Bond-Buying Next on German Euroskeptic’s To-Stop List
An opponent of the eurozone rescue fund has filed a new complaint against a program to help member states. Peter Gauweiler argues that the European Central Bank has overstepped its authority with a bond-buying plan.
Gauweiler says that the ECB’s latest move changes the terms of the European Stability Mechanism (ESM) and the court should, if necessary, delay its Wednesday ruling on an injunction to block that fund. The eurosceptic’s office announced that he also wants to see the ECB reverse its decision to buy unlimited amounts of government bonds if countries ask for help from the ESM.
“The ESM — insofar as it is constitutionally viable at all — should only come into force when the ECB has taken back its self-awarded power as a hyper rescue-shield,” Gauweiler said in a statement.
A member of the Christian Social Union — the Bavarian branch of Angela Merkel’s conservative coalition — Gauweiler is one of several plaintiffs against the 500-billion-euro ($640 billion) ESM. He argues that the fund is incompatible with Germany’s constitution because it requires the country to be on-call for currency crises and cuts into domestic budgetary planning.
At the end of June, Gauweiler fought the ESM on two fronts: with the constitutional complaint and with legal action against the German government.
The ESM, which will replace the temporary European Financial Stability Facility, should have been in place by July 1. However, it needs Germany’s rescue money to function and has been held up pending the Constitutional Court’s ruling.
| — Hat tip: Fjordman | [Return to headlines] |
China Imports Fall and Weak Global Demand Hits Exports
China’s imports shrank in August in a new sign its painful economic downturn might be worsening while export growth was weak due to anemic global demand, increasing the likelihood of more Government stimulus.
Imports shrank 2.6pc from a year earlier, customs data showed Monday. That came on top of earlier data that showed August factory output fell to a three-year low.
Exports rose 2.7pc over a year ago, down sharply from double-digit growth of recent years as Europe’s debt woes and a sluggish US recovery hurt demand for Chinese goods.
The data follows data on Sunday showing that China’s factories ran at their slowest rate for three years in August.
China’s economic growth fell to a three-year low of 7.6pc in the quarter ending in June, hurting demand for imported oil, iron ore and consumer goods. Private sector analysts expect growth to fall further in the current quarter.
The weak data is grim news in a country where exports generate 25pc of gross domestic product, support an estimated 200 million jobs and where analysts already expect the economy to have its weakest year of expansion since 1999.
| — Hat tip: Fjordman | [Return to headlines] |
Euro Bailout Fund Faces New Court Challenge in Germany
The German government is convinced that the Constitutional Court will this week clear the path for the permanent euro bailout fund to go into operation. But now it faces a new challenge: A major German critic of the government’s euro rescue policies is suing over the European Central Bank’s bond-buying plans.
| — Hat tip: Fjordman | [Return to headlines] |
Germany to Drop Austerity or Leave Euro, Says Soros
International investor George Soros has called on Germany to drop austerity policies or leave the euro. “The difficulty is in convincing Germany that its current policies are leading to a prolonged depression,” he wrote in the New York Review of Books. Soros is due in Berlin on Monday.
| — Hat tip: Fjordman | [Return to headlines] |
German Politician Files New Euro Complaint
German centre-right politician Peter Gauweiler has filed an urgent complaint before the German constitutional court concerning the ECB’s announcement that it would buy the bonds of troubled euro states. He wants the court to delay its crucial decision on the eurozone bailout fund until it has considered the ECB move.
| — Hat tip: Fjordman | [Return to headlines] |
Hollande: ‘€30 Billion Must be Found’
French Socialist President Francois Hollande has outlined a two-year plan to overhaul the country’s stagnating economy and to boost employment. The President conceded the task ahead to stimulate growth and restore public finances would be formidable, but promised in a live TV address on Sunday (9 September) to achieve results by 2014. “My mission is a recovery plan and the timeframe is two years,” he said.
The country’s hope of 1.2 percent growth for 2013 was recently dashed as figures indicated the economy will probably expand by just 0.8 percent next year.
| — Hat tip: Fjordman | [Return to headlines] |
Spain Breaks World Record in Unemployment
Southern Europe is suffering from the highest proven unemployment in the world, country specific statistics provided by the ILO for Financial Times Deutschland show. Spain holds the world record with 24.5% unemployed, followed by Greece (22.3%). The ILO is responsible for drawing up and overseeing international labour standards.
| — Hat tip: Fjordman | [Return to headlines] |
America, The Battlefield
The issue of ammunition acquisition orders by the United States Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has been the topic for extensive written analysis and discussion within the “alternative” media. The ammunition acquisition orders have been completely ignored by the evening news, while the retinue of traditional national talk show hosts and news outlets have also appeared to avoid any detailed inquiry or in-depth analysis of this topic.
When not being outright silent on this issue, they’ve asserted that these orders were normal and customary, citing training and qualifying purposes. But is this a legitimate explanation? Not according to our investigation, which found the ammunition orders to be “extreme” at the very least and most certainly worthy of concern. First, some historical context.
[…]
Concurrent with the large amounts of ammunition being ordered, we see countless armored vehicles under the control of DHS as well as other law enforcement agencies being rolled out on American streets. The Department of Homeland Security as well as other domestic law enforcement agencies are employing the use of Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs or drones) within the United States for surveillance and interdiction purposes. These UAVs are not dedicated to the porous southern border, but instead being used throughout the U.S.
[…]
The militarization of municipal law enforcement agencies within the U.S. has been in progress for some time. However, it has been expedited under the reign of Barack Hussein Obama, implemented by DHS Secretary Janet Napolitano, and again, facilitated through bipartisan support of members of the United States Senate and House of Representatives. But, who is the enemy? If you are reading this, chances are good that you are.
This covert war did not just suddenly appear under the reign (a term used deliberately) of Barack Hussein Obama, but it was most certainly expedited by his command. Definitions of “enemies of the state” were changed from actual or potential terrorists to those whose beliefs and values did not match his agenda. Currently, free-thinking supporters of our God given rights, granted to us under the Constitution and delineated in the Declaration of Independence, along with men and woman of Christian faith and Judeo-Christian values are the new “enemies of the state.”
| — Hat tip: JD | [Return to headlines] |
Anti-Islam Ads on San Francisco Buses Put Muslims at Risk
by Hatem Bazian
Ads running on San Francisco municipal buses, paid for by noted anti-Islam activist Pamela Geller and her American Freedom Defense Initiative, have sparked controversy about hate speech and fears they could stoke more violence against the American Muslim community. The ads come at a time when American Muslims have suffered at least nine attacks across the nation over a two-week period in August. The advertisements, cribbed from an Ayn Rand quote, state: “In Any War Between the Civilized Man and the Savage, Support the Civilized Man. Support Israel, Defeat Jihad.” The Southern Poverty Law Center has identified the American Freedom Defense Initiative as a hate group.
