The EU should be stronger and more united. Great Britain should belong to the Union.
Die EU sollte stärker und geeinter sein. Großbritannien sollte der Union angehören.
L'UE devrait être plus forte et plus unie. La Grande-Bretagne devrait appartenir à l'Union.
Saturday, October 17, 2009
Anti-extremism Scheme 'Spying on Muslims'
THE TELEGRAPH: A multi-million pound government scheme designed to prevent the radicalisation of young British Muslims is being used to gather intelligence about innocent people not suspected of terrorism involvement, it was claimed.
The scheme designed to stop Muslims entering extreemism like Ali Beheshti, pictured, who attempted to burn down the house of a book publisher. Photo: The Telegraph
The “Preventing Violent Extremism”, also known as Prevent, was launched three years ago as part of the Government's four "Ps" anti-terror agenda - Prevent, Pursue, Protect and Prepare.
It was designed to stop people being lured to al-Qaida ideology, prevent the radicalisation and committing acts of terrorism.
But reports have suggested the programme was instead being used to used [sic] to gather intelligence about innocent people who are not suspected of involvement in terrorism.
Critics criticised the scheme as being Britain’s biggest spying programme and a breach of civil liberties.
The Institute of Race Relations said the Prevent scheme had been used "to establish one of the most elaborate systems of surveillance ever seen in Britain". >>> Andrew Hough | Saturday, October 17, 2009
Hugo Chávez Seizes Golf Clubs in Drive to Defeat ‘Bourgeoisie’
Photo: Times Online
TIMES ONLINE: For decades, wealthy Venezuelans have luxuriated in the vistas of the Caribbean from the terrace of the Caraballeda Golf Club, relaxing with a whisky before teeing off amid tropical palms, above a marina filled with gleaming yachts. It is a way of life that is under threat, however, with President Chávez deriding the game as lazy, bourgeois and the antithesis of his Bolivarian Revolution.
Thick with Louis Vuitton handbags and luxury vehicles, Caraballeda, north of Caracas, is a symbol of everything Mr Chávez detests. He launched his attack on the sport on his weekly TV show, Hello Mr President, branding players selfish elitists who annexed acres of prime land while the poor suffered in slums.
“Golf is a bourgeois sport,” he spat, citing the use of golf carts as evidence of the laziness of the “little Yankees”.
Officials have moved to seize two of Venezuela’s prime courses, at Caraballeda and Maracay. However, the move has divided local supporters of the President, with many warning of a detrimental impact on surrounding communities. >>> | Saturday, October 17, 2009
The Taliban on the Move in Pakistan. The Disease Spreads
Watch Journeyman Pictures video here | Monday, July 20, 2009
Pakistan Offensive: Troops Meet Heavy Taliban Resistance
THE TELEGRAPH: Pakistani troops are facing heavy resistance from the Taliban after beginning an offensive in South Waziristan.
Ground forces moved out of their bases in three different direction towards territory dominated by fighters loyal to the warlord Hakimullah Mehsud and his predecessor, Baitullah Mehsud, the notorious Pakistani Taliban leader killed in a US missile attack and his successor Hakimullah Mehsud.
Four soldiers were killed and 12 others wounded when their advance from Shakai ran into resistance in Sharwangi, one of the first areas of Mehsud's territory they reached, a local administration official said. He added that the Taliban were using "heavy weapons" against the army.
An army official confirmed that soldiers had already met resistance within hours of the start of the operation, which has been planned for months and follows weeks of air and artillery strikes.
A senior government official said that the government and party leaders gave the military full backing on Friday, vowing to weed out militants and restore the writ of the state. >>> | Saturday, October 17, 2009
Friday, October 16, 2009
Uganda Considers New Anti-gay Law
BBC: It is not easy being gay in Uganda and it could be about to get even more difficult.
Homosexual acts are already illegal, but the Anti-Homosexuality Bill proposes new offences and urges the toughening of existing penalties.
The new law is being discussed in Parliament and would create a new crime of "aggravated homosexuality".
