GIs to march on Russia’s Red Square

Never before in history have active-duty American troops been invited to march in the Victory Day parade, according to the United States military.
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The occasion is the 65th anniversary of the defeat of Nazi Germany in World War II, a date that carries an almost sacred meaning in Russia. Russian leaders have taken pains to explain that the Americans — along with contingents from Britain, France and Poland — were invited as representatives of the “anti-Hitler coalition.”

Not for nothing are they explaining. While more than half of Russians greeted the invitation with approval or enthusiasm, according to an April poll by the independent Levada Center, the sentiment was not universal.

'Many are against it'
In a country that still regards NATO as its primary security threat, 20 percent of respondents said they disapproved and 8 percent were dead set against it. Communist and nationalist leaders have latched onto it as a rallying cry, organizing rallies on the theme, “No NATO boots on Red Square!”

There is ambivalence, even for those in the first category. Most Russians say they believe that the Red Army would have defeated Hitler without any assistance from Western allies, Levada’s research shows. Many say the Allies held back until it was clear which side would win.

Iran cruise missile poses 'extremely serious' threat

Officials said the intelligence community has been examining Iran's efforts to develop and produce a long-range cruise missile. They said the missile could fly under the radar of most regional states and change the balance of power in the Middle East.

"This is an extremely serious danger," Israel Aerospace Industries chairman Yair Shamir said.
Shamir, head of Israel's largest defense contractor, identified the Iranian program as the KH-55 cruise missile. The missile, supplied to Teheran by Ukraine around 2006, was being enhanced by Iran's Defense Ministry.

In an address to Israel's first multi-national ballistic missile defense conference on May 5, Shamir said Iran sought to extend the range of the missile beyond 2,500 kilometers. He said Iran also was developing an air-launched version of KH-55.

"The pace of missile development is much faster than those of solutions," Shamir said. "The new element is that Iran is already in space."

Apple wants to embed cardiac sensors into an iPhone case to identify you

Adding biometric to sensors to electronic devices for user identification, is not a new thing.

Sometimes they are fingerprint readers, face or iris recognition sensors, voice recognition software, etc; But most of them are bulky, require additional, sometimes cumbersome, efforts by the users. So even if biometric recognition is present in the device, it often goes unused.

Now Apple has an idea of a new biometric recognition approach on your iPhone, to make the process seamlessly “magical”.

By embedding the cardiac sensors in iPhone case:

When you hold an iPhone in your hand, cardiac sensors, integrated into the iPhone case, are able to monitor your heart rhythm, and identify the person holding the device.

And that’s about it. No passwords that can be glimpsed or guessed, fancy gesture movements on a touchscreen, that can be easily recognized. Just pick up an iPhone, and it already knows it’s you.

Pretty cool idea. Unfortunately, it’s only at a patent stage, and it’s implementation will depend a lot on availability of reliable enough sensors, and processing software, which may not be up to the task yet.

But hey, if Apple can make it work sooner or later, I’m all for it.

2 charged in NH bus bomb scare

PORTSMOUTH, N.H. – A man whose overheard phone conversation on a Greyhound bus sparked a bomb scare and daylong standoff won't face criminal charges, but two other passengers were arrested for their behavior after leaving the bus.

John Smolens, of Lewiston, Maine, was charged with resisting arrest for refusing to follow orders after getting off the Maine-to-New York bus, police said Friday. Calvin Segar, of New York City, was charged with obstructing government administration for allegedly giving police a fake name. Both were due in court Friday afternoon.

The other 16 passengers and the driver got off safely, but the man whose phone conversation prompted the scare refused to leave.

Police said the man, who is from Burundi and speaks Swahili, was frightened. He understands some English but is not comfortable speaking it, Ferland said.

A relative was brought in as a translator. The man emerged from the bus at about 8:40 p.m., shirtless and in camouflage pants, his hands held high over his head.

"I do not know the reasons why he was nervous with police," Ferland said. "He comes from a different country. We are trained to understand that people react differently."

Another Strong quake rocks eastern Indonesia, no casualty reported

An earthquake measuring 6.0 on the Richter's scale struck eastern part of Indonesia on Friday, but there were no immediate reports of damage or casualty and no tsunami alert was issued, government agencies said here.
This makes the 3rd time this week. All with no injuries or damage reported.

Survey: Shows moral decay to the commandments

NEW YORK – Americans 45 and older are far more open to sex outside of marriage than they were 10 years ago, is based on detailed questionnaires completed last year by 1,670 people 45 and over. The AARP, which represents 40 million Americans over 50, conducted similar surveys on sexual attitudes and practices in 1999 and 2004.

One of the most pronounced changes over the 10-year span dealt with sex outside of marriage. In the 1999 survey, 41 percent of the respondents said non-marital sex was wrong. That figure dropped to 22 percent in the new survey.

People mind is changing due to evil forces raping before the end of times. Out of frustrations Americans are turning to Imaginations & compromises from the word of God with so called knowledge and ideas, feel good attitudes. In reality they have bought a lie and they are acting it out.

Truly, these are the times of reckoning.

Lettuce recalled in 23 states; E. coli suspected

WASHINGTON – A food company is recalling lettuce sold in 23 states and the District of Columbia because of an E. coli outbreak that has sickened at least 19 people, three of them with life-threatening symptoms.
Freshway Foods of Sidney, Ohio, said it was recalling romaine lettuce sold under the Freshway and Imperial Sysco brands because of a possible link to the E. coli outbreak.

Oil spill may endanger human health, officials say

NEW ORLEANS – With a huge and unpredictable oil slick drifting in the Gulf of Mexico, state and federal authorities are preparing to deal with a variety of hazards to human health if and when the full brunt of the toxic mess washes ashore.

The list of potential threats runs from temporary, minor nuisances such as runny noses and headaches to long-term risks such as cancer if contaminated seafood ends up in the marketplace. While waiting to see how bad things will get, public health agencies are monitoring air quality, drinking water supplies and seafood processing plants and advising people to take precautions.

"We don't know how long this spill will last or how much oil we'll be dealing with, so there's a lot of unknowns," said Dr. Jimmy Guidry, Louisiana's state health director. "But we're going to make things as safe as humanly possible."

Lord Jesus Christ (his real name) hit by Mass. car

NORTHAMPTON, Mass. – The victim might have forgiven the woman who ran him down in a Massachusetts crosswalk, but police haven't.

Police say a Pittsfield woman has been cited for running down a man named Lord Jesus Christ as he crossed a street in Northampton.

The 50-year-old man is from Belchertown. Officers checked his ID and discovered that, indeed, his legal name is Lord Jesus Christ. He was taken to the hospital for treatment of minor facial injuries.

Franklin Graham: Islam Is Not Faith of America

Rev. Franklin Graham prepares to leave the Pentagon, Thursday, May 6, 2010. Earlier, Graham prayed on a sidewalk outside the Pentagon Thursday after having being disinvited inside because of comments that insulted people of other religions.… Read more »

The evangelist, who was recently disinvited from a Pentagon prayer event over past comments he made about Islam, pointed to the violence against Muslim women.

“It’s just horrific,” Graham said to Newsmax.TV this week. “If you just take women alone … I just don’t understand why the president would be giving Islam a pass.”

Graham wants the president to speak up for women and minorities living in Muslim countries instead of one-sidedly praising Islam.

Thou shalt disarm Israel !

US joined other members of the UN Security Council to demand a nuclear-free Middle East. Since Israel is the only country possessing nuclear weapons here, the UNSC called for Israeli disarmament. Not Iran’s!. Israel quotes.

Plan for mosque near World Trade Center site moves ahead

A proposal to build a mosque steps from Ground Zero received the support of a downtown committee despite some loved ones of 9/11 victims finding it offensive.

The 13-story mosque and Islamic cultural center was unanimously endorsed by the 12-member Community Board 1's financial district committee.

The $100 million project, called the Cordoba House, is proposed for the old Burlington Coat Factory building at Park Place and Broadway, just two blocks from the World Trade Center site.

"I think it will be a wonderful asset to the community," said committee Chairman Ro Sheffe.

Imam Feisel Abdul Rauf, who helped found the Cordoba Initiative following the 9/11 attacks, said the project is intended to foster better relations between the West and Muslims.

Go and figure? Now they are making a monument for their Terrorist Heroes. What's next, Name the street of ground zero after the bomber?
What has happen to America?

U.S. Border Guards Bogusly Arrest Canadian Tourist

NIAGARA FALLS (Lewiston Bridge) CANADA-USA border: Everything was recorded on audio by the anglo-saxon canadian tourist and it shows the blatant lies by the border guards that they were threatened with death. He was initially arrested because he didn't know exactly in which store his wife was going to shop at.

Comedy Central developing Jesus Christ cartoon

Comedy Central might censor every image of the Prophet Muhammad on "South Park," yet the network is developing a whole animated series around Jesus Christ.

Jesus-south-park As part of the network's upfront presentation to advertisers (full slate here), Comedy Central is set to announce "JC," a half-hour show about Christ wanting to escape the shadow of his "powerful but apathetic father" and live a regular life in New York City.

In the show, God is preoccupied with playing video games while Christ, "the ultimate fish out of water," tries to adjust to life in the big city.

