ARBIL, Iraq-Floods killed at least three people, damaged or ruined 100 homes and washed away two bridges in a remote part of northern Iraq's Kurdistan region, the local council chief said on Thursday.The flooding late on Wednesday also left roads in the area impassable, cutting it off from aid, Abdul Wahid Gwani, chief of the affected Choman district, told Reuters.The body of a farmer and his wife and daughter were found, while another man was missing after being swept away.Several small hydroelectric generators along waterfalls in the mountainous area near the Iranian border were destroyed.The governor of the Kurdish capital Arbil, Nawzad Hadi Mawlood, told Reuters he had appealed to the region's largely autonomous government for aid."I have contacted the authorities and the Red Crescent branch in the governorate to urgently give food, blankets and cooking utensils for families affected by the floods," he said.

http://www.reuters.com/article/worldNews/idUSLB38437020080911

As in the days of Noah....

PESTILENCE WATCH:Hepatitis kills 110, infects 7,100 in Uganda: agency

KAMPALA-The death toll for highly infectious hepatitis E has risen to at least 110 people with 7,100 more infected since last year's outbreak began in northern Uganda, an aid agency said on Friday."Despite aggressive emergency interventions over the past 11 months, the outbreak has yet to be eradicated and its elimination will only be achieved with comprehensive, long-term investment in essential services," the International Rescue Committee (IRC) said."It's almost one year since the first case of Hepatitis E was reported in Kitgum District, northern Uganda: a disease that has since infected more than 7,100 people and killed at least 110," it said in a statement.Hepatitis E is similar to hepatitis A, and is usually transmitted via contaminated food."We have a situation where thousands of displaced people are returning to villages that lack sufficient sanitation, clean drinking water and basic healthcare services," IRC said.Some 2 million people fled their homes in northern Uganda and tens of thousands died in a two-decade rebellion by the Lord's Resistance Army (LRA). Since a truce between Uganda and rebels two years ago, many have begun returning home.

http://www.reuters.com/article/worldNews/idUSLB16653020080911

As in the days of Noah...

U.S.: Bolivia's expulsion of envoy was "grave error"

WASHINGTON-Bolivia's decision to expel U.S. Ambassador Philip Goldberg was a "grave error," the State Department said on Thursday, adding that U.S. aid to the South American country was under review."President (Evo) Morales' action is a grave error that has seriously damaged the bilateral relationship," State Department spokesman Sean McCormack said. He said Morales' accusations that Goldberg had instigated protests against Bolivia's government were "baseless.""We're taking a look at all aspects of the bilateral relationship," McCormack told reporters, adding that the United States would have more to say in the coming days and weeks about the repercussions of Bolivia's "unwarranted action."The United States is the largest single-country provider of development assistance to Bolivia, he said. The United States is also Bolivia's largest export market, and is the major provider of counter-narcotics assistance, he said.Morales, a close ally of Venezuela's fiery leftist leader Hugo Chavez, ordered Goldberg out of the country on Wednesday, accusing him of siding with Morales' rightists opponents in a power struggle gripping Bolivia.McCormack said the Bolivian foreign minister informed Goldberg of Morales' decision at a meeting on Wednesday. He said he expected Goldberg to leave the South American country soon."We regret that President Morales has chosen this course. It will prejudice the interests of both countries, undermine the ongoing fight against drug trafficking and will have serious regional implications," McCormack told reporters.He said Morales' move against Goldberg followed Bolivia's failure on Tuesday to address security threats to U.S. counter-narcotics operations in the Chapare region. Those threats had caused the withdrawal of U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration personnel, McCormack added.
http://www.reuters.com/article/worldNews/idUSWAT01002420080911
PS:EVO has way too much "COCA" in his Communist system....he's just a puppet and he is destroying Bolivia...
As in the days of Noah...

LAND FULL of VIOLENCE:Violence on streets of Bolivia

Venezuela's Chavez expels U.S. ambassador

CARACAS-Venezuela's President Hugo Chavez on Thursday gave the U.S. ambassador 72 hours to leave the oil-rich South American country,saying the measure was a show of support for Bolivia.Bolivian President Evo Morales expelled the U.S. ambassador from La Paz on Wednesday, accusing him of instigating violent protests in the Andean nation.The Bush administration responded by expelling Bolivia's top envoy from Washington.

http://www.reuters.com/article/worldNews/idUSN1134158720080911

As in the days of Noah..

