Muslims
Sachar Committee report on Muslims misleadingPune Newsline - Pune,IndiaPune, April 2: Data on Muslims represented in the Sachar Committee report was misleading, since a significant proportion of Muslims surveyed were illegal ...See all stories on this topic
The mission of modernizing South Asian Muslims - IGreaterKashmir.com (press release) - Srinigar,IndiaThe greater world around Muslims had become a closed book. What is more they had no wish to open the book and read. They had long ceased to follow the ...See all stories on this topic
Muslims and Jews: Let us coexistAmerican Muslim - Bridgeton,MO,USAThe centuries-long harmonious coexistence between the Muslims and the Jews could have gone on. However, it was shattered, regrettably, when the Western ...See all stories on this topic
A truce with MuslimsAmerican Muslim - Bridgeton,MO,USAA truce does not equal capitulation to terrorists or letting Muslims off the hook for crimes committed in the name of religion. Criminals such as bin Laden ...See all stories on this topic
Muslims Stoned to DeathThe Conservative Voice - Kernersville,NC,USAWhile moderate Muslims rarely say anything publicly about stoning women to death in the name of Allah — indeed as a holy offering to Allah — it goes on all ...See all stories on this topic
Muslims, Arab Americans Welcome Efforts To Protect AmericaMedia Newswire (press release) - New York,NY,USA(Media-Newswire.com) - Washington – The American government wants to be engaged with Muslims and Arab Americans, says Department of Homeland Security ( DHS ...See all stories on this topic
How are the Muslims in Russia?Journal of Turkish Weekly - Ankara,TurkeyBut when we look at the status of Muslims in Russia, we see that life is tough. We hear claims that the Muslim existence in the country is under threat. ...See all stories on this topic
Dissent Is Now OK, But Only For MuslimsHuffington Post - New York,NY,USACalled the Amman Message, it is the first modern Islamic "consensus of scholars" that makes it "impermissible" upon Muslims to declare other Muslims ...See all stories on this topic
Religious Council: Prayers not move to undermine Islam, MuslimsSun2Surf - Petaling Jaya,Selangor,MalaysiaInstead, the efforts are to create awareness among non-Muslims regarding recent court judgments, and help them understand the implications of conversion to ...See all stories on this topic
Right time for Muslims to uniteThe Brunei Times - Bandar,Brunei,Brunei DarussalamTHERE may be many Indonesian Muslims who belong to Islamic organisations who do not know the history of the celebration of the Prophet Muhammad's (peace be ...See all stories on this topic
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- Al-Qaeda regroups in Pakistan- Aussie father denies kidnap allegations
- Hicks gag 'nothing to do with us'
- Growing numbers of Jews glad to call Germany home
NATIONAL
Columnists Letters Features
Canberra tax grab soars
The tax haul by the Commonwealth has leapt by almost 40 per cent since the GST was introduced. more
- Concerns grow over peninsula music fest- Media laws tackle online porn
Plea deal: Hicks free to speak in Australia, says Ruddock
Clergy blame sinners for tsunami
2:56pm Islands hit by more tremors as death toll from the tsunami that followed Monday's magnitude 8.0 shock climbs to 30. more
- Aid reaches Solomons tunami victims- US ruling hailed by climate change activists
San Francisco: Lindh parents use Hicks to plead for release
Afghanistan: Taliban captures French humanitarian workers
Hicks gag my idea: US general
Australian Government did not request controversial one-year gag imposed on David Hicks, says man who negotiated deal. more
Aid logjam piles misery on tsunami victims
Misery grows for survivors of the Solomon Islands tsunami with the first reports of disease and another powerful tremor shaking the disaster zone. more
- Grandmother died trying to rescue baby- US ploy to destabilise Iran: report
Arrests over rocket launch theft
1:07pm Australian army captain alleged mastermind of theft and sale of eight rocket launchers, police say. more
Disease fears for tsunami survivors
11:57am Diarrhoea breakout sparks fears that thousands of people who lost their homes in the waves may be at risk of disease. more
- Mudslide hits school after Fiji cyclone- Iran frees sailors as 'gift' to Britain
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The Final Move Beyond Iraq, produced by Mike Evans, contains riveting footage on stories such as: Iran’s collusion with Syria to provide proxies to penetrate Israel’s northern and southern borders; President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad’s plan to destabilize Iraq and spread Ayatollah Khomeini’s Islamic revolution across the entire Middle East; Islamic children being taught at an early age to hate Americans and Jews; Saudi Arabia’s plan to build a $13 billion fence to separate that country from Iranian terrorist infiltrators.