The outcry has focused on discrimination against adherents of Islam, and rightly so. On Aug. 10, pigs’ feet were strewed on the lawn of a mosque in Ontario, while Muslim worshipers in Hayward were pelted by oranges and lemons as they walked into prayer. In Illinois, an acid bomb was thrown at an Islamic school and shots were fired at a mosque. In both cases, worshipers were inside attending to Ramadan prayers. A mosque in Joplin, Mo., was torched and burned to the ground, and other mosques in Oklahoma and Rhode Island reported incidents of vandalism. In Panama City, Fla., a Molotov cocktail was thrown at a Muslim family’s home. Geller’s ads demonize Muslims at a time when they are under attack…
| — Hat tip: JP | [Return to headlines] |
Ironworkers Build New World Trade Center
New York ironworkers are putting the finishing touches on One World Trade Center, which will replace the Twin Towers destroyed in the 9/11 terrorist attacks. They take pride in their work, a family tradition for many.
In June, President Barack Obama visited One World Trade Center — the single, tapered building that is replacing the Twin Towers in the New York skyline. In red marker, he wrote a message on a steel beam, to be placed at the very top: “We remember. We rebuild. We come back stronger!”
The tower has already surpassed the Empire State Building, becoming the tallest structure in the city. At 1,776 feet (541 meters), it will soon be the tallest building in the United States, the tallest in the Northern Hemisphere — and one of the most iconic skyscrapers in the world. Some days, it disappears into the clouds.
The lift goes as far as the 79th floor and you climb the rest of the way: along a staircase attached to the frame, with a spectacular view straight down to Ground Zero, then up ladders through gaps in the corrugated steel deck.
| — Hat tip: Fjordman | [Return to headlines] |
Obama’s Forward Equals Two Steps Back
Truth be told, Obama’s FORWARD drives an enormous bureaucratic tank over a feeble private sector, grinding it into mush, and, thereafter stalls out completely because having destroyed the private sector there is no source left to fuel the machine. Obama would destroy the engine of employment, the wealthy, yielding massive new unemployment. Obama would favor unreliable and expensive green energy over traditional sources of energy, driving up the cost of energy nationwide. Obama would grant drug companies and health insurers government sponsored monopolies, crushing all sources of competition to those licensed and federally protected entities.
In short, Obama’s “new path” is the same old government road down which America has traveled for decades. It is new in only one sense—the rate of speed at which Obama causes government to travel upon it. He has accelerated the amassing of debt, exploding the federal budget beyond predictions made just six months ago. He spends unconstrained by the reality of financial ruin that every reasonable economist predicts to be just around the corner. In short, he believes in government even if his belief kills us.
| — Hat tip: JD | [Return to headlines] |
Sequestration in Disaster Relief
A group in Congress wants to shift some financial responsibility to the states while another group argues that limiting federal help would impede speedy recovery.
FEMA, upon request from a governor, makes a damage report and a recommendation to the president if a declaration is needed. The president can approve or deny any request.
Congressmen are worried about the federal cost. 75% is paid by the federal government and 25% by the state and local governments. Congressmen are interested in” offsetting some portion of disaster assistance spending by implementing budgetary mechanisms that might trigger a sequestration.”
[…]
The federal government wants to pay less and less for the increased declarations of natural disasters. It appears less willing to help American disaster victims while it is more willing to help disaster victims and causes in other parts of the world.
| — Hat tip: JD | [Return to headlines] |
Daytime Shootings on the Rise in Sweden: Report
Criminals in Sweden are becoming more prone to firing gunshots in broad daylight, according to a new study, increasingly putting innocent passersby in harm’s way.
Gunfire in Sweden is no longer a phenomenon restricted to out of the way alleys in the cover of darkness.
To an ever greater extent, Swedish criminals are opening fire in the middle of the day and in places where there is an increased risk of innocent bystanders getting caught in the crossfire.
On Sunday evening, a young woman was nearly hit by a bullet unleashed during a shooting at a grocery store in Arlöv outside of Malmö that left a 16-year-old boy injured.
More than ten people were present at the time of the shooting, and witnesses reported several shots being fired.
In the last month, more than ten outdoor shootings targeting people have taken place in Sweden in the last month, with shots being fired in residential areas or in busy pedestrian areas.
Often, there have been many bystanders in the area, creating situations in which those beside the intended target are put at risk of being hit by stray bullet.
“It’s pure luck that no innocent people have been hurt. It’s going to happen sooner or later,” Lars Öjelind, a detective with the intelligence section of Sweden’s National Bureau of Investigation (Rikskriminalpolisen) told the TT news agency.
A study by the National Crime Prevention Council (Brottsförebyggande rådet — Brå), which is based on 60 interviews with police officers in Malmö, Gothenburg, and Stockholm, supports the theory that there has been a change in criminal behaviour in Sweden.
“The impression police have is that shooting are far more reckless than previously,” Danial Vesterhav, a researcher with the crime prevention council, told TT.
| — Hat tip: Fjordman | [Return to headlines] |
Exclusive — U.S. Groups Helped Fund Dutch Anti-Islam Politician Wilders
(Reuters) — Anti-Islam groups in America have provided financial support to Dutch politician Geert Wilders, an anti-immigration campaigner who is seeking re-election to the Dutch parliament this week.
While this is not illegal in the Netherlands, it sheds light on the international connections of Wilders, whose Freedom Party is the least transparent Dutch parliamentary group and a rallying point for Europe’s far right…
| — Hat tip: JP | [Return to headlines] |
France: Condom Maker Fined for ‘Made in Condom’ Claim
A court has ordered a condom company to pay €10,000 in false advertising fines after claiming their product was made in the town of Condom, near Bordeaux.
“The Original Condom Company”, owned by two French men, advertised their prophylactics as made in the picturesque town of Condom, situated on the river Baise, when they were in fact made in Malaysia.
