What is the link between call centres, fast food and Pope Benedict XVI? Until October 18th, the answer would have been, "None." But in a message that day the pope launched an attack on the short-term job contracts that underpin many modern enterprises. Barely reported outside Italy, his words will nevertheless filter down to believers and may have a long-term effect.
Contracts that do not ensure stable employment, said the pope, are among the "ethical and social emergencies capable of undermining the stability [of society] and seriously compromising its future". His objection was not that these contracts brought rock-bottom wages and long hours, but that they "did not permit young people to build a family". Ever since 1891, when Pope Leo XIII published his encyclical "Rerum Novarum", the Vatican has steered an often wobbly course between the whirlpool of socialism and the rock of capitalism. Benedict's remarks seem an abrupt tack towards the froth and spume.
International intercourse...
On Thursday morning in the Vatican Apostolic Palace, Secretary of State Cardinal Bertone and Zeljko Komsic, president of the rotating Presidency of Bosnia and Herzegovina, exchanged the instruments of ratification of the Basic Agreement between the Holy See and Bosnia and Herzegovina. Cardinal Bertone affirmed that with the signing ceremony "the norms approved in the Basic Agreement come into force, ... by which certain provisions of joint interest concerning the life and activity of the Catholic community in Bosnia and Herzegovina have been defined. They particularly refer to the recognition of the juridical status of the Catholic Church and her institutions in ... civil society, of her independence to worship and practice the apostolate, and of the specific contribution she makes in the cultural, educational, pastoral, military, ... and charitable fields, as well as in the country's mass media."
(VIS: B16 receives president of BH)
Archbishop Kondrusiewicz, the leader of the Russian Catholics announced that tensions between the Vatican and the Russian Orthodox Church could be overcome if we "put Christ in the center of our relations." Deteriorating relations between the Vatican and the Russian Orthodox Church have hindered a meeting by the two churches' leaders, as well as a papal visit to Russia. "We are trying to break this wall of problems, and we should put Christ in the center of our relations." He said the Vatican sees the Russian church as "a sister church" that has to unite efforts with other Christian denominations in the modern world "devoid of Christ."
It looks as though the well-known lawyer and pro-life feminist Mary Ann Glendon may become the newest US ambassador to the Vatican. According to reports by ANSA in Italian, sources inside the Bush administration are saying that it is very likely that "President Bush would appoint Mary Ann Glendon as the new US Ambassador to the Holy See." Interestingly, in a speech that she gave at the UN this past May, Glendon spoke about the theme of faith and politics, a topic that Pope Benedict has been quite outspoken about of late. The president of the pontifical academy said in her address that a challenge for religious and cultural leaders is to motivate "their followers to meet others on the plane of reason and mutual respect, while remaining true to themselves and their own beliefs."
German press...
Earlier this year, Chancellor Merkel seemed to be taking the world by storm. Now, though, more and more pundits are wondering if she really has a foreign policy.
The structural reforms passed 4 years ago by the government of Gerhard Schröder increased Germany's growth last year by a third, according to the first attempt by economists to quantify the macro-economic impact of the reforms. Cologne's IW institute, an economic research centre close to business, said the findings were a warning to the government of Angela Merkel, the chancellor, which has begun rolling back some of the reforms. The warning from the IW institute adds to an already loud chorus of criticism at the government's back-pedalling.
Politicians in Germany have voiced their opposition to a Blue Card fast-track migration scheme for the EU. But the country's business leaders say the economy desperately needs more workers to meet the growing skills shortages. Bavaria's Economics Minister Emilia Müller of the Christian Social Union told the Augsburger Allgemeine that "in the current labor market situation, the first thing is to mobilize the domestic labor potential." She said that employing more women and older people should take priority over immigration.
President Sarkozy has reiterated his plan to set up a Mediterranean Union, a loose grouping of countries bordering the Mediterranean Sea, in 2008 - a move that is likely to raise eyebrows in some parts of Europe. Under the plans, the group should tie southern Europe (Cyprus, Greece, France, Italy, Malta, Portugal and Spain) with Northern Africa as well as Israel and its Arab neighbours and tackle topical issues such as counter-terrorism, immigration, energy, trade, water and sustainable development. However - after offering Turkey that it could be the backbone of the club - the project has been widely seen as another attempt to give Ankara an alternative for its bid for full EU membership.