"In general, comedy in purist form always makes some people uncomfortable," said Comedy Central's head of original programming Kent Alterman.

When asked if the show might draw some fire, especially coming on the heels of the network's decision to censor the Muslim faith's religious figure on "South Park," Alterman said its too early in the show's development to be concerned about such matters.

"We don't even know what the show is yet," he said.

Like all Comedy Central executives, Alterman declined to address the recent controversy over "South Park," where the network aired a heavily redacted episode after the show's creators were threatened by an extremist Islamic Web site.

Where is the outcry of Christians?? This is a Psychological warfare going on in America. And the Op-poser is winning.

'Special regime for sharing J'lem'

WASHINGTON – A group of Israelis, Palestinians and North Americans have formulated a proposal for sharing Jerusalem to help the sides resolve one of the thorniest challenges in Middle East peace-making.

The Jerusalem Old City Initiative, started by former Canadian diplomats who recruited erstwhile Palestinian and Israeli negotiators as well as AmericanMiddle East hands for the undertaking, suggests the creation of a “special regime” for the Old City.

The regime would be jointly created and run by the Israelis and Palestinians, rather than an international body as has frequently been suggested in other accords that have not materialized.

“We’re not talking about internationalization,” stressed Art Hughes, a former American diplomat who once oversaw the peacekeeping operation between Israel and Egypt and is currently an adjunct scholar at Washington’sMiddle East Institute, which hosted the unveiling of the initiative Wednesday.

Former US ambassador to Israel Dan Kurtzer, who has also been involved with the initiative, explained that the special regime would be “very much under the control of the two sides. It’s their baby. They shape it. They make it work.”

The regime, however, would be headed by an outside administrator, envisioned as neither an Israeli nor a Palestinian, but someone with international standing. The administrator would preside over policing, movement and access to holy sites, archeological issues, zoning and planning decisions and other related issues; but not those linked to “nationality,” such as education and political rights.

The administrator would be chosen by a board of top Israeli and Palestinian officials, and international officials whose presence had been approved by both sides.

The proposed regime would not seek to resolve competing claims over sovereignty or be used to make policy decisions about how Jerusalem would be shared, organizers said. Instead, they emphasized, this would be a recipe for implementing a peace agreement with a shared capital once the policy issues had already been resolved.


Israelis who participated in formulating the proposal include Gilead Sher, co-chief negotiator of then-prime minister Ehud Barak’s team at Camp David, and lawyer Daniel Seideman, who founded Ir Amim. Palestinians included Ghaith al-Omari, a former PLO negotiator, and Nazmi al-Jubeh, the founder of Riwaq-Center for Architectural Conservation.

Jerusalem, a final-status issue in talks between Israelis and Palestinians, is seen as perhaps the most difficult challenge in reaching agreement between the two parties. It has already emerged as a flashpoint for controversy during efforts to get indirect talks off the ground this spring, as an Interior Ministry announcement of more Jewish housing in east Jerusalem derailed a March visit by US Vice President Joe Biden meant to launch talks.

Freddie Mac requests $10.6 billion in federal aid - May. 5, 2010

NEW YORK -- Freddie Mac requested another $10.6 billion handout from the federal government.

The housing finance company, which reported an $8 billion quarterly loss, was put into conservatorship by the government during the height of the financial panic in September 2008 along with its twin Fannie Mae (FNM, Fortune 500).

Freddie has already received $50.7 billion from the Treasury Department. Fannie Mae has so far gotten $76.2 billion.

Greek crisis makes Canada-EU ties crucial:

BRUSSELS – Prime Minister Stephen Harper says the financial unrest sweeping Greece is even more reason to press ahead with negotiations on a sweeping economic pact between Canada and the European Union.

Harper spoke at the close of the annual Canada-EU summit, as unrest sparked by Greece’s debt woes led to the deaths of three people in an Athens bank torched by protesters unhappy at austerity measures meant to bring financial stability to the country.

“This series of events underscores why it is important to push these trade negotiations forward. We need to push forward an economic recovery,” Harper said.

“One of the most important things is to continue opening global trade and to resist protectionism.”

1 bus passenger being questioned in NH Bomb scare

PORTSMOUTH, N.H. – Police say all passengers but one on a Greyhound bus involved in a New Hampshire bomb scare have been safely removed and that the one person still aboard is being questioned.

Police say someone aboard the bus carrying 17 passengers called 911 and reported an explosive device on board Thursday. That led police in Portsmouth to surround the vehicle and evacuate buildings and streets.

Passengers remained on the bus for more than two hours before they started to slowly come out with their hands in the air. A sharpshooter in an armored vehicle kept watch.

Police say the driver got off the bus after he parked it on the side of the road and also was being questioned.

The bus started left Bangor, Maine, and was scheduled to stop in Portsmouth en route to Boston and New York City.

Franklin Graham: Christians Will Lose the Power to Pray Outside Church Walls ‘Maybe in My Lifetime’

– Two top evangelical leaders sounded a defiant tone on the eve of National Day of Prayer -- warning that the American right to freedom of religion “is being eroded every day” and may be lost in an onslaught of secularism unless Americans “have the guts to stand up.”

The Rev. Franklin Graham, who last month was officially “dis-invited” by the Army to speak at a National Day of Prayer ceremony at the Pentagon for statements he made about Islam, said he will not back down in preaching the Gospel as he sees it.

Conn. ACLU sues to stop graduations at church

HARTFORD, Conn. – The American Civil Liberties Union has filed a federal lawsuit seeking to stop two Connecticut high schools from holding their graduation ceremonies at a megachurch.

The state ACLU chapter and Americans United for Separation of Church and State filed the lawsuit Wednesday. They allege that it's an unconstitutional government endorsement of religion for the Enfield school district to allow the ceremonies at The First Cathedral church in Bloomfield.

An attorney for the school district, Vincent McCarthy of the American Center for Law and Justice, says most of the lawsuit's allegations are false and church leaders are willing to cover up the building's few overtly religious symbols.

Enfield's school board voted last month to continue holding graduations at the church.

5 Shot, 2 Dead, When Gunman Invades L.A. Home

HAWAIIAN GARDENS, Calif.-- Investigators say a gunman with an assault rifle and a can of gasoline stormed his ex-girlfriend's Hawaiian Gardens home and shot four people, killing two of them, before a sheriff's deputy confronted and shot the attacker.

Los Angeles County Undersheriff Larry Waldie says a deputy heard automatic weapons fire around 4 a.m. Thursday, grabbed his AR-15 rifle and confronted the gunman outside the home.

Israeli forces demolish settlement homes

JERUSALEM -- A Jewish family was evacuated from its West Bank home by force before the house was demolished.

About 100 protesters surrounded the home Thursday after two other homes in the Hashmonaim neighborhood were razed. The homes were believed to be violating the the 10-month West Bank construction freeze.

The owners of the last home to be razed had attempted to show the security forces proof that the house had been built legally, Haaretz reported. Family members had barricaded themselves inside to prevent the demolition.

Earlier in the week, several buildings were demolished in the northern West Bank settlement of Shavei Shomron.

National Day of Prayer is on, despite court ruling

Washington – Thursday, May 6, is the National Day of Prayer, as proclaimed by President Obama. But this year, the annual ritual that began in 1952 is taking place amid controversy.

Last month, a federal judge in Wisconsin ruled that the US law directing the president to proclaim such a day violates the First Amendment, which prohibits government establishment of religion. US District Judge Barbara Crabb also said it was OK to proceed with the National Day of Prayer, pending appeals.

On April 22, the Obama administration appealed Judge Crabb’s ruling to the Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals in Chicago.

But, like last year, Mr. Obama himself will not hold any official prayer day observance at the White House. His predecessor, George W. Bush, had held an annual interfaith observance in the East Room of the White House.

Netanyahu promised indefinite construction freeze

Abbas promised to leave the indirect peace talks if Israel resumes construction in the West Bank.

Since the merry-go-round of peace talks is meant to last for years, Israeli government apparently promised Obama to continue the settlement freeze beyond the ten-month deadline.

Largest Lutheran Group Reinstating 2 Homosexual Ministers

Atlanta - A gay Atlanta pastor and his partner who have been at the center of a battle over the treatment of gay clergy by the nation's largest Lutheran denomination are being reinstated to the denomination's clergy roster, church officials announced.

The Rev. Bradley Schmeling and his partner, the Rev. Darin Easler, have been approved for reinstatement, the Chicago-based Evangelical Lutheran Church in America said in a news release.

'Smart dust' aims to monitor everything

Palo Alto, California (CNN) -- In the 1990s, a researcher named Kris Pister dreamed up a wild future in which people would sprinkle the Earth with countless tiny sensors, no larger than grains of rice.

These "smart dust" particles, as he called them, would monitor everything, acting like electronic nerve endings for the planet. Fitted with computing power, sensing equipment, wireless radios and long battery life, the smart dust would make observations and relay mountains of real-time data about people, cities and the natural environment.

Now, a version of Pister's smart dust fantasy is starting to become reality.

"It's exciting. It's been a long time coming," said Pister, a computing professor at the University of California, Berkeley. "I coined the phrase 14 years ago. So smart dust has taken a while, but it's finally here."