But a court in Bordeaux ordered the company to remove all reference to the town from their product as only an unoccupied address linked to the company could be found there.
Condom’s mayor, Bernard Gallardo, and the town hall have been trying to play down the link to its anglophone namesake and meaning for years.
“We’re not going to hide our heads in the sand, we won’t prevent people from making a link with the name. But retreating into such notoriety can only compromise the tourism qualities of the town,” Gallardo told Reuters.
| — Hat tip: Fjordman | [Return to headlines] |
France: Why Did Massacre Family Leave Campsite in a Hurry? Murder Victims Switched Base Two Days Before Bloodbath
French Alps massacre victim Saad Al-Hilli and his family abruptly switched campsites two days before they were gunned down, it was revealed last night.
A Dutch couple said the family had intended to stay for a week at the three-star Village Camping Europa site in the village of St Jorioz.
But they left after two nights and moved to the La Solitude du Lac campsite, which overlooks Lake Annecy.
The revelation prompted speculation that Mr Al-Hilli, 50, his dentist wife Ikbal, 47, and mother-in-law Suhaila Al-Allaf, 74, may have had a disagreement with someone at the first site.
| — Hat tip: JD | [Return to headlines] |
‘Get Lost You Rich Idiot’, France’s Wealthiest Man Told
A move by France’s richest man, Bernard Arnault, to seek Belgian citizenship has caused outrage in his home country. Daily newspaper Libération ordered him to “Get Lost you Rich Idiot” in Monday’s front page, as politicians lined up to lambast him.
France’s richest man, billionaire Bernard Arnault, has come under fire from all quarters for his controversial decision to apply for Belgian nationality.
The decision by 63-year-old head of the Louis Vuitton, Moët and Hennessy (LVMH) luxury goods empire to seek Belgian citizenship, has been seen by some as a first step to his future financial exile from France. It is an accusation Arnault has strongly denied.
‘Parasite’
Nevertheless, his decision has provoked a furious reaction in the press and among politicians.
Libération’s front-page headline on Monday screamed “Get Lost, you Rich Idiot”, in homage to the infamous outburst by former president Nicolas Sarkozy, a friend of Arnault’s, who memorably told a farmer to “get lost, you poor idiot”.
“Even if he denies he will go into exile for financial motives, Bernard Arnault’s request for Belgian nationality appears to be the symbol of selfishness by the most wealthy,” Libération added on their front page.
Jean-Luc Mélenchon, outspoken leader of the Left Front coalition of far-left political parties, was even more stinging in his attack on Arnault, saying “people like him were parasites”.
| — Hat tip: Fjordman | [Return to headlines] |
Swedish Millions to Fund Nighttime Childcare
The government has put aside 108 million kronor ($16.3 million) to support having childcare facilities open during nights and weekends, a scheme that will come into effect in 2013 and last for three years.
“Working life is changing and many people are working evenings, weekends and nights,” said Nyamko Sabuni, the minister in charge of pre-schooling, to the TT news agency. “Families can’t always combine work and family life. It can be especially difficult for single mothers.”
According to the plan, municipalities can apply for the incentive from July 1st in 2013, a year which will see 15.5 million kronor invested into the programme, with 31 million set aside for each of the following three years.
The current laws state that it is not mandatory for municipalities to provide childcare during “inconvenient times”. However, as many municipalities did not offer the service at all, a stimulus package was put forward to the Riksdag last spring.
At the time, the parties of the governing centre-right Alliance government voted against the plan, stating that proof was needed of a more urgent need for the increase in opening hours, something that hasn’t come until now.
However, the measure nevertheless passed, leading to today’s announcement by Sabuni.
Per-Arne Andersson, who deals with labour market issues at the Swedish Association of Local Authorities and Regions (SALAR) is satisfied with the news.
| — Hat tip: Fjordman | [Return to headlines] |
UK: Alps Shootings: Bomb Squad Arrive at Saad Al-Hilli Home
Army bomb disposal experts have arrived at the Surrey home of a British man, shot dead with his wife, mother-in-law and a cyclist in the French Alps.
Surrey Police have evacuated neighbours and closed the road around the home of Saad al-Hilli, amid concerns over items found at the house in Claygate…
| — Hat tip: JP | [Return to headlines] |
UK: Accountants Launch Service for Muslims
Practising Muslims in Keighley have been invited to take advantage of a financial service designed to comply with the rules of their faith. Yorkshire accountants and business advisers Garbutt & Elliott have launched an Independent Financial Planning arm specifically for the Muslim community called Ummah Financial Planning. The firm says it recognises that UK Muslims need professional advice which allows them to manage their finances in line with their personal beliefs…
| — Hat tip: JP | [Return to headlines] |
UK: Bomb Fear at Mega Mosque
SECURITY forces feared extremists could use boats to smuggle explosives on to the site of a proposed mega mosque in East London during the Games.
Spooks conducted a series of boating missions to test the possibility of terrorists bringing bombs into the Stratford area.
- Anti-terror chiefs thought they might use the River Thames, River Lea and a tributary known as the Channelsea River, which runs adjacent to the planned 12,000-seater mosque site in West Ham, East London. The 18-acre site is pencilled in as the new home of Islamist group Tablighi Jamaat and is less than a mile from the Olympic Stadium. According to a statement made by the FBI’s deputy international terrorism chief Michael Heimbach in 2003, the group acts as “recruiting agents” for al-Qaida.
- They submitted another planning application to Newham Council last week to transform their current building into a huge mosque after missing a previous deadline.
[…]
| — Hat tip: JP | [Return to headlines] |
UK: Kingsley Hall Holds ‘Healthy Nosh’ Party for Eid at Bromley-by-Bow
Mums are being invited with their kids to a ‘healthy nosh’ after school at Kingsley Hall community centre in London’s East End to celebrate Eid.