It would target gay people who have sex while HIV-positive, or if their partner has a disability, or is under 18. The crime would be punishable by death.
Frank Magisha is a Ugandan gay rights activist. [Source: BBC] | Friday, October 16, 2009
Aisha’d 'ave Known!
MAIL ONLINE: A barrister claiming £33million compensation from her sex-scandal legal firm today warned she could 'lose the will to live' unless she wins.
Aisha Bijlani broke down in tears at the employment tribunal into race discrimination and victimisation which she claims she suffered at prestigious legal chambers Four New Square.
She told the hearing she may never recover from her ordeal at the hands of her bosses.
She has already accused the senior clerk, Lizzie Wiseman, of having extra-marital affairs with two former heads of chambers, Justin Fenwick QC, a Deputy High Court judge, and Roger Stewart QC, a part-time judge.
Dr Bijlani said they had driven her to clinical depression and left her £7million out of pocket in lost earnings to date. In total, she is demanding £33million, plus interest.
Today, she told Central London Employment Tribunal: 'Unless I win my case and am vindicated, I have no doubt I will not be able to work again and I may lose the will to live. What [the] chambers and Roger have done to me should not have been allowed to occur.'
She continued: 'Roger Stewart made my life a misery and exacerbated my condition as much as he could. From being a very hard-working professional who took great pride in her work and her home, I feel I have lost my identity and my life has fallen apart.'
Mr Stewart, 46, a married father of three, was not in the tribunal yesterday. But 44-year-old Mrs Wiseman, a mother-of-four who now lives with him, sat listening to the evidence.
Several times, Dr Bijlani wept in the witness box, and at one point the hearing was halted after she ran from the room crying.
Dr Bijlani accuses the firm of hiring racist legal clerks who regarded her as an 'educated wog' and constantly undermined her, the tribunal has heard.
When in February 2006 she complained to Mrs Wiseman and Mr Stewart, then head of chambers, she says he branded her a 'failure at the Bar'.
She told the hearing: 'I had done him no harm and found it difficult to understand why he could be so cruel for no reason. I have always tried to help people and still can't rationalise his cruelty.'
Indian-born Dr Bijlani, who is in her early forties and trained as a doctor before switching to a career at the Bar, said she was subsequently victimised by Mr Stewart and Mrs Wiseman and now suffered from depression.
DAILY MAIL: Far-right Dutch politician Geert Wilders sparked angry protests today as he declared that Islamic culture is inferior to Christianity.
The MP was met by angry Muslim protesters when he arrived in the UK after winning a court battle to enter the country.
Around 40 demonstrators gathered near the Houses of Parliament as Mr Wilders, whose film Fitna criticises the Koran as a 'fascist book', arrived in central London.
Brandishing banners saying 'Sharia is the solution, freedom go to hell' and 'Geert Wilders deserves Islamic punishment', the protesters were held back by police.
Abu Muaz, from Islam For UK, said: 'If I were to say some of the things he has said I would be arrested under the Terrorism Act. But because there is a war on Muslims he gets an easy ride.'
Addressing journalists alongside UKIP peer Lord Pearson, Mr Wilders said his visit was 'a victory'.
Explaining his controversial views on Islam, he said: 'I have a problem with the Islamic ideology, the Islamic culture, because I feel that the more Islam that we get in our societies the less freedom we get.'
BBC: After successfully overturning a ban on his presence in the country, Geert Wilders was never going to slip quietly into the UK.
The controversial Dutch politician sent a text message to Associated Press as he cleared customs at Heathrow to ensure the world's media had got the message.
But even he cannot have anticipated the scenes waiting for him in Westminster, as he swept into a side street opposite the Houses of Parliament.
His plan to stage an open-air news conference around the corner on College Green had to be abandoned when about 40 protesters arrived on the scene chanting "Wilders go to hell" and waving placards saying "Sharia for the Netherlands" and "Islam will be superior".
