Russia's military chief of staff said Saturday that Moscow could use nuclear weapons in preventive strikes in case of a major threat, the latest aggressive remarks from increasingly assertive Russian authorities.
"We have no plans to attack anyone, but we consider it necessary for all our partners in the world community to clearly understand ... that to defend the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Russia and its allies, military forces will be used, including preventively, including with the use of nuclear weapons," Gen. Yuri Baluyevsky said.
The comments from the hawkish Baluyevsky did not appear to mark a policy shift for Russia, whose leaders have stressed the need to maintain a powerful nuclear deterrent and reserved the right to carry out preventive strikes.
Moscow-based military analyst Alexander Golts said that when Russia broke with Soviet-era policy in 2000 and declared it could use nuclear weapons first against an aggressor, it reflected the decline of Russia's conventional forces in the decade following the 1991 Soviet collapse breakup.
"Baluyevsky's statement means that, as before, we cannot count on our conventional forces to counter aggression," Golts told Ekho Moskvy radio. "It means that as before, the main factor in containing aggression against Russia ...   more »

THE ARISE AND DEMISE OF ROME II
Tribute or Testament or Torment?
Sue Bradley,
Once again, and interestingly enough, pop authors engage the Hollywood establishment to produce fantasy and reality products for just about conceivable appetite on planet earth with just enough seed to provoke moderately activity and experimentation.
No audience, young or old, is spared overt subliminally induced trespasses, and the “We’ve come a long way, Baby” liberation. As the audience aged, the entertainment sector followed, delivering seemingly innocuous themes for the romantics and increasingly bizarre sci-fi tech drama for the “little boys” who now, are all grown up, still love their toys of power and prowess - but - from the comfort of a theater or vinyl recliner.
Designed as a tribute or testament to the American Culture, there is a recurrent trend toward Lovecraft mysticism and Alistar Crowley’s magik which is mingling with real life.
Mention these synchronicities to the general public and you‘ll most likely find yourself on the receiving end of a tin beanie, but a discussion with even casual followers of new age materials will likely draw far more engaging and competent conversation. Does this incongruity not trouble anyone?
Enter the good shepherds of ...   more »

Foreign Minister Manouchehr Mottaki says Jewish state's ballistic missile capability won't help it in confrontations with Islamic republic; meanwhile, Iranian-Egyptian rapprochement in the works
Dudi Cohen
"Israel is too weak to confront Iran. The leaders of this illegitimate fake regime know well would happen in the region in response to an attack (against us)," Iran's Foreign Minister Manouchehr Mottaki said on Monday in response to a successful Israeli ballistic missile test.
In a press conference in Tehran, Mottaki said that "If Israel's nuclear missile warheads could have helped, she would have won the (Second) Lebanon War."  
Nuclear Threat  
Iran receives last nuclear fuel shipment  
Five-ton consignment of enriched uranium arrives at light-water Bushehr nuclear power plant from Russia, in key step toward launch of reactor's operations expected later this year     
According to the minister, "The interior structure of the Zionist regime has been affected by the repercussions of its humiliating defeat in the Lebanon confrontation – not with a classic army, but rather with a popular resistance."In response to the possibility that the UN Security Council will impose additional sanctions on Iran following the country' refusal to suspend its uranium enrichment program, Mattaki said: "Despite the ...   more »

By Patrick Winn    
In a hypothetical future scenario, the U.S. and China are poised to clash — likely over Taiwan.
The democratic Republic of China, commonly called Taiwan — which America backs and the communist People’s Republic of China considers part of its territory — frequently irritates Chinese leaders with calls for greater independence from the mainland. But while the American military mulls its options, Chinese missiles hit runways, fuel lines, barracks and supply depots at U.S. Air Force bases in Japan and South Korea. Long-range warheads destroy American satellites, crippling Air Force surveillance and communication networks. A nuclear fireball erupts high above the Pacific Ocean, ionizing the atmosphere and scrambling radars and radio feeds.
This is China’s anti-U.S. sucker punch strategy.
It’s designed to strike America’s military suddenly, stunning and stalling the Air Force more than any other service. In a script written by Chinese military officers and defense analysts, a bruised U.S. military, beholden to a sheepish American public, puts up a small fight before slinking off to avoid full-on war.
This strategic outlook isn’t hidden in secret Chinese documents. It’s printed in China’s military journals and textbooks. And for much of last year, Mandarin literates ...   more »