A ‘healthy food’ tea has been set up by Firoza Islam who runs the centre’s Bangladeshi women’s group to welcome all women and children, Muslim and non-Muslim, starting at 4pm on September 27 at the centre in Powys Road, Bromley-by-Bow. Food and entertainment is free, paid for with a grant from Tower Hamlets’ ‘Healthy Borough’ programme, but £1 voluntary donations are being accepted.
| — Hat tip: JP | [Return to headlines] |
UK: MP Calls for Investigation After Sunday Newspaper’s Peterborough Mosque Allegations
Published on Sunday 9 September 2012 21:06
9.06pm: Officials at the Husaini Islamic Centre in Peterborough made no comment on Sunday (9 September) on allegations in the Sunday Times newspaper which claimed an undercover reporter had allegedly been told it was possible to carry out a ceremony to “marry” a 12-year-old girl. The Sunday Times reported allegations that Mohammed Kassamali, imam at the Husaini Islamic Centre mosque, in Burton Street, told an undercover reporter that he could carry out the ceremony. The Peterborough Telegraph contacted the mosque and was told the imam would call back, but at the time of writing we had not been able to speak to the iman concerned. A reporter also emailed the centre and visited the centre. When the reporter visited the mosque this afternoon it appeared closed but a man came to the gate and politely said the imam was unavailable for comment, please try tomorrow…
| — Hat tip: JP | [Return to headlines] |
UK: Muslim Mosque Leader at Centre of British Child Bride Scandal Steps Down After ‘Being Caught Agreeing to Marry Girl of 12’
A Muslim cleric at the centre of an illegal marriage scandal has stepped down after he allegedly offered to marry a 12-year-old girl to a man in his 20s.
Imam Mohamed Kassamali is said to have told an undercover reporter posing as a father that he could carry out a ceremony for his school-aged daughter.
[…]
‘Under Sharia (Islamic law) there is no problem. It is said she should see her first sign of puberty at the house of her husband.
‘The problem is that we cannot explain such things (the marriage) if the girl went tomorrow (to the authorities).
‘The other thing is the underage thing and if tomorrow the girl is, let’s say coerced or forced into this, and she goes and reports it to the police then she will put all of us into the problems.’
| — Hat tip: JD | [Return to headlines] |
UK: Peterborough Mosque Starts Inquiry Over Sunday Newspaper Allegations
Published on Monday 10 September 2012 07:51
7.50am: Leaders of a Peterborough mosque have today (Monday) launched a full inquiry after allegations that an imam offered to ‘marry’ a 12-year-old girl to a man in his 20s.
The Husaini Islamic Centre, in Burton Street, issued a statement in the early hours of this morning after the Sunday Times yesterday reported allegations that imam Mohammed Kassamali told an undercover reporter that he could carry out the ceremony. In a statement released this morning it revealed Mr Kassamali has temporarily stepped down while an investigation is carried out. It states: “The management and members of Peterborough’s Husaini Islamic Centre do not recognise the alleged remarks of Imam Mohamed Kassamali, who is reported to have discussed the possibility of underage marriage in Britain with The Sunday Times. In line with our practice, we are in the process of carrying out a full independent inquiry on this matter. The imam has temporarily stepped aside by mutual consent with the centre while an investigation takes place. A legal, British civil marriage certificate is a prerequisite for any Islamic (Nikah) officially conducted at the Husaini Islamic Centre. We respect the law of the land and since the establishment of the Husaini Islamic Centre, no under legal age marriages have been conducted at the centre, nor will it be allowed. We find the practice of forced marriages to be abhorrent, reprehensible and totally un-Islamic and we suport the Forced Marriage Unit, established by the Government, in its attempts to tackle this issue.”
| — Hat tip: JP | [Return to headlines] |
UK: Somali Benefits Cheat Who Swindled £39,000 to Support Two Families is Spared Jail
A Somali benefits cheat has been spared jail because the judge sentencing him said the cost of locking him up for a year would be the same as the amount he swindled.
Karmal Mustafa dishonestly claimed £38,856.50 of income support, council tax and housing benefit while working over a seven-year period to support two families.
He told investigators the money he was sending overseas helped support his sick father — but then told his barrister his father and mother had both been killed in front of his eyes in Somalia 14 years ago.
But despite this discrepancy Judge Carol Hagen told Bristol Crown Court that he would not go to prison.
‘£39,000 is what it costs to keep one man in prison for a year. Do I wish to burden the state further with another £38,000 to £40,000, much as I think it is deserved?’ she said.
Instead the judge handed Mustafa a 24-week suspended sentence, ordered him to carry out 250 hours of unpaid work and pay £250 costs.
| — Hat tip: JD | [Return to headlines] |
UK: The Satanic Verses and Me
As Salman Rushdie publishes a memoir of his life in hiding, Sameer Rahim recalls the profound impact his infamous novel had on one young British Muslim.
On January 14, 1989, 1,000 British Muslims marched through Bradford and burned a copy of Salman Rushdie’s novel The Satanic Verses. Sunni joined with Shia to condemn Rushdie for his apparently blasphemous portrayal of the Prophet Mohammed. No longer was being a British Muslim a matter of private spirituality: it was about attitudes adopted, positions taken. The political identity of British Islam was forged in those flames. Watching an anti-Rushdie demonstration in London in 1990, the journalist Malise Ruthven saw old Pakistani men waving poorly spelt placards appealing to British fair play. Alongside them were men in jeans who did not stop to pray with their elders. “The most murderous placards were being carried by the non-observant,” noted Ruthven. In the years to come we would hear plenty from such angry young men.
I was seven years old when The Satanic Verses was published. Though my family would never have joined a book burning they were adamant that Rushdie was wrong. He had insulted our Prophet and his beloved wives and questioned the holiness of the Koran. Our clerics had said as much — though to protect our feelings they alluded only vaguely to the rivers of filth Rushdie had poured on our Prophet. To write a book that outsiders could use to attack Islam was unforgivable. That Rushdie was a Muslim turned the violation into a betrayal…
[Reader comment by Simon Gardner on 10 September 2012 at about 10 am.]
The wrong was the Islamic threats to kill Rushdie. Everything else is of no consequence.
| — Hat tip: JP | [Return to headlines] |
UK: Thousands Visit Ahmadiyya Muslim Convention in Alton
Thousands of Ahmadiyya Muslims from around the world have been holding their 46th annual convention in Hampshire over the weekend.
