"THE WAR ON ERROR"
A year and a half after his election, Papa Benedetto remains an enigma. Who is he really? After the generally hostile reaction to his election in the European and American media, he does not seem to fit their initial fears. Nor does he fit the happy dreams of observers like Richard John Neuhaus or George Weigel who waited eagerly for the purges that have not happened.
Brazilian Cardinal Claudio Hummes, a friend of newly re-elected Brazilian president Lula and a long-time supporter of the liberation theology movement, has been named as the new prefect of the Holy See Congregation for the Clergy. The 72-year-old Brazil-born son of German immigrants will succeed Colombian Cardinal Dario Castrillon Hoyos.
In a first since the Reformation, Lord Nicholas Windsor, son of the Duke and Duchess of Kent of Wimbledon tennis fame, will this Saturday marry a British born Croatian noble, Donna Paolo Doimi de Frankopan, at a church behind St Peter's, Rome. He will also be the first ever member of the Royal Family to marry openly and legally within the rites of the Catholic faith since the Reformation. The historic moment in relations between the Catholic Church and the British Monarchy will take place at the Church of Santo Stefano degli Abissini in the papal gardens behind St Peter's Basilica.
German press
With bilateral relations between Germany and Poland at a new low, nobody was expecting too much from Monday's summit between Chancellor Angela Merkel and her Polish counterpart Jaroslaw Kaczynski. Hence a cautious olive branch from Merkel was enough for observers to hail the meeting as a moderate success.
German troops are seemingly everywhere from Afghanistan to Congo. But a slew of negative headlines has some in Germany wondering whether some troops ought to be brought home. The search for an exit strategy has begun.
It had already been a bad year for German-Polish relations, but things really soured this month when naval warfare between the two countries nearly broke out on the Baltic Sea. "Are Our Neighbors Insane?" blared Bild, Germany's largest newspaper.
Efforts by Chancellor Angela Merkel to revive the European Union's failed constitution were dealt a setback Tuesday when the country's high court delayed ruling on the text until as late as 2009. The Federal Constitutional Court in Karlsruhe said it would not rule on whether the draft EU constitution conformed with Germany's constitution until after there was a final decision on the fate of the EU treaty. And President Horst Koehler has vowed not to sign the bill until the Karlsruhe court makes its final ruling. Bavarian Christian Social Union member of parliament Peter Gauweiler filed the high court lawsuit after alleging the EU constitution would deprive the Berlin parliament of its power. Gauweiler hailed the ruling and issued a statement predicting "the EU constitution has in all probability also failed in Germany."
[WAR: Poor ol' COG prophets. I wonder how they will spin this news?! I've been told more than once that "time will tell" whether my "unorthodox" prophetic views about "Europe" and the EU are correct. Well, it looks like time is already doing some telling right now. And it's not just "telling" - it's shouting. Can you hear the voice of reality?]
The European Union reiterated that it would take Germany to court if its parliament passes a law that allows Deutsche Telekom AG to shut out rivals from its high-speed broadband network.
Analysis
Germany and Britain have signaled they may withdraw troops from Bosnia-Herzegovina, a plan that worries experts who say the region remains politically unstable. Bosnia is far from being a stable country, a German expert told UPI.
The outlook has changed with the failure of both the Albanian and Serbian sides to reach an agreement in nine months of negotiations, in particular since the Serbs are refusing to recognize Albanian-dominated institutions in what has been a territory dear to their religious and cultural heritage.
A senior adviser to Prime Minister Tony Blair has met President Bashar al-Assad on an unannounced visit to Syria, marking a change in British policy toward Damascus, diplomats and Syrian officials said.
A devastating pre-dawn missile strike on an Islamic school in Chingai in the remote Bajaur agency of Pakistan has left at least 80 students and teachers dead. The US-based Stratfor thinktank has suggested it is more likely that the attack was carried out by US forces or in a joint US-Pakistani operation. It is quite possible that Musharraf took responsibility for the attack, rather than admit he had allowed the US to stage operations in Pakistan.