The MP, who is an outspoken critic of Muslim ideology and has called for the Koran to be banned, was bundled through a gate in the high stone wall surrounding Abbey Gardens, an outpost of the House of Lords which was to be the venue for his hastily rearranged conference.
The young Muslims outside, held in check by a line of police officers, chanted "Wilders running scared" and "Wilders come out" - but they were far outnumbered by reporters and photographers, many from the MP's native Netherlands, who seemed even more desperate to get into the overcrowded venue. >>> Brian Wheeler, Political Reporter, BBC News | Friday, October 16, 2009
THE GUARDIAN: Geert Wilders hails 'victory for freedom of speech' / Press conference moved inside Westminster amid safety fears
The Dutch far-right politician Geert Wilders expanded on his controversial views on Islam on arrival in the UK today and described the decision to allow him into the country as a "victory for the freedom of speech".
At a press conference moved inside the Houses of Parliament because of fears for Wilders's safety, the Freedom party leader said that Islamic culture was inferior to western cultures.
"I have a problem with the Islamic ideology, the Islamic culture, because I feel that the more Islam that we get in our societies the less freedom that we get," he said.
Wilders, who won an appeal this week against a decision to deny him entry, will not be screening his film Fitna, which criticises the Qur'an as a "fascist book", on this trip. The film had been intended to be shown at the House of Lords in February. He said he still intended to screen the film in the Lords in the future.
"Being here is a victory," Wilders said. "Not a victory for myself but for the freedom of speech. It is ridiculous that the UK government thought my presence would in any way lead to violence. I have nothing to do with violence, I am no extremist, I am a politician who is democratically elected."
Wilders said he had "nothing against" Muslims, but had a problem with the "Islamification of our societies". >>> Adam Gabbatt | Friday, October 16, 2009
Geert Wilders Arrives in UK and Explains His 'Problems with Islam'
Geert Wilders, the right-wing Dutch politician who compared the Koran to Hitler's book Mein Kampf, was met with protests as he arrived in the UK.
Police held back a crowd of Muslim demonstrators as Geert Wilders met Ukip peer Lord Pearson opposite the Houses of Parliament.
Explaining his controversial views on Islam, he said: ''I have a problem with the Islamic ideology, the Islamic culture, because I feel that the more Islam that we get in our societies, the less freedom that we get.''
The leader of the Dutch Freedom Party was allowed into Britain after overturning a Government decision led by former Home Secretary Jacqui Smith to bar him from the country.
It was feared that his outspoken views on Islam could spark religious violence, but this was rejected by the Asylum and Immigration Tribunal on Tuesday.
Mr Wilders denied responsibility for the publicity which has greeted his visit.
The 46-year-old said: ''If anybody has responsibility for this publicity, it is the UK Government and the Home Secretary and not Geert Wilders.''
Mr Wilders, who wants the Koran banned, insisted: ''I am not extreme, I am not a racist either.'' >>> | Friday, October 16, 2009
No bras, please! We are Muslimatoon from Somalia; otherwise Al-Shabaab (pronounced 'ash-Shabaab' – الشباب ) will not be best pleased!
Bras, Sharia, and Islam in Somalia
MAIL ONLINE: A hardline Islamist group in Somalia has begun publicly whipping women for wearing bras that they claim violate Islam as they are 'deceptive'.
The insurgent group Al Shabaab has sent gunmen into the streets of Mogadishu to round up any women who appear to have a firm bust, residents claimed yesterday.
The women are then inspected to see if the firmness is natural, or if it is the result of wearing a bra.
If they are found wearing a bra, they are ordered to remove it and shake their breasts, residents said.
Al Shabaab, which seeks to impose a strict interpretation of Sharia law over all Somalia, also amputated a foot and a hand each from two young men accused of robbery earlier this month.
They have also banned movies, musical ringtones, dancing at wedding ceremonies and playing or watching soccer.
'Al Shabaab forced us to wear their type of full veil and now they order us to shake our breasts,' a resident, Halima, told Reuters, adding that her daughters had been whipped on Thursday.