The latest news comes from the computer and printing company Hewlett-Packard, which recently announced it's working on a project it calls the "Central Nervous System for the Earth." In coming years, the company plans to deploy a trillion sensors all over the planet.

The wireless devices would check to see if ecosystems are healthy, detect earthquakes more rapidly, predict traffic patterns and monitor energy use. The idea is that accidents could be prevented and energy could be saved if people knew more about the world in real time, instead of when workers check on these issues only occasionally.

So what makes a smart dust sensor different from a weather station or a traffic monitor?

Size is one factor. Smart dust sensors must be relatively small and portable. But technology hasn't advanced far enough to manufacture the sensors on the scale of millimeters for commercial use (although Berkeley researchers are trying to make one that's a cubic millimeter).

Wireless connections are a big distinguisher, too. A building's thermostat is most likely hard-wired. A smart dust sensor might gauge temperature, but it would be battery-powered and would communicate wirelessly with the internet and with other sensors.

The sheer number of sensors in the network is what truly makes a smart dust project different from other efforts to record data about the world, said Deborah Estrin, a professor of computer science at the University of California, Los Angeles, who works in the field.

Smart dust researchers tend to talk in the millions, billions and trillions.

Effort to expand audits of Fed picks up steam in Senate

A contentious effort to expand audits of the Federal Reserve that sailed through the House despite heavy criticism appears to be picking up steam as the Senate considers broad new financial regulations.

Senator Bernard Sanders (I-Vermont) is pushing an amendment to the financial overhaul bill before the Senate that would broaden the Government Accountability Office's power to audit the Fed and compel the central bank to disclose details about the firms that received emergency federal aid during the financial crisis. "The American people have a right to know who has received $2 trillion of their money, and they have a right to have the GAO do an audit about potential conflicts of interest," Sanders said Tuesday.

The Fed has "operated in secrecy forever, and they are now playing a role significantly different than they have in the past. I think the American people want to know what is going on," he added. Sanders's measure reflects legislation introduced by Rep. Ron Paul (R-Texas) - who has harshly criticized the Fed for decades - and approved overwhelmingly by the House last year.

The movement against the Fed has collected a diverse collection of supporters. Sanders's amendment has drawn more than a dozen co-sponsors from both parties

Nashville Pastors Mobilize Volunteers, Aid through Twitter | Christianpost.com

When Pastor Pete Wilson tweeted a need for volunteers, hammers, trash bags and brooms, hundreds showed up to start relief work in and around a badly-flooded Nashville.
Jim Bumbalough works to gut a friend's flood-damaged home Wednesday, May 5, 2010, in Nashville, Tenn. Cleanup continues after 13 inches of rain fell over the weekend, causing flash flooding in the area.

"I love being able to mobilize so many volunteers ... so quickly," said Wilson, who has more than 54,000 Twitter followers. "I love that power of communication."

Pastors throughout Tennessee have been vigorously thumbing their limited characters since the "thousand year" flood ravaged several counties over the weekend.

"It appears that I have moved into storm central. Thinking about preaching about Noah tomorrow," Ed Stetzer, who is currently serving as interim pastor at Two Rivers Baptist Church in Nashville, tweeted Saturday.

"Lost additional power to downtown this a.m. No repairs until water recedes.

Fla. School District Sued over Prayer Constraint

A Florida school district is being sued for “persistent and widespread” restrictions on religious expression.
Related

Liberty Counsel, a legal group often representing Christians in religious freedom and family cases, filed a lawsuit Tuesday on behalf of two dozen individuals against the Santa Rosa County School District and its Superintendent, Timothy Wyrosdick, for violations of First Amendment rights.

The plaintiffs – which include teachers, students, former students, parents, volunteers and local members of the community – complain that they have been censored, intimidated or harassed by the school district and its partner, the American Civil Liberties Union.

New Eddy County consolidated dispatch facility now in operation

ARTESIA — The Eddy County Central Communications Authority unveiled its new multi-million dollar consolidated dispatch center Wednesday.

As state government moves toward increasing efficiency in emergency response by consolidating dispatch into regional centers, the Eddy County facility is a prime candidate to become the dispatch center for southeast New Mexico.

Capable of broadcasting as far north as U.S. Interstate 40, The new facility boasts computer aided-dispatch systems, computerized data systems, a simulcast radio system, six active dispatcher stations and an additional four available for future expansion.

"This is a multi-jurisdictional collaborative effort," said Jenny Rennie, ECCA director. "We're getting nationwide attention."

The building housing the new dispatch center features reinforced 18-inch thick walls and is built to withstand an F4 tornado, Rennie said. It also has its own independent emergency power generators and data backup systems.

The thick walls even mute the blasting spring winds.
The city of Carlsbad will not be joining in the consolidation. After a political stalemate between Eddy County and the previous city administration, the city opted to keep its own dispatch center at the Carlsbad Police Department.

Breaking alert: NJ bridge shutdown

Authorities shut down RFK Bridge in New York after driver abandons U-Haul truck on bridge. more news to follow

'Germ Islands' Found Floating in Ocean

Bacteria and other germs latch on to clumps of decaying matter floating in the ocean, creating "germ islands" that could spread disease, a new study reveals.

When plants and animals near the surface of the ocean die, they decay and gradually fall to the seafloor. This dead matter can clump together with sand, soot, fecal matter and other material to form what is called "marine snow," so named because it looks like tiny bits of white fluff. Marine snow continuously rains down on the deep ocean, feeding many of the creatures that dwell there.

A group of scientists studying marine snow found that these clumps, or aggregates, may act as island-like refuges for pathogens, the general term for disease-causing organisms or germs, such as bacteria and viruses. (The "island" term comes from the comparison of the existence of pathogens on marine snow with the way insects, amphibians and other creatures establish homes and persist on remote islands in the oceans.)

Lie-Detection Brain Scan Could Be Used in Court for First Time

A Brooklyn attorney hopes to break new ground this week when he offers a brain scan as evidence that a key witness in a civil trial is telling the truth, Wired.com has learned.

If the fMRI scan is admitted, it would be a legal first in the United States and could have major consequences for the future of neuroscience in court.

The lawyer, David Zevin, wants to use that evidence to break a he-said/she-said stalemate in an employer-retaliation case. He’s representing Cynette Wilson, a woman who claims that after she complained to temp agency CoreStaff Services about sexual harassment at a job site, she no longer received good assignments. Another worker at CoreStaff claims he heard her supervisor say that she should not be placed on jobs because of her complaint. The supervisor denies that he said anything of the sort.

So, Zevin had the coworker undergo an fMRI brain scan by the company Cephos, which claims to provide “independent, scientific validation that someone is telling the truth.”

N.Korea deploys 50,000 special forces near border

North Korea has completed deployment of about 50,000 special forces along the border with South Korea
"The threat that North Korea may infiltrate special forces for limited warfare has become real," the agency quoted a separate senior defence ministry official as saying.

The North has about 180,000 special forces, it said, adding they would be used for "multifarious types of attacks and mixed warfare" against the South.

Bin Laden living in lap of luxury in Iran?

A new documentary on the world of falconry claims that Osama Bin Laden is living in a comfortable, private compound north of Tehran, surrounded by his family and under the watchful eye of Iran's Revolutionary Guard.
Alan Parrot's film, Feathered Cocaine, describes the secret world of falconers and falconry, which he says Bin Laden pursues freely.

Parrot was himself the chief falconer of the Shah regime in Iran, and also worked for the Saudi and United Arab Emirates' royal families.


The documentary shows a testimony by his acquaintance, a weapons' dealer in northern Iran who says he personally met bin-Laden six times on hunting retreats since 2003.

Poll: 83% say God answers prayers, 57% favor National Prayer Day

Americans are overwhelmingly sure there's a God who answers prayers.

But that doesn't mean they all favor an official annual National Day of Prayer — or that its goal should be promoting Christianity.

President Obama signed the annual proclamation last weekend, inviting Americans of all religious stripes to pray on Thursday, the 2010 National Day of Prayer.

This fits with most Americans' views: 92% say there is a God and 83% say this God answers prayers, according to a USA TODAY/Gallup Poll of 1,000 adults May 1-2. The margin of error is plus or minus 4 percentage points.

The survey also asked two groups of 500 people each a question about the National Day of Prayer. These questions have a margin of error of plus or minus 5 percentage points.

One group was asked if they favored or opposed the National Day of Prayer or if it "doesn't matter."

About 57% of adults favor it, and 38% shrugged it off. Only 4.5% opposed it.

For most 18- to 29-year-olds, it could be the National Day of Whatever — 59% said it doesn't matter.

Those who most strongly favor it were Republicans (76%); women 50 and older (71%); and Midwesterners (71%) or Southerners (63%).

Strong earthquake hits off Indonesian island of Sumatra

A 6.3-magnitude earthquake has struck west of Indonesia's Sumatra Island.

The US Geological Survey said the quake hit at a depth of 18.1 km (11.2 miles) at 1629 GMT - 137km (85 miles) from the port city of Bengkulu.

There were no immediate reports of damage or injuries. The Pacific Tsunami Warning Centre said there was no threat of a destructive widespread tsunami.

