text:
Tag Archives: suddenly
Pakistani Woman Appeals Death Sentence for 'Blasphemy'
District judge bows to pressure of local Muslims, handing down stunning sentence to Christian.
LAHORE, Pakistan, November 13 (CDN) — Attorneys for a Christian mother of five sentenced to death by hanging for allegedly speaking ill of Muhammad, the prophet of Islam, have filed an appeal of the verdict, they said.
Bowing to pressure from Muslim extremists in Pakistan, according to the Christian woman's husband and rights groups, a district court judge handed down the stunning sentence to Asia Noreen on Monday (Nov. 8). Additional District and Sessions Judge Naveed Ahmed Chaudhary of Nankana Sahib district delivered the verdict under Pakistan's controversial "blasphemy" statute, the kind of law that a resolution before the United Nations condemning "defamation of religions" would make legitimate internationally.
Noreen is the first woman to be sentenced to death under Pakistan's widely condemned law against defaming Islam.
Noreen's lawyer, Chaudhry Tahir Shahzad, said that among other allegations, she was accused of denying that Muhammad was a prophet.
"How can we expect a Christian to affirm a Muslim belief?" Shahzad said. He added that he and lawyer Manzoor Qadir had filed an appeal against the district sessions court's verdict in the Lahore High Court.
Asia (alternately spelled Aasya) Noreen has been languishing in isolation in jail since June of last year after she argued with fellow field workers in Ittanwali village who were trying to pressure her into renouncing Christianity. Her husband, Ashiq Masih, told Compass that the argument began after the wife of an Ittanwali elder sent her to fetch water in Nankana Sahib district, about 75 kilometers (47 miles) from Lahore in Punjab Province.
The Muslim women told Noreen that it was sacrilegious to drink water collected by a non-Muslim, he said.
"My wife only said, 'Are we not all humans?' when the Muslim women rebuked her for her faith," Masih, a field laborer, told Compass by telephone. "This led to an altercation."
Centre for Legal Aid Assistance and Settlement (CLAAS) General Secretary Katherine Sapna told Compass that the women told Muslim cleric Muhammad Salim about the incident, and he filed a case with police on the same day, June 14, 2009.
On June 19, 2009, Masih said, the Muslim women suddenly raised a commotion, accusing Noreen of defaming Muhammad.
"Several Muslim men working in the nearby fields reached the spot and forced their way into our house, where they tortured Asia and the children," said Masih, who confirmed that his wife is 45 years old and that they have five children – four girls and a boy, the oldest daughter 20.
Police arrived and took his wife into custody, presumably for her own protection, he said.
"They saved Asia's life, but then later a case was registered against her under Sections 295-B and C [blaspheming the Quran and Muhammad, respectively] at the Nankana police station on the complaint of Muhammad Salim, the local imam [prayer leader] of the village," he said. "Asia has been convicted on false charges. We have never, ever insulted the prophet Muhammad or the Quran."
Salim reportedly claimed that Noreen confessed to speaking derogatorily of Islam's prophet and apologized. Under immense pressure from local Muslims, according to Masih, CLAAS and Sohail Johnson of Sharing Life Ministry, local judge Chaudhary ruled out the possibility that Noreen was falsely accused. In spite of repeated efforts by the Muslim women to pressure her into renouncing her faith, the judge also reportedly ruled "there were no mitigating circumstances."
Chaudhary also fined her 100,000 rupees (US$1,150), according to CLAAS.
Ataul Saman of the National Commission for Justice and Peace (NCJP) said that lower court verdicts in blasphemy cases are usually overturned by higher courts. He said lower court proceedings take place under intense pressure, with local Muslims gathering outside and chanting slogans to pressure judges. Saman added that NCJP research showed that up to 80 percent of blasphemy charges are filed against people to settle personal scores.
Rights groups have long criticized Pakistan's blasphemy laws as too easily used to settle grudges or oppress religious minorities, such as the more than 4 million Christians that Operation World estimates out of Pakistan's total population of 184.7 million. To date no one has been executed for blasphemy in Pakistan, as most are freed on appeal after suffering for years under appalling prison conditions. Vigilantes have killed at least 10 people accused of blasphemy, rights groups estimate.
Noreen was convicted under Section 295-C of the defamation statutes for alleged derogatory comments about Muhammad, which is punishable by death, though life imprisonment is also possible. Section 295-B makes willful desecration of the Quran or a use of its extract in a derogatory manner punishable with life imprisonment. Section 295-A of the defamation law prohibits injuring or defiling places of worship and "acts intended to outrage religious feelings of any class of citizens." It is punishable by life imprisonment, which in Pakistan is 25 years.
Between 1986 and August 2009, at least 974 people have been charged with defiling the Quran or insulting Muhammad, according to the NCJP. Those charged included 479 Muslims, 340 Ahmadis, 119 Christians, 14 Hindus and 10 from other religions.
Johnson of Sharing Life Ministry, which is active in prisons and has been following Noreen's case from the onset, said he was impressed by her continued faith.
"A week before the verdict, I went to visit Asia in jail," he said. "I asked her what she was expecting. She told me that Jesus would rescue her from this fake case."
The verdict was shocking in that no one was expecting a death sentence for a woman, he said. Masih agreed.
"Asia was hoping that the judge would free her and she would come home to be with us, but this conviction has dashed our hopes for now," Masih said.
He said that since the sentencing, authorities have not allowed him or other members of their family to visit his wife.
"We don't know yet how she is, but we trust the Lord," he said. "Asia is suffering for Jesus, and He will not forsake her."
Posted in Christianity, Hinduism, Islam, Pakistan, United Nations	| Tagged 1986, 2009, accused, accusing, active, Acts, Additional District and Sessions, affirm, Ahmadis, allegations, allegedly, altercation, appalling, appeal, appeals, argued, argument, Ashiq Masih, Asia Noreen, Ataul Saman, attorneys, belief, blasphemy, bowing, bows, boy, case, Centre for Legal Aid Assistance and Settlement, chanting, Chaudhry Tahir Shahzad, children, Christian, Christianity, Christians, citizens, CLAAS, class, cleric, comments, commotion, condemning, conditions, continued, controversial, convicted, conviction, court, custody, dashed, daughter, death, death sentence, defamation, defaming, defiling, delivered, denying, derogatory, desecration, district, down, drink, elder, executed, extract, faith, fake, feelings, fetch, field, filed, freed, General Secretary, girls, groups, grudges, handing, hanging, higher, Hindu, Hinduism, Hindus, hopes, humans, husband, ill, imam, impressed, imprisonment, incident, injuring, insulting, intended, internationally, Islam, isolation, Ittanwali, jail, Jesus, judge, Katherine Sapna, killed, Lahore, Lahore High Court, law, lawyer, leader, legitimate, life, local, lower, manner, Manzoor Qadir, members, minorities, mother, Muhammad, Muhammad Salim, Muslim, muslims, Nankana Sahib, National Commission for Justice and Peace, Naveed Ahmed Chaudhary, NCJP, non-Muslim, oldest, Operation World, outrage, overturned, Pakistan, Pakistani, people, Persecution, personal, places, police, possible, prayer, pressure, prison, proceedings, prophet, protection, punishable, Punjab Province, Quran, raised, rebuked, registered, religions, religious, renouncing, rescue, research, resolution, rights, sacrilegious, saved, scores, section 295-A, Section 295-B, section 295-C, sentence, sentenced, settle, Sharing Life Ministry, shocking, slogans, Sohail Johnson, speaking, statute, stunning, suddenly, suffering, tortured, trying, United Nations, use, verdict, vigilantes, visit, visiting, water, wife, willful, woman, women, workers, worship | Leave a comment
Recent Incidents of Persecution
Karnataka, India, June 30 (CDN) — Hindu extremists on June 23 beat two pastors, seriously injuring them in Chandapura, Anekal. The Evangelical Fellowship of India reported that after pastors Shidu Kurialose and Nithya Vachanam of Bethel Assembly of God Church conducted a Christian meeting in a home, armed extremists attacked them at a tea stall. The extremists accused the pastors of forceful conversion and started beating them with iron rods. Both pastors sustained serious injuries and were admitted in a local hospital. No police complaint was filed.
Tamil Nadu – After opposing a Christian convention on June 17-20, Hindu extremists from the Bajrang Dal on June 22 burned at least seven vehicles belonging to Jesus With Us Pentecostal Church in Mathikere, Hosur. The Global Council of Indian Christians reported that the incident started when the extremists on June 18 called on local authorities to revoke the organizers' permit and convinced local Hindu shop owners to close their stores. Police arrested five Hindu extremists in connection with anti-Christian violence. Subsequently, under police protection, Christians moved their meeting to another area eight kilometers (five miles) from the original site.
Uttar Pradesh – Hindu extremists from the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh disrupted the prayer meeting of the Jesus Church (Isha Garh) on June 21 in Firozabad and accused the pastor of forceful conversion. A source said the extremists forced their way into the church building and manhandled Pastor Breymond Shastri. The next day the extremists went to newspaper Amar Ujala with the accusation, and the local periodical published a false report that Pastor Shatri was taking part in forceful conversion activities. Area Christian leaders said no forceful conversion was taking place. The extremists warned the pastor he would be harmed if he continued to conduct worship services.
Uttar Pradesh – About eight Hindu extremists on June 20 disrupted the Sunday worship service of Apostolic Christian Assembly Church in Gorakpur. After shouting anti-Christian slogans outside the church building, the extremists stormed in and ranted against Christianity, putting a halt to the meeting as they accused the pastor of forceful conversion. Police arrived and chased the extremists away. At press time the extremists were still issuing threats to the pastor, warning him of harm if he continued conducting worship meetings, the Evangelical Fellowship of India reported. Police have provided protection to the pastor.
Karnataka – Based on a complaint by Hindu extremists against Christians of forceful conversion, Karnataka officials closed down a Christian orphanage on June 16 in Karwar. The Global Council of Indian Christians reported that state officials visited a school at the orphanage and issued a closure order to Spring of Hope Orphanage and Vocational Arts Training Centre, which has 61 tribal students. The home has been functioning for four years in an area long occupied by Siddi tribal Christians. At press time area Christian leaders were taking steps to resolve the conflict.
