The old _expression goes, "Give 'em enough rope, and they'll hang themselves." It is easy to see that the transfer of Gaza to the PA is one major step toward a Palestinian state. US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice has been making lots of noise lately about Israel having to make even more territorial concessions. You can look at a map and figure it out, or read the "Road Map" - it's all there in black and white: a land bridge between Gaza and the West Bank. Now, we're talking about through communities inside the 1967 Green Line. That won’t work! If you think it was hard expelling Jews in Gaza and northern Samaria, try this. 

But I digress back to the hanging rope. You see, when Palestinian terrorists launch Kassam rockets into S'derot or other parts of Israel, its called terrorism. But what will it be called when that same missile is launched from a newly minted Palestinian State? War my friend. War.

You do the math. Mr.Sharon isn't known as the Bulldozer for nothing. The moniker came long before the expulsion of the Gaza and northern Samaria communities. So, there it is, out in the open for all to contemplate. 

Is Sharon setting the Palestinians up for all out war? A winner takes all, no-holds-barred battle to the finish? I say yes. It's entirely possible. And it's a war that Israel would win easily, at least on the ground. However, as usual, the world politics side of this possibility is not in Israel's favor. But since when did that ever stop Sharon?

Christians worldwide are praying for the nation of Israel. There is a spiritual link between Korean Christians and Israel. The Israeli pullout from Gaza and northern Samaria has been difficult for Jews and for Christians worldwide. Many believe it strengthens Israel's enemies and will lead to greater violence. So some Christians are taking an extra step to show public support for Israel.

The Orient and the Middle East came together in Seoul, Korea as nearly 500 pastors from Korean churches joined with Jewish political leaders from Jerusalem for a two-day Summit called Asia II. This gathering of Jews and Christians was intended, as was the first, to open a dialog between the two faiths.

Korean Christian members of the National Assembly spoke and held meetings with their counterparts from the Israeli Parliament. Many of the Korean pastors have a Bible-view understanding of Israel, but knew less about the contemporary situation. They wanted to pray effectively. By the end of this conference, the delegates knew a great deal more, so they could fully support a joint declaration, a resolution.

The declaration committed Korean churches to take a much stronger stand in support of Israel, than they had in the past. That would include promoting tourism, trade and spiritual ties with the Jewish State.

Canadian Pastor's Faces Human Rights Trial For Speaking Against Homosexuality (Prophecy News Watch)

In September, a case will come before the Alberta Human Rights Commission (AHRC) that could set a precedent for the freedom of speech, freedom of religion and the freedom of expression in that province. 

"I am the first ordained minister to be taken before the AHRC," said Stephen Boissoin, a former pastor who has been charged with inciting hatred against homosexuals. 

Although the date of the hearing is not yet confirmed, Darren Lund, assistant professor in the faculty of Education at the University of Calgary will ask the AHRC for $5,000 in personal damages and $2,000 to be donated to the gay rights group EGALE Canada. 

Lund claims that Boissoin, who stated his opposition to homosexuality in a 2002 letter to the editor in the Red Deer Advocate, fostered hatred against an identifiable group, based on its sexual orientation. 

This kind of communication is currently prohibited by Bill C-250, which makes it a criminal offence to incite "hatred" against gays if the communication is "likely to lead to a breach of the peace." No excuses are allowed, even if the incitement is based on religious texts. 

Lund quoted the offensive comments from the letter in his statement, including: 

"From kindergarten class on, our children, your grandchildren are being strategically targeted, psychologically abused and brainwashed by homosexual and pro-homosexual educators." 

"Children as young as five and six years of age are being subjected to psychologically and physiologically damaging pro-homosexual literature and guidance in the public school system; all under the fraudulent guise of equal rights." 

"My banner has now been raised and war has been declared so as to defend the precious sanctity of our innocent children and youth, that you so eagerly toil, day and night, to consume." 

On the Concerned Christians website, Boissoin wrote, "I am now being forced to appear before an Alberta Human Rights Panel that has the authority to decide my fate and deem me innocent or guilty of propagating hatred. Furthermore this panel has the right to indirectly determine the validity and moral intent of the traditional interpretation of the Bible and the ability of Christians at large to freely share their beliefs in the public forum." 

In addition to paying fines, Lund wants Boissoin to write a letter of apology to be printed in the same paper; and if Boissoin refuses, Lund has asked an order be put into effect to prevent him from sharing his view in any major print media in Alberta. 

"That sounds like Communism to me," said Boissoin. 

Boissoin will represent himself at the hearing. He said he feels alone in terms of representation, but not in prayer or support. "I'm coming at it from the approach that this is what my religious literature says, and the Charter says I have religious freedom." 

The Alberta PFLAG Faith Society undertook this initiative, and it stated that the gist of its agenda was to teach that homosexuality was "normal, necessary, acceptable and productive." 