Judge orders U.S. militia members released on bond

Nine members of a Christian militia group accused of plotting to kill police and wage war on the U.S. government were ordered freed on bond on Monday by a judge who said prosecutors failed to show they posed a real threat.
In a blistering attack, U.S. District Court Judge Victoria Roberts in Detroit said prosecutors had failed to persuade her the defendants were a danger to the community.
While they may have engaged in "offensive and hate-filled speech," it was not at all clear that they had conspired to break any laws, Roberts wrote.
"Discussions about killing local law enforcement officers - and even discussions about killing members of the Judicial Branch of Government - do not translate to conspiring to overthrow, or levy war against, the United States Government,"

Police cameras to flood Manhattan to prevent attacks

NEW YORK -- New York officials say they could stop attacks like the attempted Times Square car bomb by expanding a controversial surveillance system so sensitive that it will pick up even suspicious behaviour.

New York is already a heavily policed city, with 35,000 officers and a counter-terrorism bureau - the first of its kind in the country - partnering the FBI. But Saturday's failed terrorist bomb in the Times Square tourist hot spot has provided the authorities with a new argument for expanding a sometimes controversial security blanket of cameras, sensors and analytical software. The system "will greatly enhance our ability and the ability of the police to detect suspicious activity in real time, and disrupt possible attacks," Mayor Michael Bloomberg said Monday. The high-tech system, modeled on the "ring of steel" in London's financial district, is already in service in lower Manhattan, where Wall Street and the World Trade Center reconstruction site are located . . .
On Sunday, New York police chief Raymond Kelly reiterated the plan and used the occasion to press for more federal funding from Washington. Kelly also gave details about the system, explaining how the aim is for "analytic software" allowing experts to make sense of raw information in real time. For example, alarms would trigger when cameras noticed an unattended bag or a car circling a block too many times to be considered normal, Kelly said.

Rescuers Pray for No More Victims in Tenn. Floods

The river and its tributaries had flooded parts of middle Tennessee after a record-breaking weekend storm dumped more than a foot of rain in two days, rapidly spilling water into homes, roads and some of Music City's best-known attractions.

At least 28 people were killed in Tennessee, Mississippi and Kentucky by either floodwaters or tornadoes. Water submerged parts the Grand Ole Opry House, considered by many to be the heart of country music, and the nearby Opryland Hotel could be closed for up to six months.

The flash flooding caught many here by surprise, and efforts to warn residents to not drive on flooded streets were hampered by power outages. As the water began to recede, bodies were recovered late Monday from homes, a yard and a wooded area outside a Nashville supermarket.

Second Jew attacked in France

An elderly Jewish man was attacked with tear gas outside a synagogue in southern France.

The synagogue in the southern French city of Nimes also was vandalized with anti-Semitic graffiti in the May 2 incident, according to reports.

Three men perpetrated the attack, according to reports.

Sunday's incident involving a 77-year-old man waiting outside to attend daily prayer services follows an attack April 30 in which a man wearing a kipah was attacked by two knife-wielding men with a metal bar in the in eastern France city of Strasbourg.

With more than half a million members, France has the largest Jewish community in Europe and the third largest of any country worldwide, according to the World Jewish Congress. About 6 million Muslims live in France.

NOAA:1 of 3 Gulf well leaks halted but oil flow same

One of three leaks from the ruptured Gulf of Mexico undersea well owned by BP has been capped, but oil is still flowing out at a rate of 5,000 barrels (210,000 gallons/795,000 liters) per day, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) said on Wednesday.

Buddhist Extremists Drive Christians from Village in Bangladesh

DHAKA, Bangladesh, Four Christian families in southeastern Bangladesh left their village yesterday under mounting pressure by Buddhist extremists to give up their faith in Christ.

Sources told, that 20 to 25 Buddhists brandishing sticks and bamboo clubs in Jamindhonpara village, 340 kilometres (211 miles) southeast of Dhaka, began patrolling streets on Friday (April 30) to keep the 11 members of the Lotiban Baptist Church from gathering for their weekly prayer meetings. On Saturday, the Buddhist extremists captured four men and beat one woman who had gathered in a home, threatening to kill them if they did not become Buddhists within 24 hours.

Yesterday, the Buddhist extremists attacked the homes of the Baptists two hours before their 1 p.m. worship service, sources said.

Muslims Burn Christian Center under Construction in Indonesia

JAKARTA, Indonesia,— Hundreds of people calling themselves the Muslim Community of the Puncak Route last week burned buildings under construction belonging to a Christian organization in West Java Province.

Believing that a church or school building was being built, the mob set fire to the Penabur Christian Education Foundation’s unfinished guest house buildings in Cibeureum village of Cisarua sub-district, Bogor Regency, on April 27. They also burned a watchman’s hut and at least two cars belonging to foundation directors.

EMP could leave '9 out of 10 Americans dead'

There is renewed alarm about the possibility of an EMP attack – electromagnetic pulse – on the United States because of Iran's work on a multi-stage Space Launch Vehicle, according to a report from Joseph Farah's G2 Bulletin.

And experts forecast if such an attack were a success, it effectively could throw the U.S. back into an age of agriculture.

"Within a year of that attack, nine out of 10 Americans would be dead, because we can't support a population of the present size in urban centers and the like without electricity," said Frank Gaffney, president of the Center for Security Policy. "And that is exactly what I believe the Iranians are working towards."

As the G2 Bulletin reported last week, Ronald Burgess, director of the U.S. Defense Intelligence Agency, revealed that Iran successfully launched a multi-stage SLV, the Simorgh. The device ultimately could be equipped with a nuclear bomb, which the U.S. intelligence community assesses Iran is developing.

Officials also report Iran has been testing detonation of its nuclear-capable missiles by remote control while still in high-altitude flight. The development makes a potential EMP attack on the U.S. more probable.

Your face is all you’ll need at an ATM

You may soon withdraw money from an Automated Teller Machines without using your credit or debit card, thanks to a face recognition technology in the making.

Known as the Basic Intelligent Automated Teller Machine, if the new device is incorporated in the current ATMs, all one will require to get money is to stand in front of the machines.

It is the brainchild of Dr Waweru Mwangi, the director of the Institute of Computer Science and Information Technology at Jomo Kenyatta University, and is on display at the national scientific conference in Nairobi.

Feel uncomfortable

The smart ATM removes the need to carry cards every time one wishes to access the bank account. The idea behind the machine’s development is to make banking friendly.

India 1.2 billion citizens to all get biometric

As India gears up to build the largest biometric database in the world with the aim of providing most of its 1.2 billion citizens a Unique Identification (UID), perhaps the biggest challenge is smudged fingerprints.

The UID Authority of India will issue the first UIDs linked to a person's demographic and biometric information between August and February, and issue about 600 million such IDs over the next five years to help verify citizens quickly and cheaply.

It will be a boon for companies and government agencies alike.

It would give millions of Indians the means to open a bank account, buy a mobile phone, and access welfare services easily, while saving companies and government agencies the expensive and time-consuming process of verifying and establishing identities.

The project, which has drawn the interest of mobile services firms and technology giants including Tata Consultancy Services, Microsoft and Google, is expected to better target and reduce waste in India's multi-billion dollar welfare schemes, including pensions.

Grand Ole Opry House hit by severe flooding

Country stars were heartbroken to learn that the mecca of their music, the Grand Ole Opry House, was hit by flood waters that washed over the city and are concerned about how much damage was done to the landmark.

The stage is of particular concern. At the centre is a circle made of floorboards cut from the old stage at the Opry's former home of Ryman Auditorium. It's considered by many to be the heart of country music.

"As a country singer, there is only one place you dream of playing in your lifetime, and that is the Grand Ole Opry House," singer Blake Shelton said in an email. "Standing on centre stage in the six-foot circle of wood cut from the stage of the Ryman is something I never take for granted. The history and legacy of that circle is awe-inspiring."

Fish prices soar

SALT LAKE CITY - The price of fish in Utah is on the rise and will continue through the rest of the year.

The oil spill in the Gulf Coast, Iceland’s volcanic eruption and Chile’s fish problem and earthquake has all contributed to the rise in price.

“Salmon prices are the highest I've ever seen it,” said Dan Sheldon of the Aquarius Fish Company in Salt Lake City.”

And because of shortage choices could soon disappear.

It's really created a shortage in our industry,” said Mike Pottruff of Pacific Seafood and Salt Lake City supplier.

“I don't see how it wouldn't go up,” said Sheldon. “I may just have to avoid getting products from certain suppliers.”

As a result, Sheldon said gulf shrimp, tuna, snappers and yellowtail may soon disappear from his display.

And fish from the northwest will be impacted as well.

Bomb Suspect's Citizenship Raises Questions About Naturalization Process

The suspect in the Times Square car bombing attempt is the latest in a series of U.S. citizens and green card holders to be implicated in a terror plot inside the United States, raising questions about the naturalization process that turns foreigners into Americans.

Several hurdles are in place for immigrants to attain U.S. citizenship and, in turn, its platinum-status passport. Pakistani-born suspect Faisal Shahzad passed through his security checks and became a U.S. citizen in April 2009. He first entered the United States on a student visa in the late 1990s, was granted a special work visa a few years later and obtained a green card in 2006 after his wife, an apparent U.S. citizen, petitioned on his behalf.