Venezuela investigates alleged plot to kill Chavez

CARACAS-Venezuela on Thursday interrogated military officers named in recordings of an apparent plan to kill President Hugo Chavez, in what may the firmest evidence in years of a barracks plot to oust him.Ministers and legislators rallied to denounce the alleged plan with a flurry of news conferences. Chavez, a former paratrooper believed to have a tight grip on the army, talks frequently of plots against him but rarely produces evidence.During a live broadcast shown on all television stations, Chavez played audio recordings he said were of retired officers discussing their infiltration of military bases and ways to kill the president. The recordings first appeared on a Venezuelan television program late on Wednesday.On one tape, a voice ascribed to retired air force Gen. Eduardo Baez calls for a united effort to remove Chavez from the Miraflores presidential palace."If he's in (the palace), all our efforts must be there," the voice says. "When he arrives from a trip, either blow him up, capture him with airborne planes, or with troops when he arrives."Chavez was ousted briefly in a coup six years ago but massive street protests put him back in office. He is popular with soldiers for spending more on equipment, but some are dubious of his bid to bring socialism to the armed forces.He regularly accuses Washington of plotting his overthrow and this week let Russian bombers land in Venezuela as part of a drive to weaken U.S. influence in Latin America. "This is not isolated, this is part of an international context," he said of the alleged plot against him. "Behind these retired soldiers is the desperate political opposition, behind (them) is the North American empire."

http://www.reuters.com/article/worldNews/idUSN1130865520080911

As in the days of Noah...

Venezuela's Chavez attacks enemies before election

CARACAS-Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez attacked his enemies on Thursday, spicing up an election campaign with assassination plot charges, a cut in U.S. flights and a pledge to confront would-be coupsters in ally Bolivia.Chavez, whose followers face tough campaigns for local offices in November, vowed to defeat what he said were a slew of U.S.-backed efforts to oust him that showed the opposition's election desperation.Chavez, a socialist ally of Cuba and declared enemy of the Bush administration, played a taped conversation live on TV between retired military officials apparently planning to kill him in a putsch he said the United States supported.His government also ordered U.S. airlines to scale back their Venezuelan flights in retaliation for a Bush administration warning to American travelers that questioned the OPEC nation's airport security.And Chavez threatened to support armed groups in Bolivia to restore President Evo Morales to power should violent protests end up ousting his leftist ally.Morales expelled the U.S. ambassador on Wednesday, saying the envoy supported the opposition rallies. The United States responded by ejecting Bolivia's ambassador to Washington.Chavez typically seeks to fire up his majority poor political base before national votes by lashing out at foreign powers and denouncing the opposition as undemocratic coupsters who aim to rule over some of the world's largest oil reserves.He adapted his vote strategy on Thursday by launching the attacks at the start of the campaign-instead of the end.

To read more go to:

http://www.reuters.com/article/worldNews/idUSN1151209320080911

As in the days of Noah...

Russian minister in Poland, raps U.S. missile shield

WARSAW-Russia's foreign minister told Poland on Thursday a U.S. missile defence shield Warsaw has agreed to host poses a direct threat to his country's security, but said Moscow remains open to further talks.Poland has infuriated Moscow, its former communist-era overlord, by agreeing to host 10 interceptor missiles as part of the missile shield project. Washington says the shield is aimed against what it calls "rogue states" like Iran, not Russia."We cannot fail to see the risks emerging as a result of U.S. strategic forces coming closer to our borders," Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov told a joint news conference with his Polish counterpart Radoslaw Sikorski."We are certain this system in Europe can have no other target for a long time to come but Russia's strategic forces."Russia's Prime Minister Vladimir Putin warned the West on Thursday against starting an arms race in Europe by stationing a U.S. missile defence shield near Russia's borders and said there was no basis for a new Cold War.Putin also warned Poland and the Czech Republic against hosting the U.S. missile shield."Our targeting of these countries will happen as soon as these missiles are brought," Putin said."Please do not instigate an arms race in Europe. It is not needed. What should we do? Sit pretty while they deploy missiles?"But Lavrov, on his first trip to a European country since last month's Georgia crisis reignited tensions between Russia and the West, balanced his comments with a call for dialogue.

http://www.reuters.com/article/worldNews/idUSLB11689920080911

As in the days of Noah...