Firmen-Übernahmen: Wie Scheichs die deutsche Wirtschaft kapern
WELT ONLINE: Schon in den 70er-Jahren gingen Ölstaaten in Deutschland auf Einkaufstour und sicherten sich namhafte Firmen. Dann verschwanden sie fast drei Jahrzehnte von der Bildfläche. Nun melden sich die Scheichs mit prall gefüllten Kassen zurück: Der Kauf der Hamburger Werft Blohm + Voss wird nicht die letzte Übernahme bleiben.
Bild: Welt Online
Projekt „Flora“ war wie ein Klassentreffen. Die handelnden Personen waren die gleichen, die Berater auch. Die Orte, an denen man sich meist im Geheimen traf, waren längst bekannt und auch die Themen, um die sich die Treffen drehten, waren die selben wie in den letzten zwölf Monaten: Schiffe und Werften, die sie herstellen. Und wie schon im Sommer entschied sich der ThyssenKrupp-Konzern für das Emirat Abu Dhabi als Käufer für einen weiteren Teil seiner ehemaligen Werftensparte. Schon im Juli hatte die Abu Dhabi MAR Group die Werftentochter Nobiskrug übernommen.
Jetzt folgte ein weiterer Teil der Hamburger Traditionswerft Blohm + Voss: Die Firma aus dem Ölstaat übernehme jeweils 80 Prozent an den Gesellschaften Blohm + Voss Shipyards, Blohm + Voss Repair, und werde zudem 50 Prozent an einer neuen Firma halten, die Kriegsschiffe baut. Kritiker argwöhnen, dass künftig nur noch ein Bruchteil in Hamburg stattfindet – der Rest weit weg auf der arabischen Halbinsel. Die IG Metall klagt bereits: „Das ist der Anfang des Ausstiegs aus dem zivilen Schiffbau in Deutschland.“ ThyssenKrupp selbst feiert den Verkauf an die arabischen Investoren als Meilenstein. Es ist vor allem ein finanzieller Befreiungsschlag für den angeschlagenen Industrieriesen vom Rhein. >>> Frank Seidlitz | Freitag, 16. Oktober 2009
L’affaire Jean Sarkozy inquiète la droite
LE TEMPS: L’image du président Nicolas Sarkozy souffre de la promotion éclair de son fils aîné, qui brigue la direction de l’organisme public qui gère La Défense
«C’est très mauvais pour lui»: voilà le jugement d’un familier du pouvoir sur l’impact de «l’affaire Jean» pour Nicolas Sarkozy. L’arrivée de son fils à La Défense inquiète la droite française, d’autant qu’elle intervient dans une «séquence» difficile, marquée, dans les milieux conservateurs, par l’idée que le président a perdu sa boussole morale. Vote en forme de déroute >>> Sylvain Besson | Vendredi 16 Octobre 2009
U.A.E. Vets Workers for Ties to Tehran
THE WALL STREET JOURNAL: ABU DHABI -- The United Arab Emirates, a staunch U.S. ally and a neighbor to Iran, is tightening oversight of government workers and foreign residents because of concerns about the threat of infiltration by Iranian agents.
Some Emirati citizens and expatriates in the civil service have been reassigned or stripped of responsibilities, according to people familiar with the matter. Other private-sector workers suspected of ties to Iranian-linked groups have also lost their jobs, these people said.
The policy has triggered concern that the U.A.E. government is targeting Shiites as potential threats because of the religious affiliation they share with Iranians, rather than because of any hard evidence linking them to the Iranian government.
Lebanese Parliamentary Speaker Nabih Berri visited the U.A.E. capital, Abu Dhabi, on Tuesday in part to discuss the deportation of 44 Lebanese and their families, all Shiites, from the U.A.E. this summer.
The U.A.E. president, Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed, denied the government was discriminating against Shiites and reiterated his nation's sovereign right to defend itself. "The country does not target any nationality, religious sect or faction," he told Mr. Berri, the state news service reported.