New Delhi – Suspected Islamic extremists beat an Afghani Christian, seriously injuring him, on June 14 in Malviya Nagar. A Christian source said two Islamic extremists on a motorbike beat Hamid Ullah on his head as he was walking home. The Christian fell on his stomach and the extremists continued to beat him, denigrating his faith, calling him "pagan" and warning him to convert to Islam or face harm. Afghani Christians have been facing warnings, threats and attacks in different areas of New Delhi, the source said, and the advocacy department of the Evangelical Fellowship of India has taken steps to help them.
Karnataka – After Hindu extremists from the Sri Ram Sena (Lord Ram Army) on June 9 attacked Pastor Vasanthe Kathedar of New India Church (NIC), police arrested him for allegedly creating communal disharmony and disrupting the peace – that is, practicing his Christian faith among Hindus – in Okkere, Belgaum. The Global Council of Indian Christians reported that the incident took place at the house of a NIC member where the Christians were meeting. The assault on the pastor lasted for about an hour and, as is customary in India, when police arrived they arrested and charged the victim of the crime.
Orissa – Hindu extremists from the Bajrang Dal on June 9 accused three Christians of forceful conversion and attacked them in Deogarh, Sambalpur. The Evangelical Fellowship of India reported that the incident took place when Hindu Biranchi Kistotta invited Pastor Lamuel Panaik, Pastor N. Philemon and Sudhir Kumar to celebrate the healing of his son, for whom Pastor Panaik had prayed. People of various faiths attended the celebration, including Hindu members of Kistotta's family. At about 12:30 p.m., seven Hindu extremists accompanied by media personnel suddenly arrived and called Pastor Patnaik to come out of his house. When the pastor refused, the extremists rushed in and forcefully pulled out the three Christians. The extremists accused them of forceful conversion and beat Sudhir Kumar while manhandling the two pastors. Police arrived and questioned those present about whether forceful conversion was taking place, and people came forward to say that the Christians were innocent. Police took the three Christians to the police station as a safety measure, however, and arranged for their return home at 10:30 p.m. No police complaint was filed as the Christians chose to forgive the attackers.
Orissa – Hindu extremists on June 8 brutally attacked a Christian and threatened to kill him in Nuapada. The Global Council of Indian Christians reported that six Hindu extremists armed with daggers and sticks broke into the house of Bhakta Bivar, 19, while his parents were at a prayer meeting. The extremists verbally abused Bivar for his faith and started beating him. They dragged him to a Hindu temple, where they told him to deny Jesus as they continued to beat him, forced on him food offered to idols and threatened to kill him and his parents if they did not convert to Hinduism. The extremists burned four Bibles they had taken from his home and, forcing him to wear a saffron garment symbolic of the Hindu religion, dragged him out to the street, falsely announcing that he had returned to Hinduism. The extremists left after threatening to kill him if he continued to believe in Christ, as they have forbidden the existence of Christianity in the area. Following the filing of a complaint with police, five Hindu extremists were arrested the next day.
Karnataka – Police on June 7 arrested two Christian women after Hindu extremists from the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh disrupted Sunday worship in Bovi Colony, Chickmagalur. According to the Evangelical Fellowship of India, the extremists barged into a church's worship service and accused Kadaur Devaki and a pastor identified only as Lalathamma of creating communal disharmony and disrupting the peace. Police soon arrived and arrested the two women for "deliberate and malicious acts to outrage religious feelings" and sent them to Hassan Jail.
Tamil Nadu – Hindu extremists from a religious and cultural organization formed to defend the Hindu religion, the Hindu Munnani, demolished a church building under construction on May 28 near Rameshwaram. Catholic sources said the demolition came after a local Hindu Munnani leader identified only as Ramamurthy filed a complaint against construction of the building. Government officials sided with the Hindu extremists, claiming that the one church building, St. Anthony church, already existed and that a new one would create tensions. The structure was demolished, leaving area Christians shocked and shaken.
Chhattisgarh – Hindu extremists from the Bajrang Dal attacked a Christian school program from May 20 to May 29 in Jagbalput, beating a pastor and two teachers on May 27. Beaten were Pastor Rahul Pant and two teachers from Mission India. A source told Compass the extremists accused the Christians of forceful conversion and of using a government school for the Christian program, called Children Development Program (CDP), without permission. They also accused the Christians of distributing books containing conversion activities (biblical narratives). The extremists took the Christians to a police station, where officers questioned them. The Christians said they had permission from the village head, but the assailants said they need permission from the local collector. The parties reached an agreement wherein the Christians were forced to stop the CDP in the government school until they obtain the collector's permission. The Christians were released without charges.
Karnataka – Opposing a church leader for conducting prayer meetings in his house, Karnataka police on May 26 verbally abused pastor Shiva Kumar and warned him not to conduct further Christian meetings in Mysore. The Global Council of Indian Christians reported that at about 7 p.m. police summoned Pastor Kumar and detained him until 10:30 p.m. Police forcefully obtained a written statement from the pastor, took his photograph and warned him not to conduct any Christian activities in the area.
Andhra Pradesh – Hindu extremists accused Pastor T. Paul of forceful conversion and beat him on May 24 in Narayanpet, Mahabubnagar, seriously injuring him. The All India Christian Council reported the Hindu extremists stopped Pastor Paul as he returned home in a Jeep after conducting a worship meeting. The extremists stopped his vehicle and dragged him out before beating him and accusing him of forceful conversion. The pastor received hospital treatment for internal injuries. Area Christian leaders have asked police to arrest the assailants.
Posted in Assemblies of God, Christianity, Hinduism, India, Islam, Roman Catholicism	| Tagged abused, accompanied, accusation, accused, activities, Acts, admitted, advocacu, Afghani, agreement, allegedly, Amar Ujala, Andhra Pradesh, Anekal, announcing, anti-Christian, Apostolic Christian Assembly Church, armed, arrest, arrested, arrived, asked, assailants, assault, attacked, attackers, attacks, attended, authorities, away, Bajrang Dal, barged, beat, beating, Belgaum, believe, belonging, Bethel Assembly of God Church, Bhakta Bivar, Bibles, Biblical, Biranchi Kistotta, Books, Bovi Colony, Breymond Shastri, brutally, building, burned, called, CDP, celebrate, celebration, Chandapura, charged, charges, chased, Chhattisgarh, Chickmagalur, Children Development Program, chose, Christ, Christian, Christianity, Christians, church, claiming, close, closed, closure, collector, communal, complaint, conducted, conflict, connection, construction, containing, continued, convention, conversion, convert, convinced, creating, crime, cultural, customary, daggers, defend, deliberate, demolition, demoloshed, denigrating, deny, Deogarh, department, detained, different, disharmony, disrupted, disrupting, distributing, down, dragged, Evangelical Fellowship of India, existed, existence, extremists, faith, faiths, false, falsely, family, feelings, fell, filed, Firozabad, food, forbidden, forced, forceful, forgive, formed, functioning, garment, Global Council of Indian Christians, Gorakpur, government, halt, Hamid Ullah, harm, harmed, Hassan Jail, head, healing, Hindu, Hindu Munnani, Hindus, Hinuism, home, hospital, Hosur, house, identified, idols, incident, incidents, India, injuries, injuring, innocent, invited, iron, Isha Garh, Islam, Islamic, issuing, Jagbalput, jeep, Jesus, Jesus Church, Jesus With Us Pentecostal Church, Kadaur Devaki, Karnataka, Karwar, kill, Lalathamma, Lamuel Panaik, leader, leaders, leaving, local, Lord Ram Army, Mahabubnagar, malicious, Malviya Nagar, manhandled, Mathikere, measure, media, meeting, member, Mission India, motorbike, moved, Muslim, muslims, Mysore, N. Philemon, Narayanpet, narratives, need, new, New Delhi, New India Church, newspaper, NIC, Nithya Vachanam, Nuapada, obtain, obtained, occupied, offered, officials, offisers, Okkere, opposing, order, organization, organizers, original, Orissa, orphanage, outrage, outside, owners, Pagan, parents, part, parties, pastors, peace, people, periodical, permission, permit, Persecution, personnel, photograph, police, police station, practicing, prayed, prayer meeting, present, press time, program, protection, provided, published, pulled, questioned, Rahul Pant, Ramamurthy, Rameshwaram, ranted, Rashtriya Sangh, reached, received, recent, refused, released, religion, religious, report, reported, resolve, returned, revoke, rods, Roman Catholic, Roman Catholicism, Roman Catholics, RSS, rushed, safety, saffron, Sambalpur, school, serious, seriously, services, shaken, Shidu Kurialose, Shiva Kumar, shocked, shop, shouting, Siddi, sided, site, slogans, son, Spring of Hope Orphanage and Vocational Arts training Centre, Sri Ram Sena, St. Anthony, stall, started, state, statement, steps, sticks, stomach, stop, stopped, stores, stormed, street, structure, students, suddenly, Sudhir Kumar, summoned, Sunday, suspected, sustained, symbolic, T. Paul, taking, Tamil Nadu, tea, teachers, temple, tensions, threatened, threats, treatment, tribal, Uttar Pradesh, various, Vasanthe Kathedar, vehicle, vehicles, verbally, victim, village, violence, visited, walking, warned, way, wear, women, worship, written | Leave a comment
Lao Christians Expelled from Village Suffer Critical Illnesses
One dead, two hospitalized; village chief threatens other residents.
DUBLIN, May 14 (CDN) — In spite of assurances of religious rights by officials in March, Lao Christians expelled from a village in Saravan Province in January are suffering from a prolonged lack of adequate food and clean water.
The lack of basic resources has led to diarrhea, dehydration, eye and skin infections, fainting and general weakness for the Christians expelled from Katin village, and one person has died, Human Rights Watch for Lao Religious Freedom (HRWLRF) reported.
A Christian who went by the single name of Ampheng died suddenly in April while praying for one of two other Christians who were hospitalized with illnesses caused by their living conditions, an HRWLRF spokesman told Compass. The exact cause and date of Ampheng's death were not immediately known.