Russian bombers will return in days from Venezuela

MOSCOW-Two Russian long-range bombers will return to base from Venezuela in four days after a visit designed to show off Moscow's military strength and build ties with a foe of the United States.The bombers, known in the West by the NATO codename "Blackjack", are capable of carrying nuclear weapons but were not doing so during the flight to South America. They will return to Russia on September 15, Air Force commander Vladimir Drik told Interfax news agency."There were no nuclear weapons on board these planes," Drik said.The visit by the Tu-160 bombers is a sign of Russian assertiveness at a time of tension with the United States, including over the Russia-Georgia conflict and U.S. plans for a missile defence shield in eastern Europe.Residents could see the large white bombers-one emblazoned with a red star and the Russian flag, the other carrying a blue circle with a picture of a swan-standing at a Venezuelan air force base near the industrial city of Maracay.On Wednesday Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez said the planes were in the South American oil-exporting nation to strengthen military ties and counter U.S. regional influence.
JOINT EXERCISES
The bombers arrived days after Russia and Venezuela said they would conduct joint naval exercises in the Caribbean later this year involving a nuclear-powered Russian battleship.
To read more go to:
http://www.reuters.com/article/worldNews/idUSLB15968720080911
As in the days of Noah...

Russian bombers land in Venezuela

Putin warns West against starting arms race

SOCHI, Russia-Prime Minister Vladimir Putin warned the West on Thursday against starting an arms race in Europe by stationing a U.S. missile defense shield near Russia's borders and said there was no basis for a new Cold War. Putin, who has taken a robust stance on Russia's conflict with Georgia over the region of South Ossetia, blamed Washington rather than Moscow for resurrecting Soviet-style rhetoric."Today there are no ideological contradictions, there is no basis for a Cold War," Putin told a group of reporters."There is no basis for mutual animosity ... Russia has no imperialist ambitions," Putin said at a three-hour lunch briefing at his retreat in the Black Sea resort of Sochi.Russia was criticized by the United States and European governments for sending troops into Georgia last month and then recognizing the two breakaway regions of South Ossetia and Abkhazia as independent states.Some Western leaders accused Moscow of using Soviet-style tactics in dealing with its neighbor over South Ossetia. Others feared Moscow might take similar steps to reassert its influence over other countries it long dominated in the Soviet Union.Vice President Dick Cheney charged Moscow earlier this month with using intimidation and "brute force"."There is no more Soviet threat but they are trying to resurrect it," Putin said.He questioned criticism of Russia for crushing Georgia's bid to retake South Ossetia by force, which prompted concern over energy security in the region and rattled Russian markets with shares losing more than 40 percent of their value since May.
PUNCHING THE AGGRESSOR
"What did you expect us to do? Respond with a catapult? ... We punched the aggressor in the face," he said, adding that falls in the stock market were due to the global credit crisis not to Russia's intervention in Georgia.Putin, his speech peppered with strong language, has spearheaded criticism of the United States, accusing the U.S. administration of stoking the conflict to help the Republican candidate in the race for the White House.His successor, President Dmitry Medvedev, once thought to be firmly in his mentor Putin's shadow, has steered a more balanced course, setting up a diplomatic "good cop, bad cop" routine.In Sochi, Putin accused the United States of acting like "a Roman emperor", but also said Moscow would maintain relations with the next U.S. president due to be elected in November."We'll see how actively they use anti-Russian rhetoric. This is a sign of the weakness of the candidates," he said. "Whatever the result of the elections we will speak and maintain relations with the next U.S. president."Putin again warned Poland and the Czech Republic against hosting the U.S. missile shield-a contrast to a slight softening of position by Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov in Warsaw, where he said Moscow remained open to talks.Washington says the shield is aimed against what it calls "rogue states", like Iran, but Moscow fears it will pose a direct threat to Russia's security.
"Our targeting of these countries will happen as soon as these missiles are brought," Putin said.
"Please do not instigate an arms race in Europe. It is not needed. What should we do? Sit pretty while they deploy missiles?"He also said if Ukraine, a neighboring former Soviet republic, joined NATO, it "would be very detrimental".Putin showed little concern about sanctions, which had been raised by some members of the European Union, including the Baltic States.The bloc was unable to reach a consensus on whether and how best to punish its largest energy supplier, but Washington is holding out the prospect of sanctions."In the global context it is better to support one another," he said. "Risks are reciprocal. We are taking risks when we invest dozens of billions of dollars in the U.S. economy."

http://www.reuters.com/article/topNews/idUSLB25447920080911?feedType=RSS&feedName=topNews&rpc=22&sp=true

As in the days of Noah...