Iran unexpectedly announced that it would be holding military maneuvers in the Gulf this week, only days after U.S.-led navies held exercises in the same waterway. Iranian state television quoted the head of the Revolutionary Guards as saying the 10-day maneuvers, named "Great Prophet," would take place in the Gulf and the Sea of Oman, beginning tomorrow.
A group of German parliamentarians is in Tehran this week to help defuse the ongoing conflict over Iran's nuclear program. But President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad said UN sanctions won't have an impact.
Iran's president has told his Russian counterpart that talks over Iran's nuclear dispute were being hindered because the European side did not have enough authority. "The most important problem in continuing Iran and Europe's negotiations is the European side's lack of enough authority [to take decisions]."
Russia said on Tuesday it believed Iran's nuclear program was peaceful, and a political dialogue, not sanctions, must be used in talks with Tehran. "We do not have information that would suggest that Iran is carrying out a non-peaceful (nuclear) program."
The third and final act in the national tragedy that is the Bush administration may soon play itself out. The Okhrana reports increasing indications of "something big" happening between the election and Christmas. That could be the long-planned attack on Iran.
An Iranian diplomat said here Tuesday that the United States has become wary of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) after Iran acquired observer status in this regional organization.
Iran has said it would offer cash incentives to travel agencies to encourage Western tourists to visit the country, giving a premium for Americans. The proposal is Iran's latest bid to reach out to ordinary Americans in an attempt by the Islamic Republic's political leadership to show that its quarrel is with the U.S. administration — not U.S. citizens.
Prominent Zionist groups and individuals in the US are conducting a campaign of intimidation against liberal and left-wing critics of the Israeli regime and Washington’s policy toward Israel. The intimidation campaign raises the obvious question of why the Zionists fear open debate. An open debate would provide the opportunity to expose the false promise of Zionism to provide a haven for the Jewish people.
Democratic Party leaders and candidates are waging the most right-wing campaign in the party’s history. The essential content of this campaign is a pledge to continue the Bush administration’s policies of militarism abroad and social reaction at home. The Democrats are at pains to reassure America’s financial elite that an end to Republican control over one or both houses of Congress will in no way impinge on their wealth or political influence.
After the weak third quarter GDP growth number, the debate over the U.S. economy between supply-side pro-Republican economists and left-wing Democratic economists has again intensified. Yet this debate by partisan Republican and partisan Democratic economists' rests on two false premises.
The U.S. intelligence community has unveiled its own secretive version of Wikipedia saying the popular online encyclopedia format known for its openness is key to the future of American espionage.
Father hate is a poison that can eventually undermine any society. It is already happening here in America, one child at a time. In truth, our real yearning for father lies at the heart of a mystery that embarrasses secularists but which nonetheless remains true (as science itself is finding): Men and women are not just different, we're remarkably different, right down to the ways our brains function!
Actually, fathers represent something quite significant in society – something beyond normal parenting. They represent authority, pure and simple, and not just any authority, but ultimate authority as far as a child is concerned. Fathers are the standard we children yearn to meet. In a sense, they actually define our worth, at least in the early stages of our adult lives – and forever, if they love us.
Gold prices rose for a seventh day as concerns about a slowdown in the U.S. economy led its currency to decline, prompting some investors to buy the precious metal as an alternative investment.
Eight years after being taken over by Daimler-Benz, Chrysler remains a company in need of restructuring. So much so, in fact, that executives at the German company are increasingly in favor of unloading the American subsidiary.
A round-the-clock international news channel France is to launch in December will challenge the "Anglo-Saxon" views spread by market leaders BBC and CNN by relying on "French values", the network's chief said.
The Al-Jazeera International network has set a launch date of Nov. 15, although it's still not clear whether anybody in the United States will be able to see it. The English-language offshoot of the influential Arab network Al- Jazeera will begin operations at 7 a.m. ET out of its Doha, Qatar headquarters.
This approach, called calorie restriction, involves eating about 30% fewer calories than normal while still getting adequate amounts of vitamins, minerals and other nutrients. Aside from direct genetic manipulation, calorie restriction is the only strategy known to extend life consistently in a variety of animal species.
Have you noticed who is almost always called nice? Whenever a serial murderer is found his neighbors always say, "He was such a nice man." I’ve had it with nice. I’m done with nice.
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