Expelled from their village at gunpoint on Jan. 18 for failing to renounce their faith, the 48 Christians were forced to build temporary shelters at the edge of the jungle, about six kilometers (nearly four miles) away from the village.
They have since survived on food found in the jungle and water from a hand-dug well that is unfit for cooking or drinking, sources told HRWLRF.
District officials in early May gave the Christians permission to return to Katin village and take rice from their family rice barns to prevent starvation, said another source on condition of anonymity.
In addition, some of the Christians have returned to tend their family rice fields, fearing that if the fields are completely abandoned they may lose the right to cultivate them next year. Water buffaloes essential for farm work, however, were confiscated in January along with the Christians' homes and registration papers, according to HRWLRF.
When the Christians interred Ampheng at the local burial ground, district officials fined them for failing to produce the required proof of house registration, according to HRWLRF.
Katin's village chief recently warned other residents that their personal possessions would be confiscated if they had any contact with the expelled Christians. If any family continued to maintain contact despite repeated warnings, their own homes would be torn down, the chief reportedly said.
Official reactions to the plight of the Christians have been mixed. In March, a delegation of provincial and district officials led by Gov. Khamboon Duangpanya visited the Christians at their jungle site and assured them of their legal right to embrace the faith of their choice and to live anywhere in the district.
Just days earlier, however, the district head, identified only as Bounma, summoned seven of the Christians to his office and said that he would not tolerate the existence of Christianity in areas under his control. (See "Lao Officials Visit Expelled Christians, Give Assurances," March 19.)
High level officials failed to intervene last July when villagers seized a Christian identified only as Pew and poured rice wine down his throat, killing him by asphyxiation. Village officials later fined Pew's family for erecting a cross on his grave, and then detained 80 Christians in a school compound, denying them food and pressuring them to renounce their faith.
The heads of 13 families then signed documents renouncing Christianity in order to protect their children, but most resumed attendance at worship meetings within a few months.
Provincial officials did call a meeting in September 2008 asking Katin authorities to respect Lao religious laws and allow the Christians freedom to worship, but their request was ignored.
A communist country, Laos is 1.5 percent Christian and 67 percent Buddhist, with the remainder unspecified. Article 6 and Article 30 of the Lao Constitution guarantees the right of Christians and other religious minorities to practice the religion of their choice without discrimination or penalty.
Posted in Buddhism, Christianity, Communism, Laos	| Tagged abandoned, adequate, allow, Ampheng, anonymity, anywhere, areas, Article 30, Article 6, asphyxiation, assurances, assured, attendance, authorities, away, barns, basic, Bounma, Buddhism, Buddhist, Buddhists, buffaloes, build, burial, cause, caused, chief, children, choice, Christian, Christianity, Christians, clean, Communism, communist, communists, completely, compound, condition, conditions, confiscated, constitution, contact, continued, control, cooking, country, critical, cross, cultivate, date, dead, death, dehydration, delegation, denying, despite, diarrhea, died, Discrimination, district, documents, down, drinking, edge, embrace, erecting, essential, exact, existence, expelled, eye, failed, failing, fainting, faith, families, family, farm, fearing, fields, fined, food, forced, found, freedom, general, Gov, grave, ground, guarantees, gunpoint, hand-dug, head, high, homes, hospitalized, HRWLRF, Human Rights Watch for Lao Religious Freedom, identified, ignored, illnesses, immediately, infections, interred, intervene, jungle, Katin, Khamboon Duangpanya, killing, known, lack, Lao, Laos, later, laws, legal, level, living, local, lose, maintain, meeting, meetings, minorities, mixed, name, office, officials, papers, penalty, permission, Persecution, person, personal, Pew, plight, possessions, poured, practice, praying, pressuring, prevent, produce, prolonged, proof, protect, provincial, reactions, recently, registration, religion, religious, remainder, renounce, renouncing, repeated, required, residents, resources, respect, resumed, return, rice, right, rights, Saravan Province, school, seized, shelters, signed, single, site, skin, source, spite, starvation, suddenly, suffer, suffering, summoned, survived, temporary, tend, threatens, throat, tolerate, torn, unfit, unspecified, village, villagers, visited, warned, water, weakness, well, wine, without, work, worship | Leave a comment
Lunar missions could prove creation true
Current space programs may set their sights on Mars, but a team of astronomers and a biochemist at the science-faith think tank Reasons To Believe (RTB) publicly encourage NASA and other space agencies to revisit the lunar surface—to look for the remains of Earth's oldest life-forms, reports Maureen Bell and Kathy Ross, special to ASSIST News Service.
Astronomer and RTB president Hugh Ross says, "The Apollo program helped researchers solve the mystery of the Moon's origin. Return missions to the Moon could solve the mystery of life's origin."
According to biochemist Fazale Rana, "Chemical signatures confirm life was present on Earth in fair abundance back to 3.8 billion years ago." What's missing, he says, are the fossils. "Wind and water erosion and plate tectonics have destroyed the fossils of Earth's first life. [But] there are good reasons to expect them in abundance in pristine forms on the Moon."
Ross and fellow astronomer Jeff Zweerink point out that when the Earth was young, it was "bombarded" by asteroids and large meteorites. "These collisions sent large amounts of the Earth's surface material into outer space, and much of that material landed on the Moon—about a million kilograms on every 100 square kilometers of the Moon's surface."
New research by British earth scientist Ian Crawford indicates that at least some of this Earth material made it to the Moon with its fossil structures still intact. Crawford affirms that "substantial survivability is to be expected."
In their book Origins of Life, Rana and Ross present their model for the origin of life. This model, totally compatible with the Bible, predicts that (1) Earth's first life would be both complex and diverse; and (2) the origin of life occurred suddenly, as soon as Earth's physical conditions permitted. Non-theistic models predict the opposite.
As Ross stated in a lecture at NASA's Johnson Space Center in Houston, "We are thrilled with the prospect that lunar missions could put our creation model to the test, either affirming or showing us wrong. Finding and analyzing pristine fossils of Earth's first life could help settle, finally, one of the great creation-evolution controversies."
About Reasons To Believe
Reasons To Believe is a California-based science-faith think tank. Founded by Hugh Ross in 1986, the organization strives to demonstrate that science and faith are, and always will be, allies, not enemies. Through myriad resources—including books, print periodicals, podcasts, and a content-rich website—speaking engagements, and radio and TV interviews, RTB scholars present reasons for confidence in the findings of science and in the authority of the Bible. For more information and resources, visit www.reasons.org
Posted in Bible, California, Christianity, Evolution, science and research, Space, United Kingdom	| Tagged 1986, abundance, affirming, agencies, allies, amounts, analyzing, Apollo, asteroids, astronomer, astronomers, authority, based, Bible, biochemist, bombarded, book, British, California, chemical, collisions, compatible, complex, conditions, confidence, confirm, content, controversies, creation, current, demonstrate, destroyed, diverse, earth, encourage, enemies, engagements, erosion, Evolution, expect, expected, fair, faith, Fazale Rana, finding, first, forms, fossils, founded, good, great, help, helped, Houston, Hugh Ross, Ian Crawford, indicates, information, intact, interviews, Jeff Zweerink, Johnson Space Center, landed, large, lecture, life, life-forms, look, lunar, Mars, material, meteorites, missing, missions, model, Moon, myriad, mystery, NASA, non-theistic, occured, oldest, opposite, organization, origin, Origins of Life, outer, periodicals, permitted, physical, plate, podcasts, predicts, present, President, print, pristine, programs, prospect, prove, publicly, radio, reasons, Reasons To Believe, remains, researchers, resources, return, revisit, rich, RTB, scholars, science, science-faith, scientist, set, settle, showing, sights, signatures, solve, Space, speaking, strives, structures, substantial, suddenly, surface, survivability, team, tectonics, test, think tank, thrilled, totally, true, TV, water, Website, wind, wrong, young | Leave a comment
ISRAEL: CHURCH SHOWERED WITH STONES IN NORTH
With attacks mounting, parishioners fear hostilities could escalate.
MIGDAL HA-EMEQ, Israel, June 22
(Compass Direct News) – When the congregation at St. Nicolay church in this northern Israeli town gathered on that quiet Friday morning of May 29, they never expected to be showered with stones.
The Russian Orthodox worshipers, including many women, children and the elderly, had filled the small building to overflow with several outside when they were stunned by the rain of stones. Some were injured and received medical care.
"The church was crawling with people – the worshipers stood not only inside the church, but also outside, as the building is very small, when suddenly a few young men started throwing stones at the direction of our courtyard," Oleg Usenkov, press secretary of the church told Compass. "Young children were crying, everyone was very frightened."
The church had also been attacked earlier that week, during a wedding ceremony. Stones and rotten eggs were thrown from the street, hitting guests as they arrived.
The same night, the Rev. Roman Radwan, priest of St. Nicolay church, filed a complaint at the police station. An officer issued a document to confirm that he had filed an official complaint and sent him home, promising that measures would be taken. But within 24 hours, the attackers again appeared at the church's doorway and no police were present to deter them – although the police station is located a few dozen meters from the church.
The identity of the assailants is unknown – a police officer said the complaint "lacked the exact description of the attackers" – but eye-witnesses claimed they were ultra-orthodox yeshiva students who frequently cursed the church on their way to the school or synagogue.
"They often assault us verbally, curse and yell at us, although we tried to explain that this is a place of worship, a holy place," said a frustrated Usenkov, adding that the police inaction amounts to nonfeasance.
Another member of the congregation identified only as Nina, born in Moscow and now living in Nazeret Ilit, said that she didn't understand where all the hatred is coming from.