Eurocrats like to talk about building Europe "step by step". Critics accuse Brussels of slicing away national sovereignty, treaty by treaty. Both versions are correct. Treaties are try-ons whose true effects become clear only years later. Fans of the Lisbon treaty say it is designed to make EU institutions more efficient and to "streamline" decision-making after the union's enlargement to 27 nations. What does that mean in practice?
(Economist: Congradulations! It's triplets!)
(Economist op-ed: Give Europe a say)
It is unlikely that either George Bush or Tony Blair, as they prepared for war, had heard of the Mahdi—the millennial figure who Shia Muslims believe will come with the Messiah to set up a just Islamist government at the end of the world. Shias, a large majority in Basra, believe that the returning Mahdi will be their 12th imam, Muhammad bin Hassan, who was born in 868AD. They say he never died but was hidden from human view, in "occultation"; he will reappear to rescue his people at a time of unprecedented calamity, torture and persecution—ie, now.
Republican Mitt Romney said he would be willing to use a military blockade or "bombardment of some kind" to prevent Iran from gaining a nuclear weapon. Romney, who has been advocating a hard line against Iran throughout his presidential campaign, said military action would be necessary if severe economic and diplomatic sanctions don't convince Iranian leaders to abandon pursuit of a nuclear weapon.
In an act unprecedented in the history of international relations, Washington on Thursday unilaterally imposed harsh and potentially crippling economic sanctions against Iran's main uniformed security force, as well as against more than 20 Iranian companies and the country's 3 major banks. The sanctions, announced by US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice and Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson, represent a deliberate provocation aimed at precluding any negotiated settlement to the dispute over Iran's nuclear program and making a US war against the country all but inevitable.
As the Bush administration prepares for yet another war, the Democrats in Congress have once again emerged as willing accomplices. The administration's imposition of sanctions was actually prefigured by legislation passed in the Democratic-led House—by an overwhelming 397-16 vote—that would impose sanctions on non-US energy companies doing business in Iran. In the final analysis, the propaganda about nuclear threats and terrorism notwithstanding, a US war against Iran would be launched to impose American capitalism's hegemonic control over the strategic oil reserves of the Persian Gulf.
Washington society has been chattering about the risk of war with Tehran. It's an open secret that Vice President Dick Cheney has made bombing plans, but even high-ranking military experts think an attack would lead to world economic chaos, or even what George W. Bush calls "WW3."
A senior Palestinian intelligence official said that based on meetings with American diplomats he "understood" the US plans to target Iran's suspected nuclear installations in 2-3 months if negotiations with Tehran don't generate a major breakthrough. The official, speaking to WND yesterday on condition of anonymity, said according to what he "understood," the US will "pay" for Arab support for a US strike against Iran by creating a temporary Palestinian state in the Gaza Strip and most of the West Bank by next summer.
The US bishops will offer an updated statement on faith and politics after their general meeting next month, ahead of the 2008 election year. The proposed statement focuses on the bishops' role in helping to form consciences in political life. "Our purpose is to help Catholics form their consciences in accordance with God's truth. We recognize that the responsibility to make choices in political life rests with each individual in light of a properly formed conscience, and that participation goes well beyond casting a vote in a particular election."
The draft to be discussed in November explains the necessity of opposing actions that are intrinsically wrong, such as abortion and euthanasia, and affirms the obligation to promote the common good by combating such threats to human life and dignity as hunger, poverty, racism, unjust immigration policies and unjust war. The proposed draft also urges Catholics "to become more involved: running for office, working within political parties and communicating concerns to elected officials." It suggests that Catholics should be "guided more by our moral convictions than by our attachment to a political party or interest group."
The draft to be discussed in November explains the necessity of opposing actions that are intrinsically wrong, such as abortion and euthanasia, and affirms the obligation to promote the common good by combating such threats to human life and dignity as hunger, poverty, racism, unjust immigration policies and unjust war. The proposed draft also urges Catholics "to become more involved: running for office, working within political parties and communicating concerns to elected officials." It suggests that Catholics should be "guided more by our moral convictions than by our attachment to a political party or interest group."
Will the real conservative please stand up? Or perhaps we should recall John 14:2, "In my father's house there are many rooms." What does it mean to be a conservative – in 2007? Today, the once-great house of conservatism is a Tower of Babel. We are big government and small government, traditionalist and libertarian, tax-cutter and budget hawk, free trader and economic nationalist.