The U.A.E. and other small, Western-aligned Arab Gulf states have worried in recent years that they could be the targets of retaliation by Tehran for any military action by the U.S. or Israel against Iran's nuclear program. They have acquired missile-defense and surveillance systems to protect their borders.
Now, the U.A.E., a federation of seven sheikdoms, is turning inward to address what a government official calls a "significant" security worry: the possibility that Iranian-linked sleeper cells could sabotage critical sectors such as energy, banking and transportation. >>> Margaret Coker | Friday, October 16, 2009
Yvonne Fletcher and the Betrayal of Justice
THE TELEGRAPH: British prosecutors were told more than two years ago that they had sufficient evidence to charge two Libyans over the killing of WPc Yvonne Fletcher, according to a leaked report.
A senior lawyer carried out an independent review of the case on behalf of the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS), in which he said Matouk Mohammed Matouk and Abdulgader Mohammed Baghdadi could be charged with conspiracy to cause death.
Both men played instrumental roles in organising the shooting at the Libyan embassy in St James’s Square, central London, in 1984, the report said.
The secret report, which was conducted at the request of the Metropolitan Police, was completed in April 2007, just six weeks before Tony Blair, the prime minister at the time, held a controversial meeting with Colonel Gaddafi in Libya. The meeting formally opened trade links between Britain and the north African country.
The CPS said last night that two years on, the police had still not provided them with the final case against the men. It added that the investigation into the killing of WPc Fletcher, who was 25, was ongoing.
The fact that no further progress has been made despite the report will raise fresh questions about the nature of Britain’s vexed relationship with Libya since diplomatic relations were restored in 1999. >>> Christopher Hope, Gordon Rayner and Damien McElroy in Tripoli | Thursday, October 15, 2009
Another Shameful Surrender to Libya
THE TELEGRAPH: Telegraph View: The Government's behaviour has made Britain look craven and weak.
The cynicism and tawdriness of Britain's dealings with Libya were brought into sharp focus recently by the release of the Lockerbie bomber Abdelbaset Ali Mohmed al Megrahi. While ostensibly returned to his homeland on compassionate grounds, the affair drew attention to the murky dealings between London and Tripoli as part of a concerted international effort to end Libya's pariah status and halt its embryonic nuclear weapons programme.
It was long suspected that the process of Libya's rehabilitation involved a tacit agreement no longer to pursue the killers of WPc Yvonne Fletcher, who was shot while on patrol outside the Libyan embassy 25 years ago.
As our report indicates today, the principal responsibility for the lamentable failure to bring WPc Fletcher's killer to book appears to lie with Tony Blair, the former prime minister. In the summer of 2007, he visited Libya for talks with Col Gaddafi as part of the rapprochement. At this point, the Crown Prosecution Service had enough evidence to charge two Libyans with conspiracy.
Yet Mr Blair, no doubt dazzled by the trade and oil exploration opportunities on offer, did not make the resolution of this episode one of the conditions for continuing the process. Nor, when the release of Megrahi by the Scottish executive was being contemplated, did the British Government apparently urge that the quid pro quo should be the handing over of those responsible. While Libya was said to be unprepared to extradite its nationals, a precedent had been set in the Megrahi case for conducting a trial in a third country. >>> Telegraph View | Friday, October 16, 2009
Michele Bachmann Is the New Republican Party Pin-up
THE TELEGRAPH: The Republican Party has found a new pin-up in Michele Bachmann as it prepares for a long electoral battle against Barack Obama and the Democrats.
The mother of five, who calls the president as a socialist, will appear in the 2010 Calendar of Great American Conservative Women, and is becoming a fixture on Right-wing cable news shows for her opposition to the Democrats' high-spending, bail-out agenda.
After just three years representing Minnesota's sixth district in Congress, the rising star is already being touted as a probable candidate to replace the Tim Pawlenty, the Minnesota governor aiming for the party's 2012 presidential nomination.