The event in Alton is Britain’s largest Islamic gathering, with representatives from 50 countries attending. Basharat Nazir, organiser of the Jalsa Salana event, said he estimated about 30,000 people had taken part. Ahmadiyya Muslims reject violent jihad and have used the meeting to highlight the plight of persecuted minorities. The movement’s leader, His Holiness Hadhrat Mirza Masroor Ahmad, addressed the three-day convention, which also had Christian, Jewish and Hindu leaders speaking. A number of marquees and tents were erected at the East Worldham community site for the event. Delegates raised a union flag and formed a human chain to “re-affirm their rejection of violence and extremism”…
| — Hat tip: JP | [Return to headlines] |
UK: Two Female Police Officers Sacked Following ‘Gorilla’ And ‘Monkey’ Race Remarks
Two female police officers have been sacked after a colleague recorded them having a conversation in which one likened black people to gorillas and monkeys.
Special Constable Rosanna Garofalo and WPC Joanna Sugda were in the changing room at Islington Police Station in March when a colleague left an iPhone on record in her locker at work.
When the recording was played back, Garofalo was heard saying that black people ‘all look the f*****g same. They all look like monkeys.’
| — Hat tip: JD | [Return to headlines] |
Is Kosovo Ready for Full Independence?
Four and a half years after declaring independence, Kosovo is now to enjoy full sovereignty. But organized crime, corruption, poverty, and tense diplomatic relations are just some of the problems the state faces.
| — Hat tip: Fjordman | [Return to headlines] |
Kosovo to Serbia: Time to Face Reality
Kosovo’s foreign minister has said the end of supervised independence should make Serbia realise it can never divide Kosovo or get it back.
Speaking to EUobserver from Pristina on Sunday (9 September), ahead of solemnities to end supervised rule on Monday, Enver Hoxhaj said the “historic day” will make Kosovo “a more sovereign nation.”
“It’s going to change the perception of Kosovar citizens about the nature of statehood. Whatever we do now is in the hands of our people. It is no longer in the hands of the international community,” he noted.
Dignitaries from 25 Kosovo-recognising countries — including 20 EU states plus Croatia, Norway, Switzerland, Turkey and the US — will on Monday meet in Kosovo’s capital to formally close the International Civilian Office (ICO).
| — Hat tip: Fjordman | [Return to headlines] |
West to Grant Kosovo Full Sovereignty
Kosovo was to be granted full sovereignty by the West on Monday, over four years since its hotly contested declaration of independence, in a celebration marred by new Serbian allegations of organ trafficking.
Western powers in the International Steering Group — which has overseen Kosovo since its 2008 unilateral declaration of independence from Serbia — are set to announce the end of supervision over the territory.
Kosovo and its two million majority ethnic-Albanian population has been under some form of international administration since a NATO bombing campaign forced then Serbian strongman Slobodan Milosevic’s troops out of the Serbian province in 1999.
The ISG — which consists of 23 European Union countries, the United States and Turkey — will formally announce the end of its supervision after an afternoon meeting.
Kosovo’s president Atifete Jahjaga said Monday that Kosovo deserved to become equal with others.
“Kosovo today is a country that fulfils all the conditions to become a state with a clear Euro-Atlantic integration perspective,” she said in an address to the nation just hours before the ISG meeting.
But Serbia — which has never accepted Kosovo’s declaration of independence on February 17, 2008 — dismissed the sovereignty announcement as meaningless.
Kosovo’s independence has been recognised by some 90 countries, including most EU nations, but is rejected by Serbia, Russia and Kosovo’s own ethnic Serbs, who make up about six percent of the population, living mainly in the north on the border with Serbia.
Serbia’s top official for Kosovo, Aleksandar Vulin, said the decision to end ISG supervision was a “historic and tragic mistake”.
Serbian Prime Minister Ivica Dacic stressed Belgrade would never recognise Kosovo’s independence “supervised or unsupervised”, and dismissed the ISG decision as meaningless.
The granting of full sovereignty was further marred by a Serbian prosecutor’s revelation on the eve of the ISG’s meeting that Belgrade has a former Kosovo rebel witness who allegedly took part in removing the heart of a Serb prisoner for the international black market in organs during the 1998-1999 Kosovo conflict.
| — Hat tip: Fjordman | [Return to headlines] |
Egypt’s Morsi Consolidates His Power
Egypt’s President Morsi is consolidating his power by removing remnants of the military leadership. His critics accuse him of running an authoritarian state; however, the Muslim Brotherhood dismisses those claims.
For 60 years Egypt’s military defined the country’s politics, and the idea of a president without an army background was out of the question. It’s understandable that many Egyptians are still rubbing their eyes in disbelief that Mohammed Morsi not only lacks military ties, but also belongs to the Muslim Brotherhood.
For decades the military did everything it could to suppress and intimidate members of the organization, a pattern that repeated itself as the army council attempted to curtail Morsi’s power shortly after he took office. But Morsi soon struck back. He forced the head of the Supreme Council of the Armed Forces, along with a number of other leading figures, into retirement. The miltiary’s influence on political decisions has waned considerably as a result .
| — Hat tip: Fjordman | [Return to headlines] |
Charles Tegart and the Forts That Tower Over Israel
When the British sought to quell unrest in Palestine in the 1930s, they turned to an uncompromising Irish policeman, who came up with a drastic and expensive solution — a network of fortresses that today stand as monuments to a lost empire.
They don’t make policemen like Sir Charles Augustus Tegart any more. That’s partly because they don’t need to — Sir Charles was a colonial officer whose job was to keep the Union Flag flying over Britain’s far-flung imperial territories. But it’s also because he was a man of his time, impossible to imagine in a world where policing is about suspect profiling, and forensic evidence and human rights. Tegart was a tough guy in a world going through tough times…
| — Hat tip: JP | [Return to headlines] |
Mohammed Shafiq and Mohammed Ansar Promoting the Two State Solution
by Ahmed Rushdi
Mohammed Shafiq is the Chief Executive of the Ramadan Foundation. Mohammed Ansar is a ‘Muslim political and social commentator’ and is associated with the Muslim Council of Britain. Both make a living by promoting themselves as (non-elected) representatives of the Muslim community. Both have written on anti-Muslim bigotry and both promote interfaith.
Lately on Twitter, an account called ‘IsraelTheNazis’ has been tweeting anti-Israel bigotry (which sometimes veers very close to anti-semitism). The account exists to spew hatred towards Israel and Israelis and is supported by retweets.