Sudden Jihad Syndrome in SanFran?

Apparently, a man in a small SUV ran down 14 people at twelve locations:
One person was killed and at least 14 injured when a man reportedly intentionally targeted pedestrians with his sport utility vehicle on both sides of San Francisco Bay this afternoon.
According to San Francisco police, the driver, a man from the Central Valley, was in police custody. CBS 5 reports the man has been identified as Omeed A. Popal, who has homes in Ceres and Fremont.The spree apparently began around noon in Fremont, where the driver hit an unidentified man walking along the side of the road. He was thrown off the road and pronounced dead at the scene, Fremont police said. Witnesses said the driver did not slow down.
Hugh Hewitt is collecting datapoints that this might be SJS:
Four callers have confirmed that without doubt this is a Jewish neighborhood, and that one of the victims was run over in front of the Jewish Community Center in the area....Look on the web! the JCC located at 3200 California St. Site of one of the attacks: 3250 California ST.
Wizbang has more coverage.
Yup. looks like Sudden Jihad Syndrome strikes again.
Update: You know how this would be reported if SF were in Iraq?
"Sectarian Violence Rocks San Francisco""More Muslim-Jew clashes reported near San Francisco""Police find body, 13 casualties in San Francisco"
Posted by Andy

http://www.cozikin.com/2006/08/sudden_jihad_syndrome_in_sanfr.html

As in the days of Noah...

Muslims in New York Desecrate U.S. Flag

Question: Why do they want to live in America if they hate it so much ?I find it scary that they hold so much hatred for the west. I guess this is another reason why we should never forget what today (September 11th 2008) means, and do what ever we can to make sure it can NEVER happen again.

http://www.liveleak.com/view?i=0bd_1221125482

PS:The saddest part is NOT as much as these "UNFIT LUNATICS" step on the flag as PEOPLE AROUND ALLOW THEM TO DO SO....These kind of people will never understand FREEDOM or LOVE or CIILIZATION...Their lives revolt around a blood thirsty pagan moon god.They just pledge alliegance ONLY to their god.How can they then,be an asset to society???To any NON MUSLIM SOCIETY??We are just DHIMMIS for them:pigs and monkeys....THey should be institutionalized... Sorry to blog about this garbage in a day like today in America,BUT this is part of the reality we are living in:ISLAMOFASCISM ALIVE AND KICKING

As in the days of Noah...

Muslims Launch Television Campaign To Make Women Wear Islamic Veil

Television channels throughout the Muslim world have recently publicized advertising campaigns demanding young Muslim women to wear veils, especially in the modern era of globalization, religious openness and progress.This new Islamic war against female freedom and equality, has spawned a serious social conflict in the Muslim world, allowing Islamic religious institutions to preserve their papal supremacy over stagnant Muslim societies.

http://www.infolive.tv
http://www.liveleak.com/
As in the days of Noah...

Where is Osama bin Laden? Pakistan getting serious in getting him

Fired Muslims in Colorado Demand Sharia Law or They Will Handle it the "BAD" Way

PS:The "BAD WAY"....?What in the world is this???They want more time to pray,they complain that they have only two breaks...They want this they want that....I guess they should ALL--including that lawyer they have--seriously start thinking about moving back to beautiful peaceful SOMALIA and then cherish this land.NEWSFLASH for this angry bunch:America IS NOT A MUSLIM NATION!!!!!!!!If you dont work here you dont eat!!!!!!!!

As in the days of Noah...