An official with U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services said "it's too early" to say whether any signs were missed in Shahzad's naturalization process. But the official acknowledged that any screening is just "a snapshot in time" and can't catch everything.

"This is just one of those realities that we face," the official said.

South Carolina Sheriff Accused of Dealing Drugs From Police SUV

COLUMBIA, S.C. -- A South Carolina sheriff dealt drugs from his police SUV and when state and federal agents gave him a list of possible drug dealers in his county, he immediately started calling to tip them off or extort money to get them off the list, according to the FBI.

The FBI tapped then-Lee County Sheriff E.J. Melvin's phone starting in March, and caught him saying he was going to arrange for a traffic stop on a drug dealer, take some of the cocaine he expected to find for himself and use the rest as evidence, according to a sworn statement from an FBI agent released Monday.

Melvin was arrested Saturday and remained in jail Monday after a preliminary hearing. Melvin resigned his office the day he was arrested. A spokesman said Gov. Mark Sanford will appoint an interim sheriff.

Melvin and six others were charged with conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute five kilograms or more of powder cocaine and 50 grams or more of crack cocaine. If convicted, the former sheriff faces a mandatory 10 years in prison and could face up to life behind bars.

Melvin's friends and family helped pack the courtroom Monday. He briefly acknowledged them as he shuffled in with his ankles and wrists shackled after a weekend in jail. But he spent most of the hearing with his eyes closed and his head titled back.

New Mexico, new tourism

New Mexico has to be one of the most beautiful places on earth. There are the high desert plateaux reaching for scores of miles into the blue distance; the iron-like clumps of mountain scarfed in cloud, their summits shimmering with ice; Alpine forests of fir, stands of aspen, mists of giant cottonwoods in the valley beds, and craggy peaks that burst from the flatlands.

New Mexico's ranking as the fourth-poorest state in the union has safeguarded it from industrial development and preserved its natural riches. And despite being so arid, this is a land defined by its waters – lakes, rivers, streams surging between volcanoes, meandering through broad valleys, plunging down gorges. And its wildlife is really wild: bear, elk, bison, wolves, mountain lion, eagles.

But some beautiful places are not just beautiful; New Mexico is good for the soul. People still come here, as they've been doing since the early 1900s, in search of a deeper meaning in their lives. There are dozens of religious and spiritual centres – some offshoots of the hippy days when the state was a nexus of counter-culture, some as traditional as the shrine of Chimayó, to which thousands of Catholic pilgrims walk through the desert each year. But perhaps the biggest draw is still the state's 19 traditional native Pueblo peoples, living on ancestral lands they have occupied for hundreds, even thousands of years. Nowhere else in America do people still live in ancient mud homes, and eat the corn and chilli their forebears grew.

New Mexico's governor, Bill Richardson, has just launched a new initiative to capitalise on these resources. "We're first in film, first in space, and now we're first in ecotourism," he says, referring to the tax breaks that have made New Mexico second only to Hollywood for movie production, and to Richard Branson's new "Spaceport", which is being built in the south of the state.

Suspect Arrested in Times Square Bomb Plot

Federal authorities arrested a U.S. citizen of Pakistani descent Monday night at New York's JFK Airport in connection with the attempted Times Square car bombing.

The man was identified as Shahzad Faisal, 30, of Connecticut, according to NBC News.

Police had interviewed the registered owner of the bomb-laden sports-utility vehicle. They said he was not a suspect, but he recently sold the dark-colored 1993 Nissan Pathfinder on Craigslist to another individual, whom the Associated Press reported was a Pakistani-American.

The bomb scare forced the evacuation of Times Square on a busy Saturday night, as police used a robot to break into the smoking SUV and diffuse the makeshift explosive, which was made from everyday items, such as propane tanks and firecrackers.

The vehicle identification number had been removed from the Pathfinder's dashboard, but it was stamped on the engine and axle, and investigators used it to find the owner of record. CBS News reported that the owner told investigators he recently sold the vehicle for $1,300 to someone who looked "Middle Eastern" or "Hispanic." The buyer reportedly paid in $100 bills.

Death toll rises as river crests, floods Nashville

NASHVILLE, Tenn. – Muddy waters poured over the banks of Nashville's swollen Cumberland River on Monday, spilling into Music City's historic downtown streets while rescuers using boats and Jet Skis plucked stranded residents away from their flooded homes as the death toll from the weekend storms climbed to 28 people in three states.

The flash floods caused by record-breaking amounts of rain caught many off-guard, forcing thousands to frantically flee their homes and hotels. The rapidly rising waters led to the deaths of 17 people in Tennessee alone, including 10 in Nashville, and officials feared that the death toll could increase. Officials announced the latest deaths late Monday after receding flood waters revealed six more bodies.

"Do we suspect to find more people? Probably so.

U.S. Farmers Cope With Roundup-Resistant Weeds and Higher food cost

Just as the heavy use of antibiotics contributed to the rise of drug-resistant supergerms, American farmers’ near-ubiquitous use of the weedkiller Roundup has led to the rapid growth of tenacious new superweeds.

To fight them, Mr. Anderson and farmers throughout the East, Midwest and South are being forced to spray fields with more toxic herbicides, pull weeds by hand and return to more labor-intensive methods like regular plowing.

“We’re back to where we were 20 years ago,” said Mr. Anderson, who will plow about one-third of his 3,000 acres of soybean fields this spring, more than he has in years. “We’re trying to find out what works.”

Farm experts say that such efforts could lead to higher food prices, lower crop yields, rising farm costs and more pollution of land and water.

“It is the single largest threat to production agriculture that we have ever seen,” said Andrew Wargo III, the president of the Arkansas Association of Conservation Districts.

The first resistant species to pose a serious threat to agriculture was spotted in a Delaware soybean field in 2000. Since then, the problem has spread, with 10 resistant species in at least 22 states infesting millions of acres, predominantly soybeans, cotton and corn.

The superweeds could temper American agriculture’s enthusiasm for some genetically modified crops. Soybeans, corn and cotton that are engineered to survive spraying with Roundup have become standard in American fields. However, if Roundup doesn’t kill the weeds, farmers have little incentive to spend the extra money for the special seeds.

Roundup — originally made by Monsanto but now also sold by others under the generic name glyphosate — has been little short of a miracle chemical for farmers. It kills a broad spectrum of weeds, is easy and safe to work with, and breaks down quickly, reducing its environmental impact.

U.S. Identifies Owner of S.U.V. In Bomb Case

Federal authorities have identified the man who recently bought the 1993 Nissan Pathfinder that was rigged to explode in Times Square as a naturalized United States citizen from Pakistan who recently returned from a trip there, and were seeking to arrest him on Monday night, according to several people briefed on the investigation.

The man, a Connecticut resident who was not publicly identified, bought the sport utility vehicle in Bridgeport, within the last three weeks, paying cash in a deal that involved no formal paperwork.

Census: 6 workers die in traffic accidents

WASHINGTON – The Census Bureau said Monday it is being watchful about potential dangers to its workers — ranging from anti-government sentiment to everyday accidents — after six died in auto incidents in the last week.

At a news briefing, Census Bureau director Robert Groves said the traffic deaths were of concern since temporary census workers are fanning out in neighborhoods around the country to conduct interviews until mid-July.

"We have hundreds of thousands of people disproportionately driving on the streets. So when you have 600,000 people, all sorts of bad things happen," Groves said. "We hope there are few if any other incidents like this."

At least two of the traffic deaths occurred Friday in the Lubbock, Texas, area, when two census workers were struck by a tanker truck after they apparently failed to yield at a stop sign. They had been scheduled to begin door-to-door canvassing on Saturday.

One other death also occurred in Texas, while the other cases in the past week were in California, South Carolina and Florida, according to the Census Bureau. It refused to release additional details and officials said they were still reviewing the situation.

In the 2000 census, there were 13 automobile deaths, as well as a dog attack on a 71-year-old worker.

Wal-Mart to pay $27.6 million over toxic waste case

NEW YORK – Wal-Mart Stores Inc, the world's largest retailer, will pay $27.6 million to settle a lawsuit alleging it improperly stored, handled and dumped hazardous waste at stores throughout California, state investigators said on Monday.

The accord ends a five-year probe in which California investigators said they found violations at 236 Wal-Mart and Sam's Club stores, distribution centers and storage facilities in the state.

Wal-Mart was accused of improperly dumping hazardous waste such as acid, aerosols, chemicals, fertilizer, motor oil, paint and pesticides.

In one instance, according to an April 2 court filing, investigators in April 2002 observed "piles of multicolored

unknown fertilizer type substances and torn sacks of ammonium sulfate" at a Wal-Mart store in Vacaville, California, after learning a child had been playing on a pile of "yellowish colored powder" near the store's garden department.

The accord calls for Wal-Mart to pay a $20 million fine, $3 million to improve store maintenance, $3 million for other environmental projects, and $1.6 million for legal costs.