‘IsraelTheNazis’ approached Mohammed Ansar on Twitter for their endorsement. You would think that someone who calls themselves a ‘Muslim political and social commentator’ would educate the Twitter user on discourse and ask them to stop. Sadly, an endorsement was forth coming. Mohammed Ansar was only too willing to ‘retweet’ the account’s tweets and acknowledged their request for support. Mohammed Ansar is often given a platform on the BBC especially on matters concerning faith and interfaith…
Mohammed Shafiq was given a platform by the BBC just today by giving a press review on BBC Radio 5 Live. Readers should note that these two are only billed as representatives of the Muslim community because the news and television media give them a platform thinking they are both moderate and peace-loving. Perhaps you may want to remind the television channels that give Ansar and Shafiq a platform by showing them the kind of people they endorse and support.
| — Hat tip: JP | [Return to headlines] |
‘Muslim Brothers Co-opting Arab Spring to Make Caliphate’
Minister Avi Dichter warns revolutions in Tunisia, Egypt, Syria could threaten Jordan, Saudi Arabia, Gulf states; notes Palestinians notably absent from Arab Spring, but says Brotherhood already has outpost in Hamas.
Home Front Defense Minister Avi Dichter on Sunday warned that the Muslim Brotherhood is co-opting the Arab Spring with the end-goal of creating an Islamic “caliphate” that would span the Middle East.
“What started in Tunis and continued in Egypt is ongoing in Syria, and will threaten Jordan and other Arab countries,” Dichter said. “The Brotherhood already has an outpost in the Palestinian territories, in the form of Hamas.”
| — Hat tip: Fjordman | [Return to headlines] |
Qatar: Abused Domestic Workers on the Run
Many disappeared during vacations in GB
(ANSAmed) — DOHA,SET 10- Many Qatari families on holiday in Britain have had to pack up and return to Qatar because their housemaids had fled. The news is reported today by the Doha Gulf Times newspaper, whose title “Gone maid ruins a Qatari family holiday” seems to emphasize more the discomfort of the Emirate citiziens than the serious violations of human rights that caused the phenomenon.
The problem of the flight of domestic staff and Asian babysitters who work with families in Qatar is worsening, in particular when traveling in European countries or in the U.S., according to the newspaper in Doha.
A Qatari citizien, interviewed by Gulf Times, said that as soon as she arrived in London, she became aware that her maid had disappeared, despite the fact that she had taken the passport of the domestic worker. The practice of seizing passports to workers is still widespread in Qatar, although forbidden by law.
The condition of workers’ rights in Qatar was widely denounced by Amnesty International, Human Rights Watch and the International Labour Organisation of the UN.
| — Hat tip: Fjordman | [Return to headlines] |
Saudi Arabia: Scholarships Given to Promote Islamic Studies
Dean says university’s aim is to help promote moderation values and enrich research
Manama: Saudi Arabia’s Islamic University said that it has sponsored 2,053 students from more than 130 countries in the new academic year. The university, founded in 1961 to promote Islamic studies, said that it enrolled 168 students born to expatriates working in the Saudi kingdom. “The application process is made online and can be accessed anywhere in the world,” Mohammad Al Aqla, the dean of the university located in Madinah, said. “Three committees in the admission department, an African, an Asian and a European, sift through the applications to check whether the prospective students met all the requirements,” the dean said, quoted by local Arabic daily Al Watan…
| — Hat tip: JP | [Return to headlines] |
The Syrian Opposition: Who’s Doing the Talking?
The media have been too passive when it comes to Syrian opposition sources, without scrutinising their backgrounds and their political connections. Time for a closer look …
| — Hat tip: LN | [Return to headlines] |
Afghan Government Assumes Control of Bagram Prison
The Afghan government has taken over Bagram prison even though it has yet to iron out disagreements with the United States over the fate of hundreds of inmates.
Kabul is hailing the ceremonial handover of the prison, which holds thousands of men accused of being insurgents, as a victory for Afghan sovereignty. But major questions remain over the immediate and long-term fate of more than 3,100 inmates, which include Taliban fighters and terror suspects, held at Bagram, sometimes referred to as the Guantanamo Bay of Afghanistan. Abpit 50 foreigners are not covered by the agreement, and hundreds of other Afghans arrested since the transfer deal was signed on March 9 are also being held at the Parwan Detention Facility near Bagram, the US air base which lies just north of Kabul…
| — Hat tip: JP | [Return to headlines] |
Afghan Taliban Threaten to Kidnap and Kill Prince Harry
The Afghan Taliban said on Monday they were doing everything in their power to try to kidnap or kill Britain’s Prince Harry, who arrived in Afghanistan last week to fly attack helicopters.
Queen Elizabeth’s grandson is in Afghanistan on a four-month tour, based in Camp Bastion in the volatile Helmand province, where he will be on the front line in the NATO-led war against Taliban insurgents.
“We are using all our strength to get rid of him, either by killing or kidnapping,” Zabihullah Mujahid, a Taliban spokesman, told Reuters by phone from an undisclosed location.
“We have informed our commanders in Helmand to do whatever they can to eliminate him,” Mujahid added, declining to go into detail on what he called the “Harry operations”.
NATO Secretary-General Anders Fogh Rasmussen said he was not worried about the Taliban threat against Prince Harry.
“That’s not a matter of concern,” Rasmussen told a news conference in Brussels on Monday. “I mean, we do everything we can to protect all our troops deployed to Afghanistan whatever might be their personal background.”
Britain’s Ministry of Defense declined to comment on Mujahid’s statement. British authorities have given few details of Prince Harry’s stint in Afghanistan for security reasons.
The 27-year-old prince, who is third in line to the throne, took up his new role two weeks after being photographed frolicking naked in Las Vegas.
| — Hat tip: Fjordman | [Return to headlines] |
Exclusive: Jailed Doc Who Helped Nail Bin Laden Warns Pakistan Sees U.S. As ‘Worst Enemy’
Pakistan’s powerful spy agency regards America as its “worst enemy,” and the government’s claims that it is cooperating with the US are a sham to extract billions of dollars in American aid, according to the CIA informant jailed for his role in hunting down Usama bin Laden.
In an exclusive interview with Fox News, Shakil Afridi, the medical doctor who helped pinpoint bin Laden’s Abbottabad compound before last year’s raid by SEAL Team 6, described brutal torture at the hands of Pakistan’s Inter-Services Intelligence, and said the agency is openly hostile to the U.S.