Watchdog: 'We want to expose and stop the manipulation'
By Jerome R. Corsi 
U.S. central banks may have less than half the gold they claim to possess in their vaults, charges a watchdog group in an ad scheduled for publication in the Wall Street Journal this week.
As WND reported, the Gold Anti-Trust Action Committee, or GATA, claims the Federal Reserve and the U.S. Treasury are surreptitiously manipulating the country's gold reserves by participating in undisclosed leases, according to an advance copy WND obtained of the ad running in Thursday's edition of the Journal.
GATA believes much of the borrowed gold out on lease will never be returned to the central banks.
"With the demand for gold so strong worldwide, it has become impossible to return much of the leased gold without driving the price to the moon," said GATA's chairman, William J. Murphy III.
"Most observers calculate central bank reserves are supposed to have about 30,000 tons of gold worldwide in their vaults, but we believe the amount of gold actually there may be more like 15,000 tons," Murphy said. "The rest of the gold is gone."
The U.S. Treasury denies the claim, insisting the stock is accounted for ...   more »

Susan Jones
 The Wisconsin State Assembly, controlled by Republicans, has passed a bill requiring hospitals, regardless of religious affiliation, to provide emergency contraception to rape victims who want it.
The vote was 61-35, with 16 Republicans joining Democrats to pass the bill. One Democrat voted against it.
The bill now returns to the Democratic-controlled state Senate, where it is expected to pass easily. Gov. Jim Doyle, a Democrat, is expected to sign it into law.
"It's a sad day for Wisconsin," said Peggy Hamill, state director of Pro-Life Wisconsin. "The state Assembly has shamefully ignored the fate of embryonic children by forcing Wisconsin hospitals to dispense a known abortion-causing drug to vulnerable women. In so doing, they have trampled upon the conscience rights of hospitals and hospital workers in blatant disregard of our federal and state constitutions which guarantee freedom of religious expression and liberty of conscience."
Pro-Life Wisconsin called it an added insult that the bill passed the day after the 35th anniversary of the Supreme Court's Roe v. Wade ruling that legalized abortion.
Planned Parenthood of Wisconsin supported the bill, saying, "Victims of rape and incest deserve immediate access to safe, effective methods of pregnancy prevention."
The group ...   more »

By: Erin Ballou, 
The Iowa Legislature started just over a week ago and some people were upset before the first issue was every addressed.
When the session began, a Muslim Imam began the prayer in the Iowa Legislature. This is where the controversy begins.
The prayer asked of "Victory over those who disbelieve," and "Protection from the great Satan" among other things.
Pastor Steve Smith of the Evangelical Free Church in Albert City is among those concerned about the Muslim prayer. Rev. Smith admits that he doesn't know about all the levels of Muslim but knows that the Jihadists believe those in the U.S. are the great Satan.
Rev. Smith also wants to point out the mention of "victory over those who disbelieve." He feels "this is a request in the Iowa Legislature for God to grant the Muslims victory over every non-muslim. Not a request for salvation." Smith takes it as a gesture not of prayer but more as a political statement, especially with the wars that have been going on in the Middle East.
"I'm not concerned about a Muslim Imam opening the Legislature in prayer but it concerns me with the statements that were made. He interpreted ...   more »

By Lucille Talusan
Indonesia's tropical paradise, Bali, is recovering from the stigma brought on by the 2002 and 2005 terrorist bombings.
Over the past year, the number of tourists visiting the region has nearly tripled.
But it's not just the sandy beaches attracting tourists. A unique village called Blimbing Sari is drawing visitors.
Instead of painting blood on their doors as in the Passover in the Old Testament days, to signify their Christian faith, all 250 homes in the Blimbing Sari village in Bali have a balinese cross hanging on their doors.
The villagers there boast that the area has been 100% Christian since 1939, when their persecuted ancestors were given the land as a safe haven by the Dutch government.
"The idea was by taking all of these people, there would be no more Christian movement in the villages," explained Rev. Ketut Suyaga Ayub, head pastor of the Protestant Christian Church in Bali. "But the Christians who came here-- there were 39 families in the beginning-- they found themselves in a new exodus to the new promised land."
Villagers are taught the value of hard work and rest. Every family gets two hectares of land from the government where ...   more »