U.S. FOOD INFLATION SPIRALING OUT OF CONTROL

The National Inflation Association today issued the following food inflation alert:
The Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) today released their Producer Price Index (PPI) report for March 2010 and the latest numbers are shocking. Food prices for the month rose by 2.4%, its sixth consecutive monthly increase and the largest jump in over 26 years. NIA believes that a major breakout in food inflation could be imminent, similar to what is currently being experienced in India.
Some of the startling food price increases on a year-over-year basis include, fresh and dry vegetables up 56.1%, fresh fruits and melons up 28.8%, eggs for fresh use up 33.6%, pork up 19.1%, beef and veal up 10.7% and dairy products up 9.7%. On October 30th, 2009, NIA predicted that inflation would appear next in food and agriculture, but we never anticipated that it would spiral so far out of control this quickly.
The PPI foreshadows price increases that will later occur in the retail sector. With U-6 unemployment rising last month to 16.9%, many retailers are currently reluctant to pass along rising prices to consumers, but they will soon be forced to do so if they want to avoid reporting huge losses to shareholders.
Food stamp usage in the U.S. has now increased for 14 consecutive months. There are now 39.4 million Americans on food stamps, up 22.4% from one year ago. The U.S. government is now paying out more to Americans in benefits than it collects in taxes. As food inflation continues to surge, our country will soon have no choice but to cut back on food stamps and other entitlement programs.

Ex-Muslim: Obama's Soft Strategy Hurting Oppressed Christians

President Obama is hurting persecuted Christians worldwide by failing to speak up for them, says a well-known convert who lives under police protection in Europe.

While the U.S. president has consistently sought dialogue with the Muslim world, he has not put in the same effort to protect oppressed Christians, says Sabatina James, who has lived for the past nine years in fear of being murdered for leaving Islam.

“You (President Obama) are saying these things about the prophet [Muhammad] but why don’t you protect [Christians]? You’re a Christian and have such influence,” James recalls herself asking while watching President Obama’s speech in Cairo last year.

“A man of such an influence should definitely speak differently. He should have said that he feels for the people who are living in prison and who may somehow be listening to the speech,” James says. “Even if he said something like that it would be good. But he did not even mention it.”

Woman allegedly stabs 4 at Calif. Target store

WEST HOLLYWOOD, Calif. – Authorities say a woman who allegedly stabbed and wounded at least four people in a Target store near Los Angeles has been arrested.

Los Angeles County Sheriff's Sgt. Josh Mankini says an off-duty deputy who was shopping Monday afternoon pulled out his gun and ordered the 34-year-old woman to the ground. Mankini says the woman was arrested with the help of private security guards at the West Hollywood store.

Mankini says the woman stabbed three women and a man with a large blade about the size of a kitchen knife.

Los Angeles County fire Inspector Fredrick Stowers says at least one of the victims was in critical condition. He didn't know the conditions of the others.

Obama Sex Scandal ? true or not

Chaos in Arizona, an oil spill the size of Rhode Island, and now this on the eve of the White House Correspondents’ Dinner: the National Enquirer published a story last night claiming that President Barack Obama was caught having an affair with a former campaign staffer at a Washington hotel, and they might have the tape to prove it. (UPDATE: Enquirer retracts video claim)

The Enquirer claims insiders have known about the scandal and are willing to pay some serious cash for the story, and they’re so sure of it that they’ve brought out the animated .gifs:

A confidential investigation has learned that Obama first became close to gorgeous 35 year-old Vera Baker in 2004 when she worked tirelessly to get him elected to the US Senate, raising millions in campaign contributions.

While Baker has insisted in the past that “nothing happened” between them, the Enquirer has learned that top anti-Obama operatives are offering more than $1 million to witnesses to reveal what they know about the alleged hush-hush affair.

The Enquirer is also promising hotel surveillance footage that could prove that Obama and Baker entered and left the hotel at the same time. “Investigators are attempting to obtain a tape from the hotel (that) shows Vera and Barack together… If the tape surfaces, it will explode the scandal.” The Enquirer does not specify the dates of the surveillance footage, which could mean they are merely touting a 6-year-old affair the Obamas and everyone around them have moved beyond it, but they could also be breaking something new. Or they are totally wrong or taking some bit of information completely out of context, which would hardly be shocking.

So that’s the kicker– whether the video evidence truly exists, and how old it really is. Yes, the fact that it is the National Enquirer reporting it makes the matter highly questionable, especially in light of their previous attempt at launching an Obama sex scandal.

War on Korean Peninsula?South Korean president presides

For the first time in the 62-year history of Korea’s military, a president will chair an emergency meeting of top commanders to discuss the national security crisis prompted by the sinking of the Navy warship Cheonan near the inter-Korean border.

About 150 commanders from the Army, Navy and Air Force will attend the meeting with President Lee Myung-bak tomorrow, according to Blue House spokesman Park Sun-kyoo.

“President Lee will discuss the task that the Cheonan’s sinking has put before our people and military, and reveal his position as the chief commander of the armed forces,” Park said.

Lee is expected to ask the commanders to heighten their readiness to protect national security.

“Because the issue is so grave, the military is looking into the possibility of inviting civilian advisers” on international relations, Park said.

Park said Lee’s message to the military will focus on improvement, not reprimand. “The Lee administration’s national security policy will definitely be different before and after the Cheonan’s sinking,” he said.

Taliban-Pakistan claims failed NY Times Square bombing

twenty-four hours before a smoking SUV Nissan containing an improvised bomb was defused among the teeming crowds of Time Square, New York, the Pakistani Taliban's top bomb-maker, Qari Hussain Mehsud he took "full responsibility for the recent attack in the USA" in an audiotape with images on a YouTube website.

On the tape, which has yet to be authenticated, Mehsud promises a "jaw-breaking blow to Satan USA." Homeland secretary Janet Napolitano termed the incident, which caused a large section of Manhattan to be evacuated, "a potential terrorist attack." US intelligence sources report they have no forensic indication of any overseas involvement, but counter-terror sources point out that the investigation has only just begun and, anyway, no overseas signatures would be expected if the Taliban or its partner al Qaeda had recruited a local Islamist cell for the New York operation.

Irish Airspace Restricted Again Due to Volcanic Ash

Ireland's Aviation Authority said Monday it was banning all flights in and out of Ireland on Tuesday morning because of a renewed risk of volcanic ash drifting south from Iceland.

The decision is based on the safety risks to crews and passengers as a result of the drift south of the volcanic ash cloud caused by the northeasterly winds," the statement said.

Ireland is expected to experience ash concentrations that exceed acceptable engine manufacturer tolerance levels, the authority said.

US Targets Israel as Anti-Nuke Conference Begins

The United States is working with both Egypt and Russia to rid Israel of its nuclear weapons, as part of a comprehensive plan to neutralize Iran’s nuclear power.

Reports of this nature are being reported in various news media. The Guardian (London) reports that the US and Russia have drafted an initiative to ban nuclear weapons and other weapons of mass destruction in the Middle East, while the Wall Street Journal says the Obama Administration is considering support for a “nuclear-free Middle East.”

The Guardian adds that the proposal involves the appointment of a special coordinator to conduct exploratory talks with Israel, Iran and the Arab states, followed by a regional conference. It is to be a central issue at an anti-proliferation United Nations conference beginning Monday in New York.

According to the Wall Street Journal report, the US is strongly considering opposing Israeli nuclear weapons more strongly than it ever has before. However, the US government has, at the same time, sent Jerusalem a message designed to calm Israeli anxieties on the matter, stating that the U.S. would not take such a drastic approach before it sees significant progress in the peace process between Israel and the Arab nations.

Specifically, Ellen Tauscher, undersecretary of state for arms control and international security, said the conditions are not right “unless all members of the region participate, which would be unlikely unless there is a comprehensive peace plan which is accepted.”



Such a message is actually not very calming, in that it does not state that there must be “peace” before the U.S. would take such a position. Furthermore, it is widely felt in Israel that its nuclear potential is as critical for maintaining peace as it is during times of war.

This may not be Israel’s official position, however – at least according to the Wall Street Journal. An Israeli source is quoted in the report as saying that Jerusalem’s vision is one of a Middle East without weapons of mass destruction, but that this must occur only as the climax of a peace process with all nations of the region.



The UN conference, held every five years, is to begin with an address by Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, whose nuclear program and soon-expected capabilities have thrown the region into turmoil. U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton will also address the conference on Monday.

Jordan River could die by 2011: report

ALUMOT, Israel – The once mighty Jordan River, where Christians believe Jesus was baptised, is now little more than a polluted stream that could die next year unless the decay is halted, environmentalists said on Monday.

The famed river "has been reduced to a trickle south of the Sea of Galilee, devastated by overexploitation, pollution and lack of regional management," Friends of the Earth, Middle East (FoEME) said in a report.

More than 98 percent of the river's flow has been diverted by Israel, Syria and Jordan over the years.

"The remaining flow consists primarily of sewage, fish pond water, agricultural run-off and saline water," the environmentalists from Israel, Jordan and the West Bank said in the report to be presented in Amman on Monday.

"Without concrete action, the LJR (lower Jordan River) is expected to run dry at the end of 2011."
Could this be the opening of the prophecy of Armageddon? Time is running out...

Pittsburgh Marathon Course Altered by Bomb Scare

PITTSBURGH -- A suspicious device near the finish line of the Pittsburgh Marathon on Sunday prompted police to briefly stop the race after it had begun. The device was disabled and police said it was not believed to have been an actual explosive.