“They said ‘The Americans are our worst enemies, worse than the Indians,’“ Afridi, who spoke from inside Peshawar Central Jail, said as he recalled the brutal interrogation and torture he suffered after he was initially detained.
| — Hat tip: Fjordman | [Return to headlines] |
NATO Soldier Killed in Ied Attack in Southern Afghanistan
(RTTNews) — A NATO soldier has been killed in a roadside bomb attack using an improvised explosive device (IED) in Afghanistan’s south, the NATO-led International Security Assistance Force (ISAF)said in an online statement late on Sunday. The ISAF, however, did not disclose the identity or nationality of the deceased in accordance with its policy of not disclosing details until the home country of the victims does so. Of late, roadside bombings using IEDs have become a hallmark of Taliban strategy against NATO forces in Afghanistan, as it avoids direct confrontation with the foreign troops while increasing casualties…
| — Hat tip: JP | [Return to headlines] |
Political Cartoonist Jailed in India Sedition Case
NEW DELHI — A political cartoonist whose drawings mock Indian government corruption has been jailed on a sedition charge in an arrest that was widely condemned Monday as evidence of political leaders’ increasing insensitivity to criticism. On Sunday, a magistrate in Mumbai ordered Aseem Trivedi held for a week for questioning after police issued an arrest warrant based on a political activist’s complaint his cartoons were “insulting” to the country…
| — Hat tip: JP | [Return to headlines] |
Taliban ‘Prepared to Work With US on Security in Afghanistan’
The Taliban is prepared to completely disown al-Qaeda, allow the US to retain several military bases in Afghanistan and agree a ceasefire deal to end its 11 year conflict with Nato, a major report released on Monday discloses.
The group, which was ousted by the US-led invasion of Afghanistan in the wake of 9/11, is now willing to cooperate with the US on security and take part in peace negotiations in return for international political recognition, the study says. The report was compiled by the respected Royal United Services Institute (Rusi) following interviews with four senior Taliban figures close to the organisation’s leader, Mullah Mohammad Omar. These included former government ministers, one of the group’s founding members and a Mujahideen commander. It sets out a detailed path to a negotiated settlement for Afghanistan that could allow the majority of western troops to withdraw in 2014 without the country descending into renewed chaos. According to the report, the Taliban representatives believe there is “no natural enmity” with the Americans, and that they would be prepared to accept a long-term US military presence in the country if it helped Afghan security…
[JP note: Nice.]
| — Hat tip: JP | [Return to headlines] |
Taliban’s Chilling Warning to Prince Harry as He Starts Afghanistan Tour
The Taliban today said they were doing everything in their power to kidnap or assassinate Prince Harry during his tour of Afghanistan.
Just four days after the 27-year-old arrived in the volatile Helmand province, militants confirmed that he was one of their prime targets.
‘We are using all our strength to get rid of him, either by killing or kidnapping,’ Taliban spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid told Reuters by telephone from an undisclosed location.
| — Hat tip: JD | [Return to headlines] |
British-Designed Skyscraper Resembles Big Pants, Say Angry Chinese
It was billed as China’s answer to the Arc de Triomphe — a spectacular £445m British-designed skyscraper paying homage to the Asian country’s turbo-charged economic rise.
But even before the 74-storey Gate to the East is complete it has come under attack from critics who compare it not to the famous Parisian war memorial but to a pair of “giant underpants”. Located in Suzhou, 45 miles west of Shanghai, the 270 yard-high skyscraper is the work of British architecture practice RMJM, founded in Edinburgh in 1956 by Sir Robert Matthew and Stirrat Johnson-Marshall. According to the company bankrolling the project, Suzhou Chinaing Real Estate Co, the Gate to the East will be completed later this year becoming the largest gate-shaped structure in the world. “The Gate to the East introduces a dramatic iconic ‘gateway’ to the city of Suzhou and represents the significance of the China in the world today,” says a description on RMJM’s website…
[JP note: Pants.]
| — Hat tip: JP | [Return to headlines] |
Clinton Urges Feuding Asian Countries to Work Out Disputes
U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton urged Asian countries embroiled in simmering territorial disputes to work together to ease rather than raise tensions.
Recent flare-ups between Japan and China, China and many of its other neighbors, and Japan and South Korea have soured ties, prompting some leaders not to schedule their usual one-on-one meetings at a Pacific Rim summit that ended Sunday in the far-eastern Russian seaport of Vladivostok.
“Whether we’re talking about the South China Sea or the East China Sea, my message has been the same to everyone,” Clinton told reporters. “Now is the time for everyone to make efforts to reduce the tensions and strengthen diplomatic involvement toward resolving these tensions.”
Given the weakness of the global recovery, any confrontation that might raise doubts over stability and peace in the region would not be in anyone’s interest, said Clinton, who was attending the summit of the Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation forum on behalf of President Barack Obama.
Clinton said she discussed the territorial issue with the leaders of Japan and South Korea, which are at odds over an islet claimed by both.
| — Hat tip: Fjordman | [Return to headlines] |
Hong Kong: Chief Executive Popularity in Free-Fall Over National Education
In less than two months Leung Chun-ying has lost about 50 percentage points to become the least popular head of government in the history of Hong Kong. Among the threats to his government also increased property prices and the continuous flow of people from mainland China.
Hong Kong (AsiaNews) — Leung Chun-ying has become the least popular head of government in the history of the former British colony since, in 1997, Hong Kong was returned to mainland China. The protests against the introduction of “national education classes “, the indiscriminate increase in property prices and the flow of immigrants from the mainland are the basis of the collapse of its popularity, that in less than two months has lost about 50 percentage points.
The data was revealed by the public information program for the University of Hong Kong. According to Michael DeGolver, a professor at the Baptist university, Leung “is facing the biggest challenges ever faced by a chief executive.” Although his predecessor Donald Tsang and Tung Chee-hwa fared no better: the popular protests in 2005 forced the resignation Tung, while Tsang had to apologize to the electorate for his “cosy” friendships with local financiers.
According to the Territory constitution’s, the Basic Law all that remains of the legacy left by the British, Hong Kong must be governed until 2043 by a government — led by the Chief Executive in fact — made up of members elected by the population and others indicated by “electors “: financial groups and politicians who actually appoint their own man. Leung is believed to be hand in fist with the Chinese mainland, while for years the Catholic Church and democrats have been fighting for universal suffrage.