The Final Move Beyond Iraq features interviews with former Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu; Harvard Law Professor Alan Dershowitz; U.S. News and World Report owner and Editor-in-Chief, Mort Zuckerman; R. James Woolsey, former Director, CIA; Lieutenant General Moshe Ya’alon, former Chief of Staff, IDF, under Ariel Sharon; General Hugh Shelton; former Israeli Ambassador to the U.S. Dore Gold; and a number of Israeli and U.S. Generals; CIA and FBI experts; etc.
Click here to find the time and station in your area. The special will also air on the Inspirational Network, PAX/ION Network, and WIZE Network. Those dates and times are included.
What can you do?
Tune in and watch the special.
Call the number on the screen, order a book or sign the petition.
Tell your friends to watch the special and ask them to call the number on the screen.
The Final Move Beyond Iraq, a cutting–edge book by New York Times best-selling author Michael D. Evans and released by Strang Communications, reveals Iran’s involvement in the war in Iraq. It divulges Iran’s complicity in providing IEDs that have been used to kill 85 percent of American troops in Iraq; Iran’s support of the militias in Iraq; and its plan to spread the burgeoning Islamic revolution across Iraq and Syria to the very borders of Israel. The book will also become a one-hour documentary syndicated in major television markets across America. The book and the extended version of the documentary will be released in May 2007.
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Terror drives us to church
ISLAMIC terror and unease about climate change have led Australians back to the church, Catholic Archbishop George Pell says in his Easter message.
Guantanamo Bay: Torture tale sidesteps Hicks gag
Australians 'worst Muslim haters'
ISLAMIC convert Yvonne Ridley, attending the first Annual Islamic Conference, claims we are "Islamophobic" and among the world's worst Muslim-haters.
Muslims back 'sacked' Sheik Hilali
09:26am: AN Islamic group that claims to have sacked the mufti of Australia Sheik Taz al Din al Hilali does not have the authority to do so, a spokesman for the Islamic Friendship Association has said.
Prince hit by friend's Iraq death
PRINCE William is "absolutely devastated" by news of the death of a close friend who was killed along with three other soldiers by a roadside bomb near Basra.
Chennai: Burning Jeep explodes, kills at least 16 onlookers
Tehran: Iran says British sailors 'pressured' in denials
Mufti urges Muslims to back Iran
WHILE Iran faced a standoff with the West after seizing British sailors, Sheik Hilali was in Tehran urging Muslims to unite behind Iran and serve in its "trenches".
Furore over sailors' media deals
POLITICIANS and the families of British troops killed in Iraq have criticised the Government's decision to allow 15 sailors seized by Iran to sell their stories.
Kandahar: Afghan journalist beheaded by Taliban militants
- Iran denies abusing captives
- Iran denies abusing captives
Sheikh should consider leaving: minister
1:54pm Immigration Minister Kevin Andrews calls on controversial Muslim cleric Sheikh Taj al-Din al-Hilali to think about leaving Australia. more
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Past Week Breaking NewsEvery day, our editors scour the web for news items of interest in the areas of world events, religion, and technology. Here are some choice news that we found this past week:
Soulforce Stops at BJUIan Paisley says he had no alternative but to do a deal with Sinn Fein "for the...Why Are Christian Men Avoiding Marriage?SermonAudio Tip: Browse, Search, and Podcast All Sermon SeriesEurope tops US in stock market valueTexas Lawmaker Wants Bible to Be Used as Textbook in State's Public SchoolsMuslims Torch Evangelical ChurchBJU: 'Your argument is with Bible, not us'Old Church Becomes Mosque in Uneasy BritainMormons: We are Christians, tooDoes Germany Already Have Sharia Law?Newsweek: 9 in 10 Americans believe in GodBill to Legalize Abortion Set to Pass in Mexico CityThe following are some other popular breaking news of this past week:
'Gay' cleric: Christ did not die for sinMissouri's most powerful Baptist takes on the 'emerging church'Patrol confronts students over Christian literatureEvangelical Leader Urges Prayer for 'Gay' Rights ActivistsAtheists split over messageArchaeologist: The Exodus didn't happenChurches Go 'Green' for Palm SundayPorn Addiction Disqualifies MissionariesHuman ancestor gets digital facelift?Convicted IRA trio take top portfolios in Sinn