The former tax lawyer and state senator has rapidly become a love-hate figure, and has been compared to Sarah Palin, the former governor of Alaska and vice-presidential candidate.
Sean Hannity, the Fox News host, recently introduced Mrs Bachmann as "the second most hated Republican woman in the country, second to Governor Palin, which is a good position".
Both women's politics are conservative, home-grown and laced with libertarianism. Both are highly telegenic with a gift for controversy and, according to their detractors, for wildly inaccurate remarks or bizarre, nonsensical comments. Both have had action dolls made in their image.
At a recent forum in Colorado Mrs Bachmann, 53, issued the following call to action against the Democrats' plans to reform health care.
"This cannot pass. What we have to do today is make a covenant, to slit our wrists, be blood brothers on this thing. This will not pass. We will do whatever it takes to make sure this doesn't pass," she said.
She has also encouraged opponents of "socialised health care" to "pray to God" for Mr Obama to fail. >>> Alex Spillius in Washington | Thursday, October 15, 2009
Texas Man Faces Execution After Jurors Consult Bible to Decide Fate
THE TELEGRAPH: A convicted murderer faces execution in Texas after jurors consulted the Bible while deliberating on his sentence.
All criminals sentenced to death in Beijing will receive lethal injections from the end of the year, rather than facing a firing squad. Photo: The Telegraph
Amnesty International has appealed to the state to commute the sentence on Khristian Oliver, 32, who is due to die on November 5.
He was sentenced to death in 1999 for murdering a man whose home Oliver was burgling. The victim was shot in the face and beaten with his own rifle.
It later emerged that while deciding whether he should be given the death penalty, jurors consulted the Bible. Four jury members admitted that several copies had been in the jury room and that highlighted passages were passed around.
At one point, a juror reportedly read aloud from a copy, including the passage: "And if he smite him with an instrument of iron, so that he die, he is a murderer: the murderer shall surely be put to death."
Defence lawyers argued in appeals that jurors had been improperly influenced by the Bibles but the trial judge rejected the claim, a decision upheld by a Texas appeals court.
The US constitution calls for the separation of state and religion. In 2005, the state supreme court in Colorado overturned a death penalty on a convicted murderer because jurors had consulted the Bible while deliberating over his sentence. >>> Tom Leonard in New York | Thursday, October 15, 2009
MEPs Call for Compulsory 'EU Lessons' in Schools
THE TELEGRAPH: MEPs are calling for school pupils to be forced to take European Union lessons to counter "lies" about Brussels.
EU flag. Photo: The Telegraph
Leaders of the centre-right EPP grouping in the European Parliament say there should be compulsory classes for 14-year-olds in all member states.
The calls are being led by Mario David, a Portuguese MEP who was chief of staff to European Commission President Jose Manuel Barroso when he was the country's prime minister.
He claimed the controversy surrounding the Lisbon Treaty demonstrated their was widespread ignorance of the EU's work.
"All the debates about the constitution and then the Lisbon Treaty showed a great deal of lying, cheating and mistrust about the EU," he said.
"In Ireland people were told there was going to be abortion across the EU, that young men would be conscripted into a European Army. This was a bunch of lies.
"Knowing and understanding, from a young age, the principles, the procedures and the successful history of the European Union, the generations of tomorrow will be immune to any distortion of the perception of the role of the EU and will much better embrace the advantages of this unique project of voluntary sharing of sovereignty."
He said the curriculum would initially include a series of five half-day seminars on the history of the union.
It would cover the "Founding Fathers", the different treaties, enlargement, EU functions, the role of the union in the world and "How the EU affects everyday lives". >>> Leigh Phillips in Brussels | Thursday, October 15, 2009
Thursday, October 15, 2009
En Allemagne, les jours fériés islamiques font débat
LE FIGARO: La communauté turque veut favoriser l'intégration des immigrés.