"They are heading to the yeshiva or going back home after praying at the synagogue – are they inspired to attack us during their prayers?" she said. "I hope not. We are all Israeli citizens, we pay taxes, serve in the army and are entitled to freedom of choice when it comes to religion."
She and other members of the congregation fear hostilities could escalate quickly if measures are not taken soon. Already the small building, which barely accommodates the worshipers, is surrounded by a stone fence by order of Migdal ha-Emeq officials following a series of arson attempts and other attacks.
Members of the congregation, a few hundred Christians from Migdal ha-Emeq, Afula, Haifa, Nazareth and other Israeli cities still remember how their building was vandalized in June 2006. Under cover of darkness, unidentified men broke in and broke icons and modest decorations, smashed windows and stole crosses.
The identity of those responsible remains unknown.
Established in 2005, the church building was constructed to meet the needs of Christians who do not belong to the Arab Christian minority, mostly Russians who came to Israel from the former Soviet Union in the 1990s. Besides the Christians, these immigrants included other non-Jews, as well as atheistic Jews and Jewish converts to Christianity.
No official data on religious make-up of the immigrants are available, especially since many fear deportation or persecution for talking openly about their faith, but Usenkov – a Russian Jew who converted to Christianity after immigrating to Israel in the 1990s – said he believes there are at least 300,000 Christians of Russian or Russian-Jewish origin who live in Israel today.
According to Israeli law, non-Jewish relatives of a Jew are also entitled to citizenship, but Jews who have converted to other faiths are denied it.
Most of the Russian and Russian-Jewish Christians in Israel belong to the Russian Orthodox Church and find it difficult to adjust to Greek or Arabic services common in the Greek Orthodox churches of Israel. Since St. Nicolay's church opened its doors, hundreds of worshipers from across Israel have visited it.
"Many people fear they might pass away without seeing a priest, or they dream of a Christian wedding service," said Radwan, an Israeli-Arab whose family once owned the land on which the St. Nicolay church is located. "Here we can answer their needs. We do not want to harm anyone and wish that no one would harm us."
Posted in Christianity, Islam, Israel, Jews	| Tagged 2005, accomodates, according, across, adjust, Afula, amounts, answer, appeared, Arab, Arabic, army, arrived, arson, assailants, atheistic, attack, attacked, attackers, attacks, attempts, barely, believes, belong, born, broke, building, care, ceremony, children, choice, Christian, Christianity, Christians, church, churches, cities, citizens, citizenship, claimed, common, complaint, confirm, congregation, constructed, converted, converts, courtyard, cover, crawling, crosses, crying, cursed, darkness, data, decorations, denied, deportation, description, deter, difficult, direction, document, doors, doorway, dream, earlier, elderly, entitled, escalate, established, exact, expected, eye-witnesses, faith, faiths, family, fear, fense, filed, filled, former, freedom, frequently, Friday, frightened, frustrated, gathered, Greek, Greek Orthodox, guests, Haifa, harm, hatred, heading, hitting, Holy, home, hope, hostilities, icons, identity, immigrants, immigrating, inaction, including, injured, inside, inspired, Israel, Israeli, issued, Jewish, lacked, land, law, live, located, make-up, measures, medical, meet, member, men, Migdal Ha-Emeq, minority, modest, morning, Moscow, mounting, Nazareth, Nazeret Ilit, needs, night, Nina, non-Jews, nonfeasance, north, northern, officer, official, Oleg Usenkov, opened, openly, origin, Orthodox, outside, overflow, owned, parishioners, pay, people, Persecution, place, police, police station, prayers, praying, present, press secretary, priest, promising, quickly, quiet, rain, received, relatives, religion, remains, remember, responsible, rev. Roman Radwan, rotten eggs, Russian, Russians, school, series, serve, services, showered, small, smashed, Soviet Union, St. Nicolay Church, started, stole, stones, street, students, stunned, suddenly, surrounded, synagogue, taken, talking, taxes, throwing, thrown, town, ultra-orthodox, understand, unidentified, unknown, vandalized, verbally, visited, way, wedding, week, windows, wish, women, worshippers, yell, yeshiva, young | Leave a comment
INDIA: PRAYER TEAM BEATEN MERCILESSLY – THEN ARRESTED
Two Christians in Chhattisgarh forced to beat fellow believer unconscious under threat of death.
NEW DELHI, October 13 (Compass Direct News) – The Christian community of Chhattisgarh state is rattled after a gruesome mob attack and torture in Surguja district.
At midnight on Oct. 3 in Dumarbhavna village, 110 kilometers (68 miles) from Premnagar, three jeeps full of Hindu nationalists broke open the door of a house where a three-day prayer meeting was taking place and attacked participants as they slept – ultimately forcing two Christians to beat one of their own prayer partners unconscious under threat of death.
The mob from the Hindu extremist Dharma Sena (Religious Army) beat the participants in the prayer meeting, including women, and dragged three of them from the house of Parmeshwar Beik, dumping them into the jeeps.
"We thought that they were taken to the police station, but instead they were taken to a secluded place where they were beaten all night," Yahoshu Kujur, pastor of Blessing Church of God, told Compass.
Muneshwar Ekka and Beik were beaten first, and then the Hindu nationalists ordered them to beat the third captured Christian, Ravi Devangan.
"They threatened to kill us if we did not beat Ravi," Beik told Pastor Kujur. "We were so scared and left with no option, so we beat Ravi until he dropped unconscious."
After failing to find the three Christians at the local police station the next morning, the pastor found them at the Srinagar Government Hospital, where Devangan was admitted with internal injuries and injuries to his chest, legs and other parts of the body.
"Ravi, who is a driver by profession, was just visiting Parmeshwar from Mehagai village," Pastor Kujur said. "He was the worst hit, at home and outside during the attack."
He added that Devangan's wife witnessed the attack on the house.
Police Inaction
Pastor Kujur told Compass that police admitted all three kidnapped Christians to the Srinagar Government Hospital with Devangan in serious condition and the other two in shock.
Beik's wife also sustained internal injuries during the attack, Pastor Kujur said.
"Mr. Ashok Sahu and four other local Christian leaders went on the morning of Oct. 4 and reported the matter at the police station, but so far no action has been taken," the pastor said.
Police reportedly deceived local Christians into believing that no complaint would be filed against the prayer team members for "forced conversion" if they would agree not to file any complaints against the Hindu nationalists.
"They told us that they would set the three free if we did that," Pastor Kujur told Compass.
Instead police registered a case of "forced conversion" against the three Christians under sections 3 and 4 of the Chhattisgarh Dharma Swantantraya Adhiniyam (Chhattisgarh Freedom of Religion Bill).
If convicted, the Christians could be sentenced up to a year in prison and/or pay a fine of up to 5,000 rupees (US$100). They appeared in Surajpur local court on Oct. 6. A fourth Christian, Fakir Chand Toppo, was also falsely implicated, Pastor Kujur said.
At press time all four Christians were in Surajpur jail, though attempts to secure bail for them continued.
Political Influence
Pastor Kujur said police officers who are friends of his informed him that police were forced to prosecute the Christians on "orders from above."
Internal police sources told him, he added, that police in the state were working against Christians under Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) pressure that has the support of the Chief Minister Raman Singh.
Christians from Surajpur have received news from sources who wish to remain anonymous that, emboldened by the BJP government that rules the state, Hindu nationalists have announced a cash award of 100,000 rupees (US$2,092) to anyone who murders a Christian preacher.
In Premnagar, also in Surguja district, Hindu extremist mobs have mounted similar attacks, Pastor Kujur said. He told Compass that in 2004 a Christian convention was attacked during which a mob surrounded the venue and shouted anti-Christian slogans. Police intervention averted casualties.
In another incident in 2005, Hindu extremists incited villagers of Premnagar to attack local Christians, reportedly wounding many.
The Dharma Sena was relatively unknown until nearly three years ago, emerging suddenly in the central Indian states of Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh.
Attacking Christians throughout the two states, the Hindus extremist group is reportedly backed heavily by the BJP, with BJP leaders pressuring police officials not to register any First Information Reports against it.
It is widely believed that the Dharma Sena is nothing more than the Hindu extremist youth group Bajrang Dal in another form.
Posted in Christianity, India	| Tagged action, admitted, announced, anonymous, anti-Christian, appeared, army, arrested, Ashok Sahu, attack, attacked, attacks, attempts, averted, award, backed, bail, beat, beaten, believer, believing, Bharatiya Janata Party, BJP, Blessing Church of God, body, broke, captured, case, cash, casualties, central, chest, Chhattisgarh, Chhattisgarh Dharma Swantantraya Adhiniyam, Chhattisgarh Freedom of Religion Bill, Chief Minister, Christian, Christianity, Christians, community, Compass, complaint, condition, continued, convention, conversion, convicted, court, death, deceived, Dharma Sena, district, door, dragged, driver, dropped, Dumarbhavna, dumping, emboldened, emerging, extremist, failing, Fakir Chand Toppo, falsely, fellow, filed, fine, First Information Reports, forced, forcing, form, free, friends, full, government, gruesome, heavily, Hindu, Hinduism, Hindus, hit, house, implicated, inaction, incident, incited, India, Indian, influence, informed, injuries, internal, intervention, jail, jeeps, kill, leaders, legs, local, Madhya Pradesh, meeting, Mehagai, members, mercilessly, midnight, mob, mobs, mounted, Muneshwar Ekka, murders, nationalists, New Delhi, news, night, officers, officials, open, option, ordered, orders, Parmeshwar Beik, participants, partners, Pastor, pay, Persecution, police, political, prayer, preacher, Premnagar, press, pressure, pressuring, prison, profession, prosecute, Raman Singh, rattled, Ravi Devangan, register, registered, religious, remain, reported, reportedly, rules, rupees, scared, secluded, secure, sentenced, serious, shock, shouted, slept, slogans, sources, Srinagar Government Hospital, state, states, station, suddenly, support, Surajpur, Surguja, surrounded, sustained, team, threat, time, torture, unconscious, unknown, venue, village, villagers, visiting, wife, witnessed, women, worst, wounding, Yahoshu Kujur, youth group | Leave a comment