Economist Paul Krugman on how the right-wing media machine is destroying social progress. He certainly pulled no punches during our conversation, stating in a forthright manner his opinions on such controversial topics as truth and lies in the newsroom ("The Big Lies are all on the right"), media bias ("A large part of it is in fact right-wing bias, because they are effectively part of the right wing") and corporate pressure ("It's very clear that when the parent companies of the major news sources have issues at stake before the federal government ... this definitely influences the coverage.).
(Salon: Journalism and its discontents)
Crude oil rose to a record above $91 a barrel in New York on an unexpected drop in US stockpiles and concern that supply from the Middle East may be disrupted. New US sanctions against Iran, warnings of a Turkish assault on Kurdish militants in Iraq and a falling dollar helped push prices higher.
The dollar fell to another new low against the euro in midmorning trading on speculation that US interest rates will be cut again.
China's economy is continuing to expand at a blistering rate - with 11.5% growth in the 3rd quarter of 2007. It is now poised to overtake Germany as the world's 3rd largest economy within weeks and will soon also take Germany's crown as the world's biggest exporter.
Merrill Lynch & Co., the world's largest brokerage firm, reported a net third-quarter loss of $2.4 billion Wednesday and acknowledged writing off $8.4 billion in assets from failed investments in subprime mortgage-linked securities. The massive write-off exceeded the Wall Street giant's net earnings for all of 2006. It equals about one-eighth of the investment bank's total market capitalization.
Merrill's disastrous financial report is only the sharpest expression of a general crisis gripping the biggest Wall Street commercial and investment banks. It is further evidence that the credit crunch which erupted over the summer is symptomatic of a deep-going crisis of the American and global financial system—one whose dimensions and consequences are only beginning to unfold.
(Economist: World economy more trick than treat)
Atonement explosion!...
Astronomers around the world agree, Comet 17P/Holmes is one of the strangest things ever to explode in the night sky. It's a comet, yet it looks like a planet with a golden core and a green atmosphere (pic gallery). Tuesday night, Comet Holmes shocked sky watchers with a spectacular eruption, brightening almost a million-fold from 17th to 2.5th magnitude in a matter of hours. The comet is now visible to the naked eye - even from light polluted cities - high in the northern sky after sunset (in the constellation Perseus the Hero) (finder chart).
* Sudden naked-eye comet shocks the astronomy world (Sky & Telescope)
* Naked-eye comet bursts into view (Astronomy)
* The comet was discovered on November 6, 1892 (Wikipedia)
[WAR: Well, this is quite interesting and amazing!! Is it just coincidence that this happened during the night of the fast (between the evening of the 9th day to the evening of the 10th)? I seriously doubt it. Could this be a heavenly sign of when Atonement actually was?! Could this be a heavenly "stamp of approval" of the correct calendar out of all the ones that are currently in use (and causing mass confusion) by those who attempt to observe the appointed times? And to add to the mystique, the comet was discovered the night before Tabernacles started in 1892. Go ahead ... calculate the astronomical odds of these 2 events happening when they did.
This reminds me of 1997 when Comet Hale-Bopp was right next to the crescent moon in Taurus that signaled the beginning of the year - just a few months after the Calendar Conference in Dallas that Lawrence and I organized. But no other calendar had that "heavenly honor" - they were all a month too early. Was this just another heavenly coincidence? What are the odds? (And don't even get me started on the coincidences of Rabin being assassinated on Atonement and Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger "dying" and being reborn/inaugurated as Pope Benedict XVI on Passover.)
This is not a bragging or boasting by any means - this is a pleading (for those with eyes to see and ears to hear) to consider the calendar that I've been proposing over the years. And as I'll announce (with details) in the #07-17 issue of the WAR, it's the only lunar-based calendar that can fulfill, the timeline during Noah's flood - something that has heretofore been considered impossible to do.
Over the years, numerous people have asked me for a "paper/article" on this calendar - but I have not had the time to devote to it. And now that some final pieces of the puzzle have fallen into place, I'm now ready to start putting pen-to-paper - or rather, keystrokes-to-monitor. And this is one of the reasons that I'm moving back to the SE Arizona desert again in a few days - to simplify my life and make the time to complete this task about time.]
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