Benedict XVI made a move to reinforce unity within the Church with new norms that allow for wider celebration of the Roman Missal promulgated by John XXIII in 1962. In an explanatory letter that accompanied the document, addressed to the bishops of the world, he says that his decision was motivated by a desire to bring about "an interior reconciliation in the heart of the Church."
(Zenit: Lefebvre successor thanks B16)
Supportin' the Whore...
The Vatican released details of its financial report Friday, saying increased contributions from dioceses and individuals – primarily from the US – helped keep it in the black despite rising labor costs and a falling dollar. "The trend is positive and encouraging," said Cardinal Sergio Sebastiani, who heads the Vatican's office of economic affairs. He said the US has steadily remained the largest source of contributions – even at the height of the clergy sex-abuse scandal a few years ago. Germany and Italy were next in line.
Apparently, Edmund Stoiber seeks to ascend to international status as a mediator of sorts, following his scheduled retirement in September 2007 after 14 years in office. This lame-duck status notwithstanding, Putin resorted to extreme forms of flattery. He gave Stoiber a long session in the Kremlin, "detailed" information about Putin's July 2 discussion with President Bush, a parade of the Kremlin Guard cavalry company organized especially for Stoiber - an unprecedented favor - and a private dinner for the Stoibers at Putin's residence outside Moscow. Putin coyly remarked that his secret services could not figure out why Stoiber was retiring.
In an interview that has outraged politicians and media commentators alike, the Interior Minister calls for changes to Germany's constitution to simplify the fight against terror. It's a discussion that goes to the fringes of what's allowed in a constitutional state: preventative detainments, clandestine seizure of private computer data and even targeted killings.
(DW: Press review)
If there is one quintessentially German word that has been woven into the fabric of society over the years, then it is "Ordnung." Meaning "order" or "orderliness," it represents the legs upon which the nation stands.
Gordon Brown raised the possibility of a referendum on the new European treaty yesterday - but only if he is forced to make last-minute concessions by Britain's EU partners.
(LT op-ed: PM forgets to hang tough on Europe)
President Sarkozy clashed with EU finance ministers Monday night over the bloc's economic direction, fresh evidence that France's new president is rankling his partners by putting domestic priorities ahead of EU rules. EU officials appear increasingly uneasy with his efforts to put France back in the EU driver's seat after 2 years during which the French rejection of the constitution had relegated the country to a secondary role.
President Sarkozy wants a Frenchman to be the next IMF chief but, while an agreement is unlikely at the ECOFIN meeting today, EU partners view his insistence with suspicion.
(DW: EU backs Strauss-Kahn)
Signs of panic have appeared in France's demoralised opposition after President Sarkozy promised no let-up in his drive to woo senior Socialists for service in his centre-right administration. The predatory recruiting tactics of "Super-Sarko" have stirred doubts about the very survival of the left-of-centre party. They have also upset MPs in his own Union for a Popular Movement.
Poland may be heading towards an early election this autumn following an apparent break-up of the ruling coalition, with the internal political turmoil likely to influence Warsaw's further performance in EU treaty talks.
(DW: Early elections loom)
Kosovo appealed to the US on Monday to set a date for the province's independence from Serbia, signaling rising impatience with Western efforts to steer the project through the UN.
Reports that Turkey has massed a huge military force on its border with Iraq bolstered fears that an invasion targeting hideouts of Kurdish rebels could be imminent. But how deeply into Iraq is the Turkish army willing to go, how long would it stay and what kind of fallout could come from allies in Washington and other NATO partners?
Syria is calling on its citizens who are in Lebanon to leave the country ahead of an expected military "eruption" expected to take place next week. Arab and Iranian news reports predict Lebanon's political crisis may become a violent conflict next week. Reports from the area suggest civil war is possible.
The Syrian government, preparing for a war with the Jewish state, has given its officials and top contacts alternative phone numbers to key government ministries in case the Damascus phone system is knocked out during an Israeli aerial bombardment, WND has learned.
Pakistani commandos stormed a besieged mosque in Islamabad early this morning less than an hour after negotiations between the country's leaders and Islamic militants broke down.
The Zionist regime's news sources have confessed that the Zionist organizations' efforts to persuade Iranian Jews to immigrate to the occupied territory has had no result and the Iranian Jews prefer to live in Iran.
(PTV: Iranian Jews say no)
Iran has scaled back its uranium enrichment program, the head of the IAEA said, suggesting the move on the part of Tehran could signal willingness to resolve the international standoff over its nuclear defiance.
(PTV: Iran denies slowing down)
Predicting that sanctions will ultimately fail to stop Teheran's nuclear program, Brig.-Gen. (res.) Kuperwasser, former head of Military Intelligence's Research Division, told The Jerusalem Post that time to launch an effective military strike against Iran's nuclear installations was running out.
Most Americans, even many Iraq war doves, seem to agree that the US government should "do something" about Iran. Those who don't advocate bombings or ground invasions will still often defend harsh sanctions against Iran, but this too is a coercive measure, a war by other means. Blockades have long been regarded as acts of war. Why can't the US just leave Iran alone?
Presidential candidate Ron Paul says unless US policies are changed, a conflict with Iran is "about as inevitable as you can expect."
In the face of a critical Senate debate on future US strategy in Iraq, neoconservatives and other hawks are trying to rally increasingly skeptical – and worried – Republicans behind continued support for President Bush's 5-month-old "surge" strategy.
(LT op-ed: Washington wobbles)
(ABC: White House in "panic mode")
By giving a crony a get-out-of-jail-free card, George Bush has further tarnished his presidency. Perhaps, in the end, Bush's decision came down to a simple calculation that he has little left to lose. He is not seeking re-election, his approval ratings can barely go any lower, and any hopes for legacy-polishing bipartisan co-operation with Congress seem to have evaporated. So why should Bush not please his few remaining friends and placate his vice-president by springing the loyal Libby? It makes a kind of sense, but a deeply troubling one. What else, one wonders, might so isolated a president do before he goes?
These are questions that receive incomplete, misleading, or absolutely false answers in the standard treatment of American history. Most are simply never raised in the first place, since they might give rise to forbidden thoughts that run counter to established opinion.
The International Energy Agency has predicted a supply crunch in the world's oil markets that could send prices soaring and place a severe dent in global growth. In a report that painted a bleak outlook for the global economy, the IEA said spare capacity in oil production would dry up over the next 5 years, even as demand continues to jump significantly.
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