The device, in a small microwave oven, was spotted Sunday morning on the sidewalk next to the Greyhound bus station after the race leaders had finished the course, police Lt. Kevin Kraus said.

The bomb squad determined there were contents that resembled an explosive, and the area was evacuated, Kraus said. He declined to describe the materials that concerned authorities pending a further evaluation.

"Certainly, from what we did see on the X-rays, we were highly concerned," he said.

The disruption came a day after a car-bomb scare in New York emptied Times Square, clearing thousands of tourists from the streets for 10 hours.

Kraus said police stopped the 26.2 mile race in the area for 10 to 12 minutes. The competition resumed after the bomb squad used a robot to disable the device and the area was cleared shortly before 11 a.m., he said.

"At this point, we believe it was not an actual explosive devices, but we are still evaluating the microwave and its contents," Kraus said. He said surveillance cameras in the area were being examined to try to find out who put the device there.

Police could not immediately confirm the race was re-routed. But Karen Fredette, a marathon spokeswoman, said the race was diverted around the block where the device was found but the finish of the race near the David L. Lawrence Convention Center was not changed.

Oil in the Gulf has countless livelihoods in limbo

HOPEDALE, La. – When Kenny LeFebvre is out of work, so are the two men who help him haul glistening blue crabs from the waters he's fished since he quit school at 14. So are his sister and brother-in-law, who sell him bait, buy back the catch, pack it up, then resell it to buyers who put it on dinner tables in Maryland.

And so are thousands of other families just like theirs in some of the world's richest fishing grounds, livelihoods in limbo as winds from exactly the wrong direction — the southeast — threaten to push an oil slick the size of Puerto Rico ever closer to the fragile, fingerlike bayous.

"I don't know what I'll do. I really don't," says LeFebvre, who unloaded 2,100 pounds of crab about 20 minutes before natural resource officials ordered the fishing zones in St. Bernard Parish closed. There was no sign of oil yet. Not even a whiff in the breeze. And the crabs had just started biting.

On Sunday, federal authorities banned commercial and recreational fishing over a wide swath of the Gulf of Mexico, from the mouth of the Mississippi to the Florida Panhandle, for at least the next 10 days. Now, the 600 traps LeFebvre dropped Friday morning will sit uncollected for weeks, he figures. Maybe months. Maybe years.

Fishing halted as Gulf oil slick threatens catastrophe

Famine and more famine plagues the U.S.
The United States suspended fishing across a wide swath of its Gulf of Mexico waters on Sunday as a spreading oil slick gushing from a ruptured undersea well threatened an environmental catastrophe.

Mexican traffickers get help from US prison gangs

EL PASO, Texas – When Mexican drug traffickers need someone killed or kidnapped, or drugs distributed in the United States, they increasingly call on American subcontractors — U.S.-based prison gangs that run criminal enterprises from behind bars, sometimes even from solitary confinement.

Prison gangs have long controlled armies of street toughs on the outside. But in interviews with The Associated Press, authorities say the gangs' activity has expanded beyond street-level drug sales to establish a business alliance with Mexican cartels.

"They'll do the dirty work that, say, the cartels, they don't want to do" in the United States. "They don't want to get involved," said a former member of Barrio Azteca, a U.S. prison gang tied to Mexico's Juarez cartel.

The partnership benefits both sides: The gangs give drug traffickers a large pool of experienced criminals and established distribution networks in the U.S. And the cartels provide the prison gangs with discounted drugs and the logistical support of top criminal organizations.

Pakistani group claims NYC car bomb responsibility

NEW YORK – Police combed through a charred SUV and a crude assortment of explosives Sunday for clues to a failed Times Square bombing as a monitoring group reported that the Pakistani Taliban had claimed responsibility for the terrorist threat.

An intelligence monitoring group released a one-minute video allegedly from the Pakistani Taliban, in which it claimed responsibility for the failed bombing in a smoking SUV left parked in the city on Saturday night, clearing thousands of tourists and theatergoers from the city's busiest district.

The U.S.-based SITE intelligence group, which monitors militant websites, said the Pakistani Taliban claims the attack is revenge for the death of its leader Baitullah Mehsud and the recent killings of the top leaders of al-Qaida in Iraq. Images of the slain militants are shown as an unidentified voice recites the message. English subtitles are at the bottom of the screen.

Va. Jews decry allowing Jesus in public prayer

Virginia Jews urged the state's governor to reconsider a policy of keeping Jesus out of public police prayers.

The state police superintendent introduced the policy in 2008 after a Virginia court ruled that city councillors may not pray "in Jesus' name" during official proceedings.

Republican Gov. Bob McDonnell lifted the ban last week following a lobbying effort by Conservative groups.

In an April 27 letter urging the governor to reconsider the decision, the four umbrella bodies for Virginia's Jewish communities told McDonnell that the order "leads us toward unnecessary religious clashes, demeans our Commonwealth's Jeffersonian principles, and creates an unwelcoming environment for the Commonwealth's Jewish citizens and other religious minorities."

Efforts in the legislature to overturn the ban had been unsuccessful.

Jewish man attacked in France

A Jewish man wearing a kipah was attacked in eastern France.

Two men wearing robes traditional to North Africa attacked the man, 41, with a knife and metal bar in the center of Strasbourg, the French news agency AFP reported. One of the assailants is a psychiatric patient, according to AFP.

The victim was treated at the hospital.

"It's an anti-Semitic attack," Pierre Levy, regional delegate of CRIF, the umbrella representative body of France’s Jewish community, told AFP.

The two alleged attackers were detained by police.

Coroner: Storms kill 2 in Benton County, Miss.

ASHLAND, Miss. – A possible tornado has killed two people in Northern Mississippi.

Benton County Coroner John Riles says two people were killed when severe weather tore through early Sunday.

Riles identified the victims as 25-year-old Latoya Long and 26-year-old Thomas Catrell Cowan. He said the two lived in a mobile home. He says "it looks like you stuck about four sticks of dynamite on it and it just disappeared."

Riles said several other people reported injuries after the storm blew through about 2:30 a.m. Sunday. He said it could have been a tornado.

EPA ramps up air quality monitoring for oil spill

NEW ORLEANS – The Environmental Protection Agency says it's stepping up air quality monitoring on the Gulf Coast.

There are concerns that vapors from the oil and controlled fires might cause health problems for people living in the region. An oil smell could cause headaches or nausea, but EPA spokesman Dave Bary said Saturday there have been no confirmed reports of such problems.

State health agencies are advising people having such symptoms to stay indoors and ventilate their homes with air conditioning.

Crude oil gives off gaseous vapors

Bombs target buses of Christian students in Iraq

BAGHDAD – Two bombs exploded minutes apart Sunday near buses carrying Christian students in the northern Iraqi city of Mosul, killing at least one bystander and injuring around 100 others, a security official said.

Sunni Muslim insurgents have frequently targeted members of Iraq's Christian minority, especially in Mosul, which is home to a large Christian community. Some extremist Sunnis consider Christians to be nonbelievers and supporters of the Shiite-led government they oppose.

A shop owner in the area was killed in Sunday's attack, said Abdul-Rahim al-Shammari, head of the provincial council's security committee. The injured included students and other civilians, he said.

Ahmadinejad blasts U.S. before visit

Just days before his planned trip to New York, Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad said he has proof the United States and Israel are linked to the world's leading terrorist organizations, according to state-run media.

"We have documents that prove (Washington) is the root of world terrorism," Ahmadinejad said in a speech in Tehran, Press TV reported. "It has been aiding and abetting extremist groups over the past years."

Ahmadinejad said his nation "cuts any hand that signs a document against Iran," according to the semi-official FARS news agency.

His remarks came as the United States pushes for new international sanctions against Iran over its refusal to halt its nuclear program.

Ahmadinejad plans to attend a United Nations summit on the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty, which opens Monday,

Alex Jones and others have stated the same thing about American Terrorist from the Gov.

Obama takes direct aim at anti-government rhetoric

ANN ARBOR, Mich. -- In a blunt caution to political friend and foe, President Barack Obama said Saturday that partisan rants and name-calling under the guise of legitimate discourse pose a serious danger to America's democracy, and may incite "extreme elements" to violence.

The comments, in a graduation speech at the University of Michigan's huge football stadium, were Obama's most direct take about the angry politics that have engulfed his young presidency after long clashes over health care, taxes and the role of government.

Mass. water main break affects Boston, suburbs

BOSTON (AP) -- A "catastrophic" break Saturday in a relatively new, 10-foot wide steel pipe rendered the water undrinkable in Boston and more than two dozen of its suburbs, forcing Gov. Deval Patrick to declare a state of emergency.

The state issued an order for resident to boil water before drinking it in the 30 affected communities, which include 2 million people in 700,000 households.

The Massachusetts Water Resources Authority was able to draw emergency water supplies from various reservoirs for bathing, flushing and fire protection. That water isn't treated for drinking, so the state issued the boil-water order.

Authority head Frederick Laskey called the break "highly unusual and catastrophic in nature," and said it came in a critical point in the system - a tunnel that's on the main supply route to Boston and delivers 200 million to 400 million gallons a day.

At Least 5 Dead in Tennessee Flooding, Officials Say

At least five people had died and hundreds were being evacuated Saturday as flooding was reported across Tennessee and heavy rains continued to pound the state, officials said.