ISLAMIC WATCH:Colorado Company Fires 100 Muslim Workers Over Ramadan Tensions

"They just fired us because of our religion." "and our color" (1)
GREELEY-A union spokesman says the union will file grievances against a meatpacking company that fired more than 100 Muslim workers in a dispute over religious accommodations during Ramadan. At issue is a request by Muslim workers to be able to take their lunch breaks at sunset to end their fast during Ramadan.United Food and Commercial Workers Local 7 spokesman Manny Gonzales said Wednesday that between 130 to 150 workers from JBS Swift & Co. had been fired. As many as 300 workers walked out of work Friday, and many were suspended. Swift spokeswoman Tamara Smid said in a written statement that the workers were told they would be fired if they didn't report to work when recalled.(2) Smid didn't specify how many workers were fired.

http://www.liveleak.com/view?i=675_1221146963
PS:(1)PLEAAAASSSSSSSSEEEEEEEE....Not here not now,people....THis is NOT SAUDI....
(2) As far as I know the last time I checked--IF you are a NO SHOW when you are recalled to WORK--the same way that IF you dont show up to work...YOU ARE FIRED.....
I guess this bunch need to go back to where they came from...yes...It sounds mean and harsh...BUT this is NOT the Middle East and even though they try to turn our country into that--the way they successfully did already in Europe--IT WONT HAPPEN....So I guess you should apply for another job,if you want to stay here...
As in the days of Noah...

Gaza ceasefire rattled by explosions along border

GAZA-Two bombs exploded on Thursday near Israeli troops patrolling the border with the Hamas-ruled Gaza Strip, causing no injuries, in the first such incident since a ceasefire took hold in June.The first blast occurred near an Israeli army vehicle and caused damage to the border fence, an army spokeswoman said.A Gaza witness said an Israeli ambulance was at the scene, at the border between Israel and the central Gaza Strip, but the army said nobody was injured.A second explosion went off minutes later in the same area, but also caused no injuries, the army said.The previously unknown "Attawheed Brigades" militant group claimed responsibility for the attack, saying it was in response to Israeli violations of the ceasefire agreement.The incident could undercut an Egyptian-brokered ceasefire between Israel and Hamas Islamists who seized control of the Gaza Strip more than a year ago.The truce has largely held since it took effect on June 19, halting fighting, though both sides accuse the other of sporadic violations.

http://www.reuters.com/article/worldNews/idUSPAR16372020080911

As in the days of Noah...

Olmert says will quit immediately after party vote

JERUSALEM-Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert said on Thursday he would resign immediately after his Kadima party chooses a new leader in an election scheduled for next week.Olmert pledged in July to quit once a new leader was chosen, but his latest remarks indicated he would waste no time in implementing his promise."Immediately after a new leader is chosen for Kadima, I plan on resigning my post and will tell the president that the person who will be elected is the one worthy of establishing a new government," Olmert told a Kadima gathering near Tel Aviv.Olmert, embroiled in a series of corruption scandals, could stay as caretaker prime minister for weeks or months after formally resigning until a new government is formed or a general election is held.Israeli police on Sunday recommended Olmert face criminal charges, saying they had evidence he illegally received money from a U.S. businessman and made duplicate claims for travel expenses when he served as mayor of Jerusalem and trade and industry minister.Olmert has denied any wrongdoing.With Olmert committed to resigning after the September 17 vote, the police recommendation will have no immediate impact on his tenure and does not guarantee an indictment will be filed by Israel's attorney-general.In his speech marking the upcoming Jewish New Year, Olmert said that despite his impending resignation he will continue to hold talks with Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas as long as he is in power.Launched last November with the goal of reaching a Palestinian statehood agreement before U.S. President George W. Bush leaves office in January, the peace talks have been marred by violence and disputes over Jewish settlement building.

To read more go to:

http://www.reuters.com/article/worldNews/idUSLB35405320080911

As in the days of Noah...

Pakistan kills 100 as tension with U.S. grows

ISLAMABAD-Pakistani forces killed up to 100 al Qaeda-linked militants in fierce clashes near the Afghan border on Thursday, a security official said, as tensions grew with the United States over how to tackle militancy.An intensifying insurgency in Afghanistan has piled pressure on Pakistan to go after militants operating from sanctuaries in remote enclaves on its side of the border. It has also led to a sharp increase in U.S. strikes on militants in Pakistan.The new government in Islamabad says it is committed to the campaign against militancy, launched after the September 11 attacks seven years ago, but bans incursions by U.S. troops.In the latest fighting in the northwestern Bajaur region, where some analysts believe top al Qaeda leaders have been hiding, the security forces fought pitched battles with the militants loyal to a local commander Qari Zia-ur-Rehman. "Eighty to 100 militants were killed in Bajaur today. Most of them are foreigners," the official said on condition of anonymity. He said the nationality of the foreigners was being ascertained.He said two soldiers were also killed in the fighting. The three days of fighting in the region has brought the death toll to over 100. Separately, the security forces have killed eight militants in the northwestern Swat Valley, a military spokesman said.Bajaur has been scene of one of the heaviest battles in recent weeks in which more than 600 militants have been killed.
To read more go to:
http://www.reuters.com/article/worldNews/idUSISL34084320080911
As in the days of Noah....