text:
Exposing Washington's Obsession with Nuclear Supremacy and Its Decline as a Military Power
Posted on March 28, 2019 March 29, 2019 by Dave LIndorff
Losing Military Supremacy: The myopia of American strategic planning Author: Andrei Martyanov Clarity Press, Atlanta, 2018
By Ron Ridenour
When I first heard of Andrei Martyanov, I was skeptical about his intentions. Born in Baku, Azerbaijan, USSR, 1963, he became a naval officer and expert on Russian military and naval issues. He took part in conflicts in the Caucasus. In mid-1990s, he moved to the US for reasons unstated in print. He currently works as laboratory director of a commercial aerospace group, and blogs on the US Naval Institute Blog and on the other side of the fence, at unz.com.
This is not a typical leftist or peace activist, but after reading his book and a piece on the website of the world's most aggressive naval institution, I surmise that this Russian-American seeks to influence the avaricious eagle into realizing that warring against the cautious bear would not achieve success for anyone. Here is his conclusion of that blog piece:
"Today, the Russian Navy is on its way to becoming a leaner and more potent…version of its former Soviet self, capable of carrying out any task in defense of its country. By doing so, the Russian Navy has finally found its mission. Considering Russia's immense and tragic experience with warfare, such an accomplishment is no small feat. Especially in the absence of a coherent navy specific doctrine." https://blog.usni.org/posts/2017/06/01/russian-navy-mission-found
This statement is in keeping with what Martyanov sees as his book's key mission: to assist his native country in defending its national sovereignty, which entails acting to prevent a nuclear world war. As he states in the conclusion of his book, Losing Military Supremacy, he is most worried that it is the United States that will pull the trigger to set off world war III.
"The main task today is to prevent by all means any possibility of this delusional, self-proclaimed exceptional nation unleashing Armageddon because of frustration with its own weakness…" so well exposed by now.
Martyanov refers to the fact that despite all the hubris, the US has failed to win most of the wars it has started since WWII. Korea was a stalemate. It lost to Vietnam/Cambodia/Laos. Afghanistan will never be conquered. The victory over a much inferior Iraqi military largely destroyed the cradle of civilization and left nearly all its people hating the US. The current government wants the US out of its country and is allied with Iran, a country the US government sees as an enemy. The US got rid of Libya's leader Muamar Gaddafi only to have him replaced by three internally fighting self-declared governments, whose extremist Muslims wantonly murder, smuggle and enslave people. The once richest people in Africa are now among the poorest. The US has divided people in Syria, and also in Ukraine where they installed a neo-fascist following a US-orchestrated and funded coup government.
The US's military thinks in terms of offensive weaponry and strategy much more than in defensive ones. It couldn't even defend its most hallowed buildings, including the New York World Trade Center and Pentagon, from 19 terrorists in 2001. Seventy percent of US military funding goes towards fighting wars abroad started or stoked by the US with a goal oft taking or controlling other lands' resources.
That reality is based on what I call an "America Über Alles" mentally ingrained in nearly every person born in the country from babyhood. Former Ronald Reagan treasury assistant secretary Paul Craig Roberts puts it this way: "The arrogant hubris of American exceptionalism and the myths that sustain it are subjected to devastating analysis in this long overdue book."
Martyanov demonstrates, using facts, documentation, and policies, that the US has always opposed the very existence of Russia, geographically the world's largest country with self-sustaining resources. Washington has lied that it was the victor in WWII, alongside Britain. All evidence points, though, to the contrary: The victorious Soviet Union's Red Army defeated the elite Wehrmacht forces on the Eastern Front and moved on into Europe as the main force attacking the Third Reich. The USSR also aided the US in defeating the Japanese by sending nearly a million troops to Hokkaido, keeping its promise Stalin made to President Roosevelt.
Martyanov cites Hans Morgenthau to explain this peculiar American geopolitical "realism". As one of its founding fathers, Morgenthau told his audience at the US Naval War College, in 1957:
"…that if the czars still reigned in Russia, that if Lenin had died of the measles at an early age, that if Stalin had never been heard of, but the power of the Soviet Union were exactly what it is today, the problem of Russia would be for us by and large what it is today. If the Russian armies stood exactly where they stand today, and if Russian technological development were what it is today, we would be by and large confronted with the same problems which confront us today."
Regardless of the crimes of Stalin against many of his people, he stood for "socialism in one country", and the "containment" policy of US governments during the Cold War, which was started by Churchill and Truman not Stalin, did not bother the Soviet leadership. Throughout the world where there were uprisings against tyrants and struggles for socialism, the Soviets always cautioned them. In contrast, it was the US that extended its territory or area of influence in a neo-colonial manner, what we call imperialism, not necessarily by occupying land but by controlling the resources and foreign policies of much of the world, including the former European colonialists.
Martyanov writes:
"The Soviet Navy, like the modern Russian Navy today, was built largely for a single purpose: to prevent a NATO attack on the USSR from the sea. Power projection in its classic, US Navy interpretation, was the last thing in mind for Soviet strategists. There simply was no intent to start a war; the intent was to prevent it.
"Russia does have the capability to deal major damage to NATO's European members but, apart from Article 5 of the NATO treaty, which would bring the United States into the conflict, even if there hadn't been such an article, the immediate question is: Why would Russia attack or damage European countries which are worth way more for Russia free and prosperous than they would be if damaged and theoretically, subjugated?
"To achieve the needed capacity and public support for such an intent [war], the United States needs to run a very tight routine. It has to simultaneously present, sometimes by gross inflation, a set of threats to itself…while nonetheless insisting on American overwhelming military superiority over any power. It is a very schizophrenic policy requiring a constant reconciliation of opposites: If one claims itself to be almost omnipotent militarily, as the US does non-stop, it is really difficult to prove that one is also and simultaneously very vulnerable. In some psychiatric sense it is very close to the more specific Russophrenia phenomenon, where Russia is simultaneously about to collapse and about to overtake the US, and the combined West. It is a classic Orwellian scenario from Nineteen Eighty-Four, which also involves such ideological imperatives as hate sessions and public affirmation of one's loyalty to the powers that be.
"The list of America's military interventions in the last 70 years is unrivaled. It is no surprise then that the US consistently tops a wide range of global public opinion polls as the main threat to the world peace. No other nation can undertake such a massive range of wars all over the globe as does the US."
The chronic lying that politicians and the US mass media spew forth, such as that engaging in and winning wars is done the name of human rights, continue undiluted. Today, it is the Trump government that claims victory over IS in Syria when, in reality, the US did little to effectively fight IS or al Qaeda. Rather it was the determination of the Russian government and military not to allow Syria to fall into the hands of those terrorists that did the job. When the US military did engage in fighting these extremist terrorists its own forces worked at cross purposes. The reality of competition between the US Army and Navy, and between the US military and the deep state CIA, often resulted in one group of US-supported terrorists fighting another US-supported group of terrorists.
The whole foundation of Russiagate is also based on lies. When Vladimir Putin became president he, like his drunken predecessor Boris Yeltsin, sought to be friends and even an ally with the US. Putin even discussed with George Bush the possibility of Russia joining NATO and EU, proposals which US deep state leaders rejected. Nevertheless, Putin offered Bush his support in his war against Afghanistan. The one key difference between Yeltsin and Putin was (is) that the latter acted to reverse the disastrous economic policies of the Yeltsin-Clinton team, which raped Russia of its gold and resources (increasing poverty from 1.5% to 50% of the population). Putin acted to regain national sovereignty with a robust capitalist economy in which the rich actually pay taxes .
Bush rewarded Putin for his efforts to revive the Russian economy by abolishing the all-important Anti-Ballistic Missile treaty reached between another Republican conservative, President Richard Nixon, and then Soviet leader Leonid Brezhnev, in 1972. Bush also allowed the CIA to stir up terrorist conflicts with Russia, such as Chechnya.
Bush senior advisor Karl Rove summarized the essence of US foreign policy saying:
"We're an empire now, and when we act, we create our own reality. And while you're studying that reality—judiciously, as you will—we'll act again, creating other new realities, which you can study too, and that's how things will sort out. We're history's actors . . . and you, all of you, will be left to just study what we do." (NYT Magazine, October 17, 2004)
It took the cautious, disciplined Russian leader seven years before he finally saw that building a friendship/alliance with the US was not possible. In 2007, Putin gave his landmark speech in Munich in which he merely stated the obvious.
"The fundamental principles on which US foreign policy was built were unilateralism based on both real and perceived national power, and that he rejected that", writes Martyanov. But Putin's realistic assessment of the situation got mischaracterized by the "war hero" Senator John McCain as being "the most aggressive remarks by a Russian leader since the end of the Cold War."
Putin saw that US foreign policy is built on the concept of military supremacy, so he embarked on a policy of rearming the Russian military to defend the country against any aggressions launched by the US. Already by the next year, 2008, he let the US know that Russia would not allow it to bring Georgia or the Ukraine into NATO, which would have surrounded Russia all the more.
Russia didn't attack Georgia first, another US lie. Even the former National Security Adviser and Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice later admitted that it was Georgia, which started that war.
South Ossetia and Abkhazia were independent states that Georgian President Mikjail Saakashvili attacked, killing many of resistance fighters and some Russian troops before Russia fired backed. The Russo-Georgian War demonstrated that Russia's conventional military power mattered. In August 2008, Russia sent an army to Georgia of equal size to Georgia's, which had been poorly trained by the US/NATO, and defeated it in four days.
Besides the issue of the NATO alliance, the US wanted to use Georgia as a pipeline for oil as it had demanded of Afghanistan in 2001, and as it tried with Syria in 2009. The Taleban government of said no and the US invaded. Assad said no, and the US organized a rebellion against his government in 2011. It got its pipeline through Georgia in 2005—piping crude oil from Caspian Sea to the Mediterranean Sea. But the US is never satisfied, that's what "globalization" is all about.
The most unique aspect of Martyanov's book in relationship to many other informative, truthful books coming from alternative publishers about Russia/Soviet and US relations, is that this author, a military expert, analyzes the military forces of both countries and shows who has what capabilities militarily.
Russia's Modern Weaponry
"During all these years since the unilateral U.S. withdrawal from the ABM Treaty," Putin explained in his 2018 State of the Nation address, "we have been working intensively on advanced equipment and arms, which allowed us to make a breakthrough in developing new models of strategic weapons. Those technological breakthroughs are now here. Sadly, we never got the diplomatic ones we needed."
Putin's message was clear: "You didn't listen to us then but you will listen to us now".
Martyanov maintains that today there is parity in military capacity:
"1) The United States military in future conflicts will have to deal, in the case of conventional conflict against a near-peer, let alone peer, with an adversary who will have C4ISR [Command, Control, Communications, Computers, Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance] capability either approaching that or on par with that of the US.
"2) US real and perceived advantage in electronic means of warfare (EW) will be greatly reduced or completely suppressed by present and future EW means of the adversary thus forcing US forces to fight under the conditions of partial or complete electronic blindness and with partially or completely
suppressed communications and computer networks.
"3) The US will encounter combat technologies not only on par but often better designed and used, from armor to artillery, to hyper-sonic anti-shipping missiles, than anything the US military has ever encountered.
"4) Modern air-forces and complex advanced air defense systems will make the main pillar of US military power—its Air Force—much less effective.
"5) Today the US military will have to deal with the grim reality of its staging areas, rear supply facilities and lines of communications being the target of massive salvos of long-range high subsonic, supersonic and hypersonic missiles. The US military has never encountered such a paradigm in its history."
I do not have the knowledge or the space to detail and judge the many weapons that Martyanov includes in his book to show that the US is not capable of winning a conventional war, or that many weapons Russia has are intended to prevent US weapons from reaching their goals. Here though, is but a taste of what the author tells us Russia is capable of doing with its modern weapons:
"Russian generation 4++ fighters, such as the SU-35C, with their Irbis radar capable of 'seeing' even an F-22 fighter as far as 90 kilometers away, to say nothing of modern Air Defense complexes such as the S-400 which can track and engage any aero-ballistic targets. The coming of the revolutionary S-500 air-defense system may completely close Russia and her allies' airspace from any aerial or even ballistic threats…In 2007, the 3M22 Zircon hypersonic missile is already dramatically redefining naval warfare and makes even remote sea zones a 'no-sail' zone for any US major surface combatant, especially aircraft carriers…the TU-160M2 strategic bombers with new, 10,000-kilometer range cruise missiles getting ready to be deployed. The combined air and submarine launch of hundreds of such weapons could effectively incapacitate, with minimal damage to civilians, the American state."
It is not just Putin or his government and the military that are fed up with trying to be friends or at least allies with the United States. The Russian people, too, are tired of trying. That means that once again the US is turning to "regime change" (and "meddling in elections") against the democratic will of the people. Gallup and national polls of 2017 and 2018 show that less than one-third of Russians think having good relations with the US is even important anymore. A 2018 national poll (Vzglyad) showed that 80% wanted to have either neutral or even hostile relations with the US.
"Only 14.7% wanted allied relations with the US. The US is simply no longer attractive as a model, whether economic, cultural or social, in Russia and the majority of Russians view the United States as a very real threat," Martyanov concludes.
Journalist RON RIDENOUR lives in Denmark. His latest book is, "The Russian Peace Threat: Pentagon on Alert" (Punto Press, June 2018). www.ronridenour.com; ronrorama@gmail.com
Categorieswar and peace TagsAndrei Martyanov, book review, new arms race, US losing supremacy, US-Russia conflict
Previous PostPrevious The Storyteller
Next PostNext Remembering the Loss of a Great and Irreplaceable Political Troubadour