The forecast called for more rain through the weekend.

The five deaths reported in Stewart, Davidson, Williamson and Carroll counties were storm related, but the exact causes of the deaths were not yet known, Jeremy Heidt, spokesman for the Tennessee Emergency Management Agency, said Saturday evening.

Hundreds of homes had been evacuated in Tennessee and shelters were being opened across the state for people stranded due to flooded roads.

Memphis received up to 10 inches or more of rain during the day and officials were warning that 4 - 8 more inches could fall overnight and into Sunday.

Heidt said crews were called out for swift-water rescues from Nashville to Memphis.

"It's so widespread, it's a very serious concern," he said.

The southwestern part of the state was extremely hard hit, with several Memphis-area streets declared impassable.

Plane diverted on way to China after explosive claim

TAIPEI, Taiwan (AP) — A flight from the Taiwanese capital to the eastern Chinese city of Shanghai was diverted to a nearby Chinese airport Saturday after a passenger told cabin crew his luggage contained explosives.

Spokesman Bruce Chen of Taiwan's China Airlines said the plane landed safely at Hangzhou and Chinese authorities took the passenger away for questioning.

Chen identified the detained passenger as George Lin and said he was traveling on a U.S. passport. He said that Lin did not appear to have been drinking excessively.

"The passenger told the cabin crew very calmly that he had explosives in his luggage," Chen said. "After the plane landed in Hangzhou, it was very carefully checked and nothing was found."

More of times square failed bomb

NEW YORK – The dark-colored sports utility vehicle which triggered the evacuation of Times Square on Saturday night was found to contain explosives, gasoline, propane and burned wires, a New York Fire Department officer.

The officer, who did not give his name because he was not authorized to speak to the media, said a man was seen fleeing the car and police had protectively evacuated several blocks around the popular tourist area in the center of Manhattan in case there were other devices.

The officer said law enforcement at the scene of the sports utility vehicle -- which was smoking and from which popping sounds were heard earlier -- were treating the vehicle as a "failed device."

Bomb threat in Times square

Suspected Bomb Prompts Clearing of Times Square

Thousands of tourists and theatergoers were cleared from
Times Square as the police investigated what they suspected
was a car bomb there on Saturday evening.

Police officials said they received a report about 6:30 p.m.
of smoke coming from a Nissan Pathfinder parked on 45th
Street just west of Seventh Avenue. The authorities found a
smoking package in the vehicle and now believe it was a bomb.
A bomb squad was sent to the scene.

The package did not explode, and officials said they did not
know whether it was related to terrorism.

Explosion at Russian Racetrack Injures 13

A homemade bomb exploded at a racetrack in southern Russia on Saturday, injuring 13 people. Emergency Situations Ministry duty officer Marat Prokopenkov says the bomb exploded near a VIP box during a horse race in the city of Nalchik. Although no organization has taken credit for the explosion, Chechen rebels are suspected of responsibility due to the recent surge in their violent resistance to Russia’s occupation of their country.

Police Break Up Anti-Missionary Protest in Holon

A group of ultra-Orthodox Jews held a demonstration against illegal missionary activity taking place in the Kiryat Sharet neighborhood of Holon. The protestors hurled stones at a local community center before being dispersed by police officers protecting the missionaries.

Greece erupts in violent protest as The comming of armageddon

Athens erupted into violence as traditional May Day festivities turned into a bitter protest against draconian austerity measures aimed at tackling Europe's worst debt crisis in decades.

For the tens of thousands of demonstrators who took to the streets in rallies that quickly descended into clashes with riot police, the show of force was just the beginning – a prelude of the storm that will rock Greece if its Socialist government "caves in" to the dictates of the IMF and enforces policies that have been likened to "the coming of Armageddon".

To make the point, scores of stone-throwing youths chanted "people don't bow down, it's time again for revolution" as a petrol bomb set fire to a police officer in the heart of Athens.

Oil spill looks doomed for coastal areas

VENICE, La. – A sense of doom settled over the American coastline from Louisiana to Florida on Saturday as a massive oil slick spewing from a ruptured well kept growing, and experts warned that an uncontrolled gusher could create a nightmare scenario if the Gulf Stream carries it toward the Atlantic.

President Barack Obama planned to visit the region Sunday to assess the situation amid growing criticism that the government and oil company BP PLC should have done more to stave off the disaster. Meanwhile, efforts to stem the flow and remove oil from the surface by skimming it, burning it or spiking it with chemicals to disperse it continued with little success.

"These people, we've been beaten down, disaster after disaster," said Matt O'Brien of Venice, whose fledgling wholesale shrimp dock business is under threat from the spill.

"They've all got a long stare in their eye," he said. "They come asking me what I think's going to happen. I ain't got no answers for them. I ain't got no answers for my investors. I ain't got no answers."

Religion no place for federal earmarks

Americans United for Separation of Church and State (AU) is asking U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder to look into congressional earmarks that provide federal funds for religious institutions.

Mat Staver, president Liberty Counsel, tells us this is yet another attempt to literally boot Christianity from the marketplace. The group claims Christianity disables citizens from equal access and equal benefits.

Meanwhile, the Christian groups just want a level playing field, but the Liberty Counsel president notes that their organizations may be better off.

"Frankly, from a personal standpoint, I wouldn't be asking the federal government for any funding if I were a Christian organization. I think it is fraught with problems," he comments. "That allows the federal government to dictate what the Christian organization does, and I would never put myself in that situation."

Staver emphasizes that what AU wants is freedom from religion, not freedom for religion.

Study: Contraception tied to HIV

A study shows that use of a contraceptive pill is linked to a higher chance of contracting HIV/AIDS.

Joan Robinson, a researcher at the Population Research Institute (PRI), reports that there is a strong scientific link between the two.

"It increases all the known risk factors from upping the risk of infection, to increasing the viral replication of the HIV virus, to speeding the debilitating effects and the deadly progression of the disease," Robinson notes.

More than 50 studies document the findings, yet the correlation remains widely unknown by the public, she notes. The PRI researcher says one reason for this is because some of the people involved in the studies have a vested interest in contraceptive distribution.

"I think that the medical evidence is clear, and we need to rethink our foreign-aid programs," she suggests. "We need to stop shipping boatloads of hormonal contraceptives to AIDS-ravaged nations. We need to ask ourselves, 'Is our international aid of hormonal contraceptives contributing to the spread of HIV/AIDS?'"

Tornado claims lives

CLINTON, Ark.Official: 1 dead, at least 2 dozen injured after tornadoes rip through Arkansas. (Corrects APNewsAlert, based on information from state official, that three people were killed by tornados)

6.3 magnitude quake hits Bering Sea

A 6.3 magnitude earthquake has struck the Bering Sea
halfway between Alaska and Russia but there was no tsunami alert for the nearby coastlines, the US Geological Survey said Saturday.

The quake occurred at 2311 GMT Friday 474 km from Gambell, Alaska, and 478 km from Provideniya, Russia at a depth of about 15 km, it said.

No tsunami was expected along the California, Oregon, Washington, British Columbia, or Alaska coast, the US Pacific Tsunami Warning Centre said in a statement Saturday.

Carlsbad bounty hunter indicted for murder

From the Plainview (Texas) Daily Herald PLAINVIEW, Texas — A Carlsbad bail bondsman and bounty hunter was indicted for murder Thursday by a Texas grand jury.

Jarrod Neal Flaming, 41, is charged in the Feb. 9 death of Derek Graves, who was shot to death while Flaming was trying to take him into custody.

Flaming and his employee, Morgan E. Moore, 41, also of Carlsbad, also face lesser charges of executing an arrest warrant and unauthorized contract with bail bond surety.

Police said that on Feb. 9, Moore, who works for Bad Dog Bail Bonds Inc., of which Flaming is the president and CEO, knocked on the door of an apartment where Graves was staying. It was just before 8:30 p.m. and Moore was allowed into the apartment by the resident.

When Moore attempted to take the 31-year-old Graves into custody, he reportedly jumped out the kitchen window where Flaming was waiting, police said. Graves then fled down 29th Street and into the backyard of a residence at 1111 W. 29th, where he was found by officers with one gunshot wound from a 9mm handgun.

Graves, who was from Amarillo but temporarily staying in Plainview with family, was wanted on a Potter County warrant for possession with intent to deliver a controlled substance.

At the time of the shooting, Plainview Police Capt. Manuel Balderas said, Flaming and Moore did not possess the proper licenses needed to come to Texas and take Graves into custody.

In Texas, bounty hunters must be licensed through the
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Department of Public Safety, and Flaming was not.

Flaming's bond was set at $35,000, while Moore's totaled $10,000.

Children's Tylenol and Other Drugs Recalled

The McNeil Consumer Healthcare unit of Johnson & Johnson has
voluntarily begun a recall of certain children's
over-the-counter liquid medicines because of manufacturing
deficiencies, the Food and Drug Administration said Saturday.

The deficiencies may affect the potency, purity or quality of
the products, the agency said in a statement.

Consumers should stop using certain lots of infants' and
children's Tylenol, Motrin, Zyrtec and Benadryl products
because some of them may contain too much of the active
ingredient, McNeil said in a statement late Friday.