He said he found the project "untruthful, dangerous and scientifically baseless," and, as a taxpayer who indirectly funded this initiative, he thought he had a right to communicate his opinion. After submitting his letter to local papers, he was repeatedly called a hatemonger, a bigot, a fanatic and eventually had the complaint filed against him by Lund. 

"It is quite obvious that Lund is the one with the militant agenda that is absolutely intolerant of mainstream Christianity."

A new policy at England's Weavers School in Wellingborough, Northhamptonshire, limits the number of times students can swear at their teachers, The Daily Mail reported.

Cuss words are OK -- even the granddaddy of them all, but only five per lesson.

Richard White, assistant headmaster, said the policy is aimed at the behavior of the most disruptive students.

"Within each lesson the teacher will initially tolerate (although not condone) the use of derivatives five times," White wrote, "and these will be tallied on the board so all students can see the running score."

Parents are less than enthusiastic about the new school rule, calling it irresponsible and ludicrous.

QUOTEWORTHY: "When People are universally ignorant, and debauched in their Manners, they will sink under their own weight without the Aid of foreign Invaders." --Samuel Adams

National Governors Association Touts School Choice (Wendy Cloyd, Aug. 29, 2005- Citizen Link)

The National Governors Association (NGA) has released a report outlining what it considers to be a best practices guide for states with recommendations to expand educational choices available to families.

The report, titled "Providing Quality Choice Options in Education," details the school choice strategies some governors are using to improve student achievement and raise graduation rates—including charter schools, virtual schools and tuition assistance for private schools.

"Increasingly, policy leaders are concluding that providing quality education options can raise student achievement and improve existing schools," reads the report. "Given the slow pace of achievement and graduation rate improvements, many policy makers have concluded that assisting public schools and assessing the results are not enough. These policymakers have begun giving families and students greater choices in education options."

Dane Linn, director of the NGA Center's Education Division, said the NGA has been working with governors in six states on school choice—Arizona, Minnesota, Mississippi, New Mexico, South Carolina and Utah—and this report will be a valuable tool for policymakers to improve and expand existing school choice policies as well as implement more school choice options.

"Many governors find providing students and parents with greater choice in the available educational options creates a more competitive environment," Linn said. "In turn, competition helps spur schools to improve performance and better meet the needs of their students."

Clint Bolick, president and general counsel of the Alliance for School Choice (ASC), said the report is an indication that lawmakers are paying attention.

"School choice is moving into the mainstream of American politics, as reflected by growing bipartisan support," Bolick said. "Serious policymakers recognize that a conversation that doesn't include school choice is not a conversation about meaningful education reform."

The nation's governors not only represent all 50 states, he added, they also represent many different philosophies.

Even families that home-school will benefit from such educational reform. "Any time policy makers are required to conclude that we need different approaches for different children, that helps reinforce the notion of home schooling,"

LOS ANGELES — A group representing California religious schools has filed a lawsuit accusing the University of California system of discriminating against high schools that teach creationism and other conservative Christian viewpoints.

The Association of Christian Schools International, which represents more than 800 schools, filed a federal lawsuit Thursday claiming UC admissions officials have refused to certify high school science courses that use textbooks challenging Darwin's theory of evolution. Other rejected courses include "Christianity's Influence in American History."

According to the lawsuit, the Calvary Chapel Christian School in Murrieta was told its courses were rejected because they use textbooks printed by two Christian publishers, Bob Jones University Press and A Beka Books.

Wendell E. Bird, a lawyer for the association, said the policy violates the rights of students and religious schools. "A threat to one religion is a threat to all," he said

Have A Little Faith (Family Research Council)

A recent Pew Research Center for the People & the Press poll shows that people are seeing the Democrats as more hostile to religion then ever before. Only three-in-ten of the people polled believe that the Democrats are friendly to religion, down over 10 points from last year. The Democratic National Committee is dismissing the recent Pew poll saying that they have already taken steps in hiring religious outreach consultants. While outreach to disaffected communities is important for any political party, the issues that keep voters tied to one party or the other are not so easily answered. People of religious faith tend to follow principle over party and look for shared values in their votes.

A study by Democratic adviser James Carville's consulting group shows that it is "the values, stupid." The Democrats have tied themselves to issues, such as unrestricted abortion or "gay marriage," that are anathema to those of religious faith. Combined with the apparent hostility against judicial nominees who hold "deeply held personal beliefs," the Democratic Party sends a message that those of faith need not apply. No party holds sway over values voters. All the consultants in the world will not help either party unless it takes strong moral stands and holds to them.

"The days are now numbered for surfing an uncensored, open-access Internet, using your favorite search engine to search a bottomless cyber-sea of information in the grandest democratic forum ever conceived by humankind. Instead you can look forward to Googling about on a walled-off, carefully selected corpus of government propaganda and sanitized information "safe" for public consumption. Indoctrinated and sealed off from the outer world, you will inhabit a matrix where every ounce of creative, independent thinking that challenges government policies and values will be squelched." - Eliot D. Cohen Ph.D.