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


Seeking the best joke gadgets with good quality and affordable prices from DHgate Australia site. We provide a variety of new home gadgets online supplied by reliable sellers around the world. Helping you step by step of finding cheap china wholesalers for gadgets is what we aim for. Enjoy exploring our range of gadget wholesalers china shop and find the hottest selling gadget for sale from au.dhgate.com with free delivery to Australia.


text:
Chase Fire is Open During Covid-19 Pandemic as an Essential Service
Home / Fire Safety News / Chase Fire is Open During Covid-19 Pandemic as an Essential Service
By Chase Fire
In Fire Safety News
Chase Fire is Open During Covid-19 Pandemic as an Essential Service2020-05-082020-05-10https://chasefire.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/02/chasefire-logo1.pngChase Firehttps://cdn-5e8f477cf911c81fecd1cd40.closte.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/11/fire-extinguisher-1.jpg200px200px
Deemed an essential business under New York Governor Andrew Cuomo's executive order March 20, Chase Fire Services is open and actively servicing the fire-safety needs of commercial businesses as the state grapples through the harrowing COVID-19 pandemic.
Governor Cuomo's Executive Order 202.6, "New York State on PAUSE," defined 10 categories of essential business to remain open during the novel coronavirus pandemic, inclusive of businesses engaged in fire-prevention services. Under its terms, all businesses not falling under these 10 categories have been deemed nonessential and have shuttered in-office operations indefinitely effective 8pm, March 22.
The Fire Department of New York (FDNY) continues to enforce recent changes to the city's fire code, issuing numbered tags and regularly inspecting businesses for compliance with its program. Chase Fire is licensed through the Fire Department to purchase FDNY-issued decals and inspect and maintain equipment per city and state standards. We are sending this bulletin to alert our community that we remain in operation and are currently working at commercial properties including construction sites, hospitals, care facilities, banks and other commercial buildings across the Tri-State area.
"We are committed to the responsibility our essential business status carries and we're dedicated to making sure our clients meet and exceed their fire safety confidence under the Fire Code. At the same time, we are taking measures to safe-guard our workforce with the personal equipment needed to protect them during the pandemic," said Artem Perchenok, founder of Chase Fire Services.
The Chase Fire Services family wishing good health and safety to you and yours in navigating these uncertain times. Please know that we remain stalwart in our commitment to providing timely fire-protection services to your business.
Please visit ChaseFire.com for more information.
About Chase Fire®
Founded in 2006, Chase Fire® is certified in the Tri-State area for the sales and service of fire-safety products including portable fire extinguishers. Headquartered at 10-46 47th Avenue in Long Island City, New York, Chase Fire performs thousands of service calls annually within its designated markets for private enterprises, food establishments and government and municipal businesses. Chase Fire® is a distributor for major manufacturers of portable fire extinguisher equipment within the Tri-State area.
https://www.governor.ny.gov/news/governor-cuomo-issues-guidance-essential-services-under-new-york-state-pause-executive-order
Kidde Recalls over 40 million fire extinguishers in 2017 due to failure to discharge
Kidde Recalls over 40 million fire extinguishers in 2017 due to failure to dischargeFire Safety News, Extinguisher Recalls


text:
The "Firefighters 100 Lottery" was born out of plans to mark the centenary of the Fire Brigades Union. It is set up to help commemorate the bravery and sacrifice of firefighters killed and injured in the line of duty and to establish a fund for the future benefit of firefighters, their bereaved families and the firefighting profession.
The good causes
The Firefighters 100 Lottery Fund shall be administered appropriately by the Fire Brigades Union for the future benefit of all firefighters and their bereaved families in accordance with the following good cause criteria:
Family support and welfare: to provide longer-term support to the families of firefighters killed or seriously injured in the line of duty, including financial support such as individual bursaries to help towards the costs of further education, or grants towards the provision of specialist medical equipment, or support for inquests or similar processes.
Memorials and remembrance: to support, establish and maintain memorials and/or memorial events in remembrance of firefighters killed in the line of duty.
Protect, prevent and promote: to promote the lessons learnt from the deaths and serious injuries of firefighters so as to better protect firefighters, the communities they serve and prevent deaths and injuries in the future.
Research: to support research into the physical and mental health and wellbeing of firefighters; the "all hazards" nature of the modern fire and rescue service role; and the prevention, protection and intervention work firefighters undertake to save lives in our communities.
Humanitarian assistance: to support humanitarian initiatives and appeals, including internationally, which are aimed at assisting those affected by fire or disaster and where there is a particular need for the support of skilled fire and rescue service intervention.
The Firefighters 100 Lottery is a weekly, on-line lottery licenced by the Gambling Commission. It is open to the wider fire and rescue community and the public to play. The sale of tickets, the weekly draws and the paying-out of prizes are all undertaken independently of the Fire Brigades Union by an external lottery management company, also licenced by the Gambling Commission.
A ticket for the Firefighters 100 Lottery costs £1 per week and at least 50p will go to the good causes.
Players can buy as many tickets as they wish every week and can choose their own numbers or select a lucky dip.
There are measures to protect children and vulnerable persons from being harmed or exploited by gambling. The Fire Brigades Union is also a member of the Lotteries Council and through them contributes to the Responsible Gambling Trust (RGT), the leading charity in the UK committed to minimising gambling-related harm.
Support Our Firefighters
Raising £132,860.00 a year
5110 tickets of 6000 ticket goal
Recent Supporters:
Mr W (DIDCOT) supported with 1 ticket
Mr W (SHEFFIELD) supported with 2 tickets
Mrs P (BATHGATE) supported with 1 ticket
Mr W (Hartlepool) supported with 2 tickets
Mr B (STIRLING) supported with 2 tickets
Mr C (Birmingham) supported with 1 ticket


text:
Kibaale (plaats), plaats in Oeganda
 Kibaale (district), district in Oeganda

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaWikipedia


PANJIM: The Maharajas' Express – the most expensive luxury train in the world – is likely to run on Goa's tracks next monsoon, with the Union Railway Ministry proposing to extend the train's route in Southern India.
"There is ample scope for tourism development in Goa and Konkan belt and hence we have asked IRCTC to run the world's most expensive luxury train Maharajas' Express in the Southern India, covering Goa, Maharashtra and Kerala," Union Railways Minister Suresh Prabhu said at a function to lay the foundation stone for a new railway crossing at Kharepatan, Maharashtra via video conferencing.
"My plans are to see that by next year, the Maharajas' Express train should make trips in Goa during the monsoon. The travel is very expensive and will attract high-end tourists and generate revenue for the railways as well as the State," the Minister said.
He added that the introduction of the train will help create employment and increase the average revenue of every Goan.
The Maharajas' Express was voted 'The world's leading luxury train' four times in a row at the World Travel Awards 2012, 2013, 2014 and 2015. It runs on five circuits covering more than 12 destinations across north-west and central India, mainly centred on Rajasthan, between October and April.
Prabhu also said that Konkan Railway Corporation Limited (KRCL) will set up 10 more railway stations along the Goa, Konkan, Karnataka and Kerala route, at an estimated cost of Rs 150 crore.
Chief Minister Laxmikant Parsekar, Deputy Chief Minister Francis D'Souza, Speaker Anant Shet, RDA Minister Alina Saldanha and Sindudurgh MP Vinayak Raut were present.