Les représentants de la communauté turque en Allemagne pensent avoir trouvé une solution pour favoriser l'intégration des musulmans outre-Rhin : l'adoption de jours fériés islamiques pour tous les écoliers allemands, quelle que soit leur religion. Cette proposition a déclenché une vive polémique en Allemagne, où les autorités cherchent à favoriser l'intégration des immigrés espérant ainsi compenser en partie un taux de natalité en forte baisse.
Pour le président de la communauté turque en Allemagne, Kenan Kolat, s'il n'est pas possible d'offrir à tous les écoliers un jour férié pour chaque fête du calendrier musulman, il faudrait au moins en choisir un seul. «Je trouverais bien que l'on puisse accorder une journée de congé à tous les enfants allemands pour la fête musulmane qui marque la fin du Ramadan, l'Aïd-el-Fitr, a lancé Kolat dans un appel dans «Berliner Zeitung». Ce serait un signe de tolérance.» Kolat, qui représente les quelque 2,1 millions de musulmans turcs vivant en Allemagne, a souligné que la société allemande doit «tendre la main » aux immigrés, afin de favoriser leur intégration. Et d'ajouter que de nombreux Turcs pratiquant l'Islam acceptent de dresser chez eux des sapins de Noël, bien qu'ils y soient opposés a priori, «par amour pour leurs enfants ». >>> Patrick Saint-Paul, correspondant du Figaro à Berlin | Jeudi 15 Octobre 2009
Anti-Dhimmitude! ‘Islam Is Violent’ Says President Obama’s New Pastor Carey Cash
TIMES ONLINE: More than a year after he was forced to disown his Chicago pastor, President Obama has begun to attend services led by a Christian chaplain who views Islam as a violent faith.
Mr Obama has been an irregular church attender since becoming President, but has expressed a fondness for Carey Cash, the navy chaplain at the Camp David presidential retreat who has been criticised for proselytising in the military and his mistrust of Islam.
The White House insists that the Rev Cash, the great-nephew of the singer Johnny Cash, has not become Mr Obama’s new pastor, but it appears that the President has heard more sermons by him than any other minister since taking office.
The emergence of Mr Cash, 39, who was profiled on the front page of The Washington Post yesterday, will pose some tough questions for the White House — and for President Obama, whose father was Muslim. In a 2004 book describing his deployment to Iraq the year before, Mr Cash calls Islam violent, a faith that “from its very birth has used the edge of the sword as a means to convert or conquer those with different religious convictions”. >>> Tim Reid in Washington | Thursday, October 15, 2009
A Year After the Crunch, It's Boom Time Again for Bankers
A year after the global economy was brought close to collapse by reckless lending, investment banks are preparing to announce huge profits. Photo: Times Online
TIMES ONLINE: Investment bankers are about to enjoy a record bonus season as confidence surges in the financial markets.
Just 12 months after the global economy was brought close to collapse by reckless lending — forcing banks to turn to taxpayers for help — stock markets in London and New York are enjoying one of the strongest bull runs in decades and investment banks are preparing to announce huge profits.
In Britain, job losses slowed in the three months to August. Unemployment rose by 88,000 to 2.47 million, the lowest rise since July last year, and youth unemployment fell slightly. China reported strong trade figures and oil hit a high for the year.
Goldman Sachs, which employs 5,500 people in London, is expected to report a sharp rise in third-quarter profits today. Analysts estimate that, barring a major setback, the average London worker at Goldman will receive about $748,000 (£467,000) in salary and bonuses — 13 per cent higher than 2007 and more than double the 2008 average. >>> Patrick Hosking and Christine Seib | Thursday, October 15, 2009
Barack Obama Is Out of Step on Gays in the Military
TIMES ONLINE: It takes two kinds of bravery to come out in the Armed Forces. Those who show courage deserve more than political cowardice
Among all the promises of change that swept Barack Obama to power, none seemed more simple, symbolic or easier to implement than his pledge to permit openly gay men and women to serve in America’s Armed Forces.
That promise has been repeated often over the nine months since his election — “don’t doubt the direction we are heading, or the destination we will reach”, he declared last weekend — yet America’s homosexual and lesbian soldiers remain firmly barricaded inside the closet.