Is this true? Is this where we are heading?

* China's massive, technically very sophisticated control of information flow through its Internet system and the model this might become for other nations
* The Problems and Complexities of Internet Censorship
* Libertarian, Leftist Obfuscation
* Is an Unconstitutional Ideological Censorship Possible?
* Corporate monopoly concentration of the web and their censorship and web of deceit
* Government Censorship and more.

There is a lot to consider about this issue of possibly losing our newfound freedom from the past control of information and news by governments and media and the huge advance of democratic possibilities that the Internet is giving the world's non-elites.

Forewarned is forearmed for LifeSiteNews.com readers who depend on this service and many others Internet services for the truth and for dependable, critical news and information that cannot be obtained elsewhere.

Matthew Simmons who is chairman of a Wall Street energy company and an advisor to President Bush, told assembled energy moguls, "Demand is pulling away from supply... and we have to ask whether we have the resources that we think we do. It could be catastrophic if we do not anticipate when peak oil comes."

Since he made his comments, oil prices have already doubled. His prediction of $100 a barrel may not be three years away. We could easily reach that level before year's end.

Simmons' reference to 'peak oil' refers to the point when an oil field reaches peak production before beginning to deplete available supplies.

According to the International Energy Agency, which collates data from all oil producing countries, peak oil will arrive "sometime between 2013 and 2037. The IEA says that after that point, production will decline by about 3% per year.
Simmons said that official US Geological Survey estimates that it will not happen for 35 years are over-optimistic.

Chris Skrebowski, of the Energy Institute in London, citing Exxon statistics, said that the depletion of global conventional oil reserves was running at about 5% a year now. He told the conference, "Norway, Venezuela, the UK and Indonesia and many others are all declining production. I expect Denmark, Malaysia, China, Mexico and Brunei to peak within three years. I estimate that we have, at best, 32 months before [the crisis] hits." Our energy supplies situation could hardly be more precarious. All honest projections of America’s present energy future lead toward catastrophe.

Just take a look at these facts. America gets the majority of its foreign oil supplies from Canada, Mexico, Venezuela and Saudi Arabia. While it is unlikely Canada will use its oil wealth to squeeze Washington, our other major suppliers are growing increasingly less reliable.

Mexico is using its oil reserves to blackmail Washington into turning a blind eye to illegal immigration.

Venezuela, our oldest and most prolific supplier, is led by one of the two the most anti-American leaders in the Western hemisphere – Hugo Chavez. The other chief American-hater, Fidel Castro, is giving Chavez pointers on how to put the hammer to us.

In terms of importance, Venezuela supplies more oil to the US than both Iraq and Kuwait combined.

And then there is Saudi Arabia. Saudi Arabia is a textbook example of what America is willing to put up with in order to ensure a steady supply of oil. Nineteen Saudis killed three thousand Americans on September 11. All planes in US airspace were ordered grounded. But an exception was made for a flight to Saudi Arabia for members of important Saudi families, including those of Osama bin-Laden the day after the September 11 attacks.

Saudi Arabia controls the largest share of the world's oil. It also serves as the market regulator for the global petroleum industry. No country is more dependent on Saudi oil than the United States. Shutting off the Saudi spigot would be devastating to both the U.S. and global economies, which is why Washington is so tolerant of such a dysfunctional, out-of-touch and out-of-control Saudi royal family.

The recent death of Saudi King Fahd showed how critical Saudi oil supplies are to the global economy. Even though Prince Abdullah ran the kingdom for the last decade, King Fahd’s death caused the price of oil to set a new record, then at $62 a barrel.

It demonstrated that oil dependent West’s fear that any hint of trouble with the line of succession could throw the world’s oil supplies into chaos, which raises an even bigger problem.

What happens after King Abdullah?

The real irony is this – democratic reforms are probably America’s worst-case scenario. Recent limited elections permitted by Abdullah demonstrated just how great this danger is.

These elections revealed that if open, truly free elections were held in Saudi Arabia, the radical core of devout Wahabbi-following Islamic fundamentalists. They would take over Arabia and cast out the House of Saud. Iran and all other Islamic Fundamentalists have been trying to do this for years.

Islamic Fundamentalists do not believe the Saudi royal family are worthy of ruling "holy Arabia." So there you have the ultimate "nightmare scenario." The cohorts of Osama bin-Laden would have control of the world’s oil supply. Guess who would be shut out? This would in effect hand over the strategic control of the global economy to the Osama bin-Laden-led Muslim Fundamentalists. This would fit in with all the other biblical signs that we are indeed in the "last days." Apart from some drastic reforms to this situation now, the world economy is in for some perilous and chaotic times in the near future. And America is in for catastrophe.

As the oil supply goes, so goes the economy. As the economy goes, so goes American power.

Humanity In Tragedy