I am a San Francisco based Photographer/Writer. I am able to create compelling stories and footage not just for the average consumer, but also for brands and their marketing initiatives.
I have a strong passion for San Francisco and the music industry. It's inspired me to work for the San Francisco Tourism bureau and to start my blog www.musicinsf.com to share my journey as well as inspire others to do the same.
Demographic data for @louisraphael's audience is available for free to influence.co users.


BRAND New STAINLESS STEEL JEA7000ADS Jenn-Air two coil-element cartridge FOR COOKTOP OR OVEN COOKER. Rated 3350 watts at 240 volts.
SIMILAR TO Jenn-Air A100, A100-C A109-C AND NO. Picture is actual item you will receive so please refer for condition. THANKS, DON'T HESITATE IF YOU HAVE ANY QUESTION.
The item "BRAND NEW JENN AIR JEA7000ADS STAINLESS STEEL CARTRIDGE FOR COOKTOP OVEN RANGE" is in sale since Thursday, July 16, 2015. This item is in the category "Maison & jardin\Gros électroménagers\Cuisinières & fours\Pièces & accessoires". The seller is "coucounne14" and is located in Quebec.


text:
← In which Sir Launcelot faces the music
In which we have a brief interruption about Sir Bors's one and only sin →
In which Sir Percivale and Sir Ector "rescue" Sir Launcelot
Five hundred knights eventually showed up, and Launcelot defeated each and every one of them. He was so skilled that he avoided killing or even maiming his opponents, that was how good he was. Malory skipped over the details of Launcelot's 72 hours of continuous jousting action (JOUSTING TOURNAMENT 34!) We rejoin the narrative during a big feast afterwards.
Sir Ector and Sir Percivale, still searching for Launcelot after all these years, happened by. They saw the castle, its big moat with no drawbridge, and naturally they were curious. They tried shouting at the castle. "Hello! Hello!"
A lady with a falcon on her shoulder emerged from a rear door, and called back to them from the other side of the moat. "Howdy! Have you come to fight for me? You're late!"
"We just had a big jousting tournament, and I'm the prize! Nobody won me, though!"
Ector and Percivale exchanged glances. "Whose castle is this?"
"My lady Elaine's, she's so pretty! And her husband, the best knight anywhere, Sir Guilty!"
"Well that doesn't raise my suspicions at all," muttered Ector.
"How did Sir Guilty come to be lord of this castle?" shouted back Percivale.
"It's a crazy story actually!" shouted the prize, whose name I've decided is Melanie. "He wandered into Corbin acting like a crazy person! And then he was the town crazy man for a while! And then he was healed by the Grail! Sir Guilty: he's just the best!"
"I would like to meet this Sir Guilty!" shouted Percivale.
Melanie saw no reason he couldn't! "There's a boat over on the other side of the castle! It'll ferry you over!"
"Thank you!" shouted Percivale, and Melanie went back inside. "All right here's the plan," he told Ector. "We split up. You stay out here, in case there's trouble. I'll go in and check on this 'Sir Guilty' guy."
"What if he's Launcelot?"
"All the more reason for us to split up. Say we both go in, and it is Launcelot, but then he challenges us to a joust! We can't both joust him at once."
"Yeah, that makes sense," said Ector. "Do as ye list, and here I shall abide you until that I hear of you."
So Percivale pulled on a face-concealing helmet, and he strode on into the castle. In the great hall a large dinner was set. When Sir Launcelot saw Percivale enter, he rose from the head table to sword-fight the intruder. Launcelot had defeated an average of one knight every eight minutes for the prior seventy-two hours straight; what was one more?
But of course Percivale was a way better knight than any of those scrubs. He and Launcelot shield-fought (that is, after a perfunctory lances-and-horses bit, they tossed their swords aside and hammered one another with shields, which I've never heard of before and I guess maybe it was a nonlethal jousting technique? Or maybe I'm misreading "they flang out their swords" and it means to unsheathe rather than to fling away! I like my probably-wrong interpretation better)! Two straight hours of combat passed, until they were both pretty much exhausted.
"So, strange knight wearing a device of a knight kneeling before a queen," said Percivale. It was the first thing he'd said since they started. "What's your name?"
"They call me Sir Guilty," said Launcelot shortly. "What's yours?"
"I don't hesitate to tell you! I am not using a pseudonym of any kind. I am Sir Percivale de Galis, that was brother to the good knight Sir Lamorak de Galis, and King Pellinore was our father, and Sir Aglovale is my brother. That's a lot of information about me and who I am and I'm being completely open and honest about it. Hint hint."
Launcelot sighed. "Damn it, I should have known that hosting a jousting tournament would be a bridge too far. Fine. You win." He kneeled in surrender.
"Man, I knew it was you. 'Sir Guilty.' Come on! Let me hear you say your actual name," said Percivale. "Just for the record?"
"So God me help, my name is Sir Launcelot du Lake, King Ban's son of Benoy. By which I mean Benwick." Launcelot sounded so sad that Percivale couldn't help but feel bad for him.
"Sorry," said Percivale. "But Ector and I — he's outside — we've been searching for you for years, boss. We thought you'd be happy to see us."
"The queen sent us, if that helps? Again, sorry about having found you. I can see you would have rather just stayed here forever."
"It is soon forgiven," Launcelot grumbled.
Launcelot and Ector shared a tearful reunion. Launcelot introduced Elaine to Percivale and Ector both. She threw a big banquet in their honor, and Launcelot recapped his whole crazy misadventure, with Bliant and Selivant, and the boar, and the hermit, and the time living like a dog in Corbin, and so on and so on.
In which Sir Percivale and Sir Ector "rescue" Sir Launcelot — No Comments


Images of a woman's back tracked in brutal red marks have gone viral.
In the pictures it appears the woman has been involved in a serious accident, however all is not what it seems.
The woman, who wishes to remain anonymous, received the visible injuries through a method most of us would seek out to make us feel relaxed and at peace.
Sharing the shocking photos on her Facebook, massage therapist and healer Hitesh Patel confessed to being at the helm of her customer's injuries.
Seeking treatment for a bad back gained from leaning in awkward positions as a hairdresser, Grace decided on gua sha and it released 'stagnation' in the muscles, leaving red marks all over the upper back of her body, this is known as petechiae.
With a job that involves holding a static position for a long time you build up stagnation in the blood flow which accumulates in muscle and causes pain.
Through gua sha the body releases the stagnated tissue stored in the muscles. The red marks indicate where the damaged tissue is.
We can massage her body accordingly, giving her a full release which in turn gives her mobility and flexibility back in the affected area.
Depending on how damaged that area is it can go from a light pink colour to very dark black purple colour.
Light pink indicates just every day fatigue, red marks show little bit more tiredness and damage.
When it goes purple and black indicate old very stagnant stubborn double inch which might take a little bit longer to deal with.
Hitesh's post has been shared a whopping 20,000 times.
Gua sha is a natural, alternative therapy that involves scraping your skin with a massage tool to improve your circulation.
This ancient Chinese healing technique may offer a unique approach to better health, addressing issues like chronic pain.
In gua sha, a technician scrapes your skin with short or long strokes to stimulate microcirculation of the soft tissue, which increases blood flow, making the strokes with a smooth-edged instrument known as a gua massage tool.
The technician applies massage oil to your skin and then uses the tool to repeatedly scrape your skin in a downward motion.


We are Hanover Recruitment Limited ("Hanover") of 1 Waterside, Station Road, Harpenden, Hertfordshire, AL5 4US (throughout "we", "us", "our" and "ours") including, for the purposes of this agreement, our branch offices and our subsidiary or associated companies.
You are of (throughout "you" and "your").
We operate as an Employment Business when supplying you to clients on a temporary basis, as referred to in the Conduct Regulations. We are in the business of providing recruitment services to Clients looking for workers, and work finding services to candidates seeking work. You are seeking work, have provided us with your personal details to be registered on our database of candidates and have asked us to locate work for you. We are prepared to seek work for you on the basis set out in these terms, and you wish to accept our services. This agreement is required by regulation14 of the Conduct Regulations.
(c) on or before the time of your acceptance of a Proposal you must inform us whether you have previously worked in any capacity for the Client or End User named in the Proposal at any time after 30th September 2011, and if you have so worked, provide us with the PW Details.
2. If you do not wish us to provide your information to any particular Client it is important that you inform us in writing, providing us with sufficient detail so that we can recognise all of the persons or organisations you wish to exclude, and we cannot accept any liability if we provide your information to any Client other than one you have specifically excluded.
3. You acknowledge that this agreement between you and us is for work finding services only and you are not our employee nor are you engaged by us for any purpose. You have advised us that you wish to operate through a company, but you may not have nominated that company. Accordingly should we locate temporary work for you, the terms that shall apply will be the terms herein, our standard terms with the company concerned ("the Supplier"), and in every case the terms set out in clause 5 which apply to every Assignment as referred to therein.
(ii) co-operate fully with us and any Client in relation to any investigation by us, the Client or any regulatory body including any tax authority, which relates to either the provision of the Specified Services, your status or any payments made to you in respect of the Specified Services or any matter covered by clause 5(d) including but not limited to the provision of any information as may be required for the purpose of compliance with our statutory or contractual obligations.
(q) the Laws of England and Wales govern this agreement and the English Courts have sole jurisdiction.
Work types: we shall seek work which is suitable for your skills and experience, or as otherwise instructed by you.