The collapse of his popularity is definitely linked to the introduction of educational reform, which involves the insertion of classes of “national education” in schools in Hong Kong. The new should “enhance” the economic successes of mainland China without discussing issues such as the Tiananmen Square crackdown or the human rights situation in the country. Launched by the central government in 2002, the reform was immediately opposed by the Catholic Church, according to Cardinal Zen, it is a “brainwashing” of students.
For the past 8 days, thousands of people (parents, students, teachers and ordinary citizens) are camped in the government district of Admiralty to ask the government to backtrack. While Beijing is in favor of the subject — the Minister Yuan Guiren “every citizen has to follow the national education” — Leung said yesterday he is ready to “take into account” the populations suggestions. For the demonstrators this is another false opening ahead of the elections for the Legislative Council to be held in a few days.
| — Hat tip: C. Cantoni | [Return to headlines] |
Conservative Lawmakers to Investigate Obama’s Abuse of Power
On Wednesday, the House of Representatives’ Judiciary Committee will begin its probe of alleged abuse of power by the Obama administration, according to the committee’s chairman, Rep. Lamar Smith (R-TX). Among the abuses addressed will be an accusation that President Barack Obama’s minions are “cooking the books” in order to achieve a so-called record number of deportations of illegal aliens.
Throughout his reelection campaign, President Obama has touted his administration’s “historic number of deportations.” But many believe the figures given to backup his assertion are fabricated. In fact, members of the Department of Homeland Security have been critical of Obama and his DHS appointees especially those in charge of border security and immigration enforcement.
“In a campaign season when Administration officials have made a habit of spinning their numbers to ignore their real record, it’s no surprise that they are doing the same to their immigration record.
It seems like President Obama is trying to trick the American people into thinking he is enforcing our immigration laws. But no amount of spin can cover up the facts. It’s bad enough that the President has neglected to enforce our immigration laws but it’s even worse that his Administration would distort statistics to deceive the American people,” stated Chairman Smith.
| — Hat tip: JD | [Return to headlines] |
Tunisia: Government Measures to Combat Italy Immigration
Crisi unit created after Lampedusa tragedy
(ANSAmed) — TUNISIA, 10 SEPT — The Tunisian government has initiated a series of measures aimed at combatting immigration on the Italian coast, according to a government official. In an interview on state TV Tunisia’s Foreign Minister Rafik Abdessalem said that measures will include ramped up controls on the on the coast — where boats traditionally leave for Italy — as well as a network of information points for Tunisians about the necessary elements of a ‘decent life’. In the same interview Abdessalem announced the creation of a crisis unit in response to the drowning of dozens of Tunisians off the coast of Lampedusa last week, adding that some Tunisian diplomats based in Italy will be deployed to the scene of the disaster to follow the investigation.
| — Hat tip: Fjordman | [Return to headlines] |
Germany: Jews, Muslims Protest for Right to Circumcise
Several hundred demonstrators gathered in Berlin on Sunday to protest for a law safeguarding those practicing religious male circumcision. German lawmakers have promised to meet their demands, but doctors have expressed warnings.
“The ‘yes’ to circumcision must be guaranteed in law,” demanded Lala Süßkind, former chairwoman of the Berlin Jewish community organization at the protest, which police said was attended by around 300 people.
Several Muslims and Christians joined the mainly Jewish demo, which took place under the motto “For religious freedom, against criminalization and authoritarianism.” The event was the latest episode in the ongoing row sparked by a Cologne court ruling that classified circumcision as bodily harm.
Süßkind said it was unacceptable “that incompetent and intolerant people are always having their say.” She added that the ritual was an important part of Jewish and Muslim identities, was medically accepted all over the world and had even been recommended by the World Health Organization.
German Foreign Minister Guido Westerwelle also weighed into the debate, warning that it was being misunderstood abroad. “It is simply unimaginable that Jewish families in Germany will no longer be able to circumcise their boys,” he said.
Kenan Kolat, chairman of the German Turkish community organization, said at the protest that “no-one will be able to stop the circumcision in Germany.”
| — Hat tip: Fjordman | [Return to headlines] |
Islam and the Institution of Slavery
by Mohammad Faheem
“…there are the Quranic teachings based on moral sense of the believer to free those who are under the yoke of bondage. There are instructions to use supererogatory and obligatory alms for freedom of the bonded people.”
There is a general misconception about the traditional slavery as if it is an institution created or nurtured by Islam. The fact is the other way round and Islam has actually played a pivotal role in abolishing the custom of enslaving people which existed when the last Prophet (s.a.w) proclaimed his message of the revival of Islam at the beginning of the 7the century A.D. The misconception further intensifies and makes complications when people see the Quran speaking of the concubines in a number of the Suras like in Almominoon and Alma’Arij where permission has been granted to the Muslims for keeping concubines beside the wives under regular wedlock. In both the Suras the words are,” Save from their wives or the (slaves) that their right hands possess, for then they are not blameworthy”(23:6 and 70:30). There are question marks and doubts about the institution of slavery and concubinary tradition which need clarification vis-a-vis its permission as an institution in Islam. Some of the important basics to be understood clearly in this connection are elaborated to clarify the actual situation related to this issue…
| — Hat tip: JP | [Return to headlines] |
1 comments:
The article on Islam and slavery is an insult to the intelligence.
The prophet Mohammed. Islam's "perfect man," himself led raids on infidel villages, killing all the men, and enslaving the women and children. Islam teaches that "men must not forbid what Allah has permitted." making it a sort of blasphemy to outlaw slavery.
As for choosing to free a slave as an act of virtue, note that it is only Muslim slaves who may be freed. (And when Aisha freed a slave girl, Mohammed scolded her for not giving the slave to her brother instead. Perhaps it was only old and unattractive slaves who were generously freed to survive on their own.) As for clothing slaves the same as yourselves, Sharia law required all infidels to dress differently from Muslims so this policy clearly didn't apply to infidel slaves. Also, the verses urging good treatment of non-infidel slaves are not accompanied by any punitive measures to enforce such good treatment. Purely voluntary.
The author rails against the West for rounding up of African slaves "like animals" for sale, but fails to note that it was primarily Muslims who did the rounding up. And Muslims had been enslaving Africans for centuries before the trans-Atlantic slave trade began.
The author fails to note that only Islamic slavers made a custom of castrating their male slaves. He fails to note that the rape of slave girls, while not a rare practice, was at least frowned on in the West, but was explicitly permitted in the Koran.
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