Karzai backs US cross-border plan

Karzai backs U.S. strategy on militants in Pakistan

KABUL-Afghan President Hamid Karzai on Thursday backed a proposed U.S. strategy that would involve hitting al Qaeda and Taliban militants in neighboring Pakistan, saying he had been calling for a changed approach for years. "Change of strategy is essential," Karzai told a news conference. "It means that we go to those areas which are the training bases and havens of (terrorists) and we jointly go there and remove and destroy them."His comments came a day after the U.S. military conceded it was not winning the fight against the Taliban insurgency in Afghanistan and said it would revise its strategy to combat militant safe havens in Pakistan.U.S. Admiral Mike Mullen, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, told the House of Representatives Armed Services Committee that he was "looking at a new, more comprehensive strategy" that would cover both sides of the Afghan-Pakistani border. Pakistan has said it will not tolerate foreign troops entering its territory.Angered by Taliban attacks in Afghanistan, Karzai has advocated hot-pursuit missions into Pakistan before.But while Karzai had a prickly relationship with former Pakistani army chief Pervez Musharraf, who stepped down as president last month, he has sought better ties with the new civilian president, Asif Ali Zardari.Karzai attended Zardari's swearing-in on Tuesday, and the two leaders said they had a common goal to defeat the militants.

To read more go to:

http://www.reuters.com/article/worldNews/idUSISL2595020080911

As in the days of Noah...

YouTube Yanks Radical Islamist Videos After Lieberman's Complaint

YouTube has heeded the call to stop featuring radical Islamists' video clips."Google's community guidelines for YouTube will now bar videos that incite violence, in addition to videos that contain hate speech and gratuitous violence," Sen. Joe Lieberman said in Washington on Thursday.
"YouTube was being used by Islamist terrorist organizations to recruit and train followers via the Internet and to incite terrorist attacks around the world, including right here in the United States, and Google should be commended for recognizing that," he said. "I expect these stronger community guidelines to decrease the number of videos on YouTube produced by Al Qaeda and affiliated Islamist terrorist organizations."Lieberman (I-Conn.), head of the Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee, sent an open letter in May to Eric Schmidt, Chairman and CEO of Google, which owns YouTube, asking him to yank "videos produced by Al Qaeda and other Islamist terrorist groups" off the site.At the time, Google said it had taken down about 80 clips that featured gratuitous violence and hate speech, but added that "there's nothing in our guidelines that says something produced by a certain group gets censored."The "Community Guidelines" on the video-sharing site, updated Sept. 10 according to the official YouTube blog, now read in part:"Things like predatory behavior, stalking, threats, harassment, intimidation, invading privacy, revealing other people’s personal information, and inciting others to commit violent acts or to violate the Terms of Use are taken very seriously. Anyone caught doing these things may be permanently banned from YouTube."A brief search of YouTube found some radical Islamist preachings, including some from Al Qaeda's No. 2 leader Ayman al Zawahiri, but no violent clips.However, clips of bombings, beheadings and other violence committed by radical Islamists are readily available elsewhere on the Web.

http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,420861,00.html

As in the days of Noah...