The present policy, requiring gays to conceal their sexual orientation or face being discharged, could be overturned by executive order or legislation, yet Mr Obama apparently has little appetite for doing so. No timetable for a change in the 16-year-old policy has been set, and the White House is said to want to delay action into the distant future. Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell has become, under the Obama presidency, Don’t Rock the Boat, Don’t Act.
The law as it stands is a monument to hypocrisy, requiring homosexual soldiers to live a lie and allowing the military brass to ignore reality. With America fighting two wars and recruitment dwindling, it is also astonishingly short-sighted. More than 12,000 members of the US Armed Forces have been discharged since Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell came into force.
The law passed by Congress in 1993 states: “The presence in the Armed Forces of persons who demonstrate a propensity or intent to engage in homosexual acts would create an unacceptable risk to the high standards of morale, good order and discipline, and unit cohesion that are the essence of military capability.”
As Britain’s experience shows, this is demonstrably untrue. A decade ago, when Britain was forced to accept gay troops by the European Court of Human Rights, some predicted heterosexual mutiny. “If the doors were opened to homosexuals, there would be a polarisation, people would be ostracised,” Air Chief Marshal Sir Michael Armitage (retired), the former head of military intelligence, insisted. “Men don’t like taking showers with men who like taking showers with men.”
As it turned out, the vast majority of serving soldiers accepted openly gay comrades without protest or, even more healthily, with benign lack of concern. At least two dozen armies across the world have admitted homosexuals and lesbians without any impact on operational effectiveness or recruitment levels. >>> Ben Macintyre | Thursday, October 15, 2009
Saudis Seek Payments for Any Drop in Oil Revenues
THE NEW YORK TIMES: Saudi Arabia is trying to enlist other oil-producing countries to support a provocative idea: if wealthy countries reduce their oil consumption to combat global warming, they should pay compensation to oil producers.
The oil-rich kingdom has pushed this position for years in earlier climate-treaty negotiations. While it has not succeeded, its efforts have sometimes delayed or disrupted discussions. The kingdom is once again gearing up to take a hard line on the issue at international negotiations scheduled for Copenhagen in December.
The chief Saudi negotiator, Mohammad al-Sabban, described the position as a “make or break” provision for the Saudis, as nations stake out their stance before the global climate summit scheduled for the end of the year.
“Assisting us as oil-exporting countries in achieving economic diversification is very crucial for us through foreign direct investments, technology transfer, insurance and funding,” Mr. Sabban said in an e-mail message.
This Saudi position has emerged periodically as a source of dispute since the earliest global climate talks, in Rio de Janeiro in 1992. It is surfacing again as Saudi Arabia tries to build a coalition of producers to extract concessions in Copenhagen.
Petroleum exporters have long used delaying tactics during climate talks. They view any attempt to reduce carbon dioxide emissions by developed countries as a menace to their economies. >>> Jad Mouawad and Andrew C. Revkin | Tuesday, October 13, 2009
Handsome Muslim Men Accused of Waging 'Love Jihad' in India
THE TELEGRAPH: Muslim fundamentalists in India have been accused of waging a "love jihad", using charming young men to lure girls into converting to Islam with promises of marriage.
Christian and Hindu groups, which have themselves clashed over the sensitive issue of religious conversions, have joined forces to combat the alleged campaign.
A Hindu helpline in southern India claims it has received more than 1,500 calls from parents who fear their daughters are being lured by the group into converting to Islam.
The high court in Kerala directed India's interior ministry and police to investigate the phenomenon.
So far, little is known about the group behind the "love jihad", but it is alleged to be linked to a fundamentalist Muslim group called the Popular Front of India and its student wing Campus Front - which they deny.
It emerged after two young Muslim men were arrested for luring two post-graduate students into marriage by "feigning love" to convert them to Islam. >>> Dean Nelson in New Delhi | Tuesday, October 13, 2009