text:
Category - BOURNEMOUTH
BOURNEMOUTH • BREAKING • DORSET
A man has pleaded guilty to manslaughter following a serious assault in Bournemouth where a man sadly died
Carl Stuart Woolley, 33 and of no fixed abode, appeared at Bournemouth Crown Court on Tuesday 22 December 2020 and pleaded guilty to a charge of manslaughter...
CCTV appeal following burglary at hospital in Bournemouth
Officers investigating a burglary at the Royal Bournemouth Hospital are issuing a CCTV image of the suspect. At around 6.15pm on Monday 14 December 2020...
A man who assaulted two people with a glass bottle on a night out in Bournemouth has been sentenced to two years in prison
Matthew Parry, aged 35 and of High Street in Margate, was sentenced at Bournemouth Crown Court on Friday 11 December 2020 after admitting two offences of...
A man has been arrested on suspicion of murder in connection with the death of a woman at a Bournemouth hotel
Dorset Police was called at 8.01am on Wednesday 9 December 2020 to a report that a woman, aged in her 20s, had very sadly been found deceased at the Travelodge...
Two carers have been sentenced for the neglect of a vulnerable child they were employed to look after
Debora Nelson Simoes Nunes-Filho, aged 36 and of Mountbatten Gardens, Bournemouth, and Katie Clark, aged 43 and of Foxholes Road, Poole, appeared at...
Detectives investigating a number of knifepoint robberies in Bournemouth are issuing a CCTV image of a man they would like to speak to as part of their investigation
Four incidents were reported to have occurred on the night of Tuesday 24 November 2020 and on each occasion the victims were approached by a man who...
If you see this wanted man, call 999 immediately he's wanted for a robbey
Officers are appealing for help from the public to locate a man wanted in connection with a reported robbery in Bournemouth. Adam Neale Shilton, 31 and of no...
A woman who admitted stealing £437,000 from her employer has been jailed for five years
Emma Elizabeth Rhodes, 37, of Manor Land in Verwood, pleaded guilty at Bournemouth Crown Court on Monday 2 November 2020 to an offence of fraud. A trial had...
Detectives continuing to investigate a report of a rape on a woman in the Somerford area of Christchurch are issuing CCTV images of a man they would like to speak to
At around 2pm on Thursday 10 October 2019 it was reported that a woman met a man in the Boscombe area of Bournemouth before they travelled by bus to the man's...
BOURNEMOUTH • NIB
Officers investigating the theft of a bike in Bournemouth are issuing a CCTV image of a man they would like to speak to
The Cube mountain bike was stolen from a bike rack outside Co-op in Seabourne Road at around 8pm on Saturday 10 October 2020. The victim has since recovered...
BOURNEMOUTH • DORSET • LATEST NEWS
Members of an organised crime group involved in the supply of class A drugs in Bournemouth and Poole have been jailed
Jose Ivo Ferreira, aged 30 and of no fixed abode, Dean Wesley Lovell, aged 30 and of Cull Close, Poole, and Fleur Marie Newman, aged 28 and of Ripon Road...
A barber who returned to the UK from Brazil with £300,000 worth of cocaine hidden in suitcases has been jailed
A barber who returned to the UK from Brazil with £300,000 worth of cocaine hidden in suitcases has been jailed. Jhonatan Martins Kirchhoff, 22, from Commercial...
A pervert that groomed and then repeatedly sexually assaulted a schoolgirl has been jailed.
A pervert that groomed and then repeatedly sexually assaulted a schoolgirl has been jailed. Christopher Hole, 28 of Weymouth appeared at Bournemouth Crown...
Police in Dorset seized this Lamborghini
Police officers in Bournemouth seized this Lamborghini last night due to the driver not having valid insurance. The registered keeper had loaned it to a friend...
Harrowing footage has revealed the moment a teenager was rescued after trespassing on a railway
Sixteen-year-old Tegan suffered a cardiac arrest and her heart stopped beating for seven minutes when she tried to take a shortcut between two railway...
Massive blaze engulfs three beach huts in Bournemouth and spreads to heathland
Massive Bournemouth blaze engulfs three beach huts and races towards nearby hotel as sunbathers are evacuated from sands by emergency services. ...
Major incident declared after services overstretched by thousands flocking to Bournemouth beaches
A major incident has been declared after thousands of people defied advice to stay away and descended on BCP Council beaches on the hottest day of the year...
A trade minister has resigned after he tried to "intimidate a member of the public" over a financial dispute with his father
A trade minister has resigned after he tried to "intimidate a member of the public" over a financial dispute with his father. Conor Burns MP for...
CCTV released after Taxi Road rage incident
Officers investigating a road rage incident in Bournemouth are issuing images of one of the suspects. The incident began at around 1.30am on Wednesday 6 March...
Armed Police Lock Down Castlepoint Bournemouth following Shots fired
Armed officers from Dorset Police have placed a street in lockdown following a shooting near to the Castlepoint Cooperative supermarket this evening...
Teenagers Jaw Broken following Bournemouth Attack
Detectives investigating an assault in Bournemouth are issuing CCTV images of the suspect. The incident happened at approximately 3.25am on Saturday 7 April...


GINIA offers data science services to solve problems for the Federal government and commercial clients. Our service offering includes: Machine learning to lower the error rate using both supervised and unsupervised methods of fraud detection, Predictive Analytics to allow customers to make business decisions, and Threat Analytics to proactively prevent new threats from exploiting our customer's networks. In conjunction with our professionals, we can help obtain valuable, actionable insights from data to drive better organizational decision-making and increase performance.


text:
Pete King Drops The Hammer On Biden, Says His 'Arrogance' Led To Fall Of Afghanistan
Michael Cantrell August 16, 2021
According to former Rep. Pete King, the "arrogance" of President Joe Biden is what is responsible for the fall of Afghanistan by the Taliban. And you know what? He's on to something.
"Somehow he was willing to take the chance that this might happen," the New York Republican, who is now a Newsmax contributor, stated during an interview on "John Bachman Now." "It collapsed just to satisfy his goal, his drive to make sure we got out by Sept. 11."
He also slammed the administration for allowing people who served as military interpreters to remain behind as the Taliban took control of Afghanistan, without making sure there would be enough military there to protect them until the withdrawal of troops was completed.
"This is indefensible," King went on to say just before the president came out to address the nation on this unfolding situation.
Further, King said that the weekend's fall of Kabul is worse, as "far as a president's responsibility" than was the fall of Saigon in 1975 because back then, it was Congress that made the call to shut off military troops, not then-President Gerald Ford.
"In 1975, President Ford wanted to have the military force to defend the Americans in South Vietnam, and it was Congress who shut it off," King said, responding to a video clip from earlier this summer of Trump denying the similarities to how the wars in Vietnam and Afghanistan, both of which were controversial and long-lasting, ended. "In this case, it was the president who was driving us, and it's total ineptitude."
King then went on to add that while he hasn't been in Congress in eight months, nor has he been on the Intelligence Committee in over two years, "but from whatever I knew, this was almost bound to happen, if it was done this way now."
The former congressman also made it clear that he didn't completely agree with former President Donald Trump when he made the call to pull out troops from Afghanistan either, but with Trump, the move was condition-based.
"If you are going to withdraw, you have to do it under strict conditions," King said of the plans Trump had made. "If Taliban violates anything at all, all bets are off and we use that power and whatever military power we have, and that is make sure that our people are protected."
That was "precisely what happened" once the Trump administration reached its agreement with the Taliban, said King, because the insurgents "stepped out of line and they were met with swift airstrikes."
That is a much better approach than the one that was taken by the Biden administration which has led to the complete loss of the country to control of the Taliban, which is spitting in the face of the men and women who lost their lives in Afghanistan over the course of all these years.
University of Wisconsin-Madison Police Chief Bans "Thin Blue Line" Imagery After Students Complain
Apparently, she went on to claim, the flag has somehow also been used to "dishonor the police profession."
Chad Wolf Rips VP Harris; Says She Has No Excuse For Avoiding Trip To The Border
Vice President Kamala Harris, according to former Department of Homeland Security Secretary Chad Wolf, is attempting to dodge …
Sen. Ron Johnson Slams Biden Administration, Says Afghanistan Is A 'Jaw-Dropping, Abysmal Failure'
Sen. Ron Johnson, a Republican from Wisconsin, did not mince words about his thoughts concerning the Afghanistan troop …


medwireNews: The selective RET inhibitor LOXO-292 has activity against tumors harboring a range of RET alterations, according to findings from the first-in-human LIBRETTO-001 trial.
Of the 82 participants enrolled in the dose-escalation part of the phase I study, 60% had RET fusion-positive cancers (most commonly non-small-cell lung cancer [NSCLC]), 35% had medullary thyroid cancer (MTC) with RET mutations, and the remaining 5% had other tumor types.
As reported at the ASCO Annual Meeting 2018 in Chicago, Illinois, USA, treatment with LOXO-292 at doses ranging from 20 mg/day to 240 mg twice daily was well tolerated. The only treatment-emergent toxicities observed in at least 10% of patients were fatigue, diarrhea, constipation, dry mouth, nausea, and dyspnea; the majority were grade 1 or 2 in severity and considered unrelated to LOXO-292.
Only two adverse events of grade 3 – one case each of tumor lysis syndrome and elevated alanine aminotransferase – were attributed to LOXO-292, and the maximum tolerated dose was not reached, said presenter Alexander Drilon (Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, New York, USA).
He noted that the favorable toxicity profile of LOXO-292 was "consistent with its high preclinical selectivity for RET," and in contrast to the "significant off target liabilities of prior multikinase inhibitor therapy" used in patients with these alterations.
The RET inhibitor also showed promising efficacy. An overall response rate (ORR) was achieved by 77% of the 39 evaluable patients with RET fusion-positive cancers, with a rate of 77% in patients with NSCLC and 78% in those with other tumor types (thyroid and pancreatic cancer).
Among the 22 evaluable participants with RET mutation-positive MTC, the ORR was 45%, while none of the three evaluable patients lacking RET alterations had a response.
The responses were rapid, seen in most patients at the time of the first assessment post-baseline, and durable, with 91% of the participants harboring RET alterations continuing treatment at data cutoff, Drilon reported. Moreover, the anti-tumor activity appeared to be independent of the RET fusion partner, RET mutation, prior therapy, or starting dose, with responses observed even in patients given the lowest dose.
The presenting author summarized that "LOXO-292 demonstrated robust and durable anti-tumor efficacy in patients with RET fusion-positive cancers and RET-mutant MTCs," adding that the dose-expansion part of the trial is currently recruiting patients with diverse RET-altered cancers.
The commentator noted, however, that as the clinical development of selective RET inhibitors moves forward, some issues need to be addressed, such as the optimal sequencing of these drugs, the difference in response rates between patients with RET fusions and those with RET mutations, and the major mechanisms of acquired resistance to RET inhibitors.