Saudi arrests five web 'jihadis'

Saudi Arabia said on Wednesday it has arrested five people who used the Internet to propagate extremism and incite youths to go to troubled areas, a reference to supporters of Al-Qaeda. Each of the three Saudis and two foreign residents used various aliases to promote "misleading propaganda through the Internet and...incite young generations and facilitate their departure to areas of sedition,"the interior ministry said, apparently referring to places like Iraq.The terminology used in the statement, which was carried by the official SPA news agency, suggested that the five were supporters of Al-Qaeda, whom Riyadh has been battling since they launched a wave of attacks in 2003.Such Internet users are usually referred to as "jihadis" on Islamist militant websites.The group members "hid behind their computers and gave themselves several assumed names" in order to post material under one alias and post support for it under a different alias, the ministry said.The aim was to give the impression that their ideas "enjoy support from society and to encourage those deluded (by the propaganda) to communicate with them as a prelude to recruiting them for their despicable goals," it added.The statement listed some of the aliases used, including "emir (prince) of the slaughterers," "mujahed (holy warrior) lion," "father of Islam" and "Chechen mujahed".Saudi authorities periodically announce the arrest of scores of Saudi and foreign Al-Qaeda suspects and the thwarting of plots to attack targets, including oil facilities in the kingdom, the world's top crude oil exporter.Officials and experts told AFP this week that Saudi Arabia has largely neutralised suspected Al-Qaeda militants but that they cannot be written off so long as their ideology is alive."Security forces have managed to bring the situation on the ground under control and have so far succeeded in foiling Al-Qaeda's plots in the kingdom," said interior ministry spokesman General Mansur al-Turki."But this does not mean that Al-Qaeda is finished. Al-Qaeda still seeks to propagate its thinking and recruit youths in and outside the kingdom," he told AFP, echoing the cautious view often voiced by officials.
http://www.breitbart.com/article.php?id=080910150522.mcng0vds&show_article=1

As in the days of Noah....

In Hunt for Bin Laden, a New Approach

PESHAWAR, Pakistan-Frustrated by repeated dead ends in the search for Osama bin Laden, U.S. and Pakistani officials said they are questioning long-held assumptions about their strategy and are shifting tactics to intensify the use of the unmanned but lethal Predator drone spy plane in the mountains of western Pakistan. The number of Hellfire missile attacks by Predators in Pakistan has more than tripled, with 11 strikes reported by Pakistani officials this year, compared with three in 2007. The attacks are part of a renewed effort to cripple al-Qaeda's central command that began early last year and has picked up speed as President Bush's term in office winds down, according to U.S. and Pakistani officials involved in the operations.There has been no confirmed trace of bin Laden since he narrowly escaped from the CIA and the U.S. military after the battle near Tora Bora, Afghanistan, in December 2001, according to U.S., Pakistani and European officials. They said they are now concentrating on a short list of other al-Qaeda leaders who have been sighted more recently, in hopes that their footprints could lead to bin Laden.In interviews, the officials attributed their failure to find bin Laden to an overreliance on military force, disruptions posed by the war in Iraq and a pattern of underestimating the enemy. Above all, they said, the search has been handicapped by an inability to develop informants in Pakistan's isolated tribal regions, where bin Laden is believed to be hiding.With CIA officers and U.S. Special Forces prevented from operating freely in Pakistan, the search for bin Laden and his lieutenants is taking place mostly from the air. The Predators, equipped with multiple cameras that transmit live video via satellite, have launched their Hellfire missiles against four targets in the past month alone. Since January, the reconnaissance drones have killed two senior al-Qaeda leaders with $5 million bounties on their heads.Still, debate persists among both U.S. and Pakistani officials over the merits of this aggressive approach, which has resulted in higher civilian casualties and strained diplomatic relations. "Making more effort and flailing are different things," said a senior Pakistani security official, who spoke on the condition of anonymity to avoid alienating U.S. authorities.Bin Laden, a 51-year-old Saudi, has thwarted the U.S. government's attempts to catch him since 1998, when he signed a fatwa calling for attacks on Americans and ordered the bombings of two U.S. embassies in East Africa.Today, seven years after he masterminded the attacks of Sept. 11, 2001, bin Laden is believed to wear disguises routinely and takes extreme care to avoid electronic communications, relying on human couriers to pass messages, officials said. Pakistani officials said the CIA and the U.S. military have played into bin Laden's hands by pursuing al-Qaeda with bombs and missiles. Pashtun tribes along the Afghanistan-Pakistan border, angry at the number of civilian casualties, see the United States as the enemy, the officials said. Despite a $25 million reward posted by the U.S. government, no one has been willing to turn in the al-Qaeda leader.

By Craig Whitlock--Washington Post Foreign Service

To read more go to:

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/09/09/AR2008090903404_pf.html

As in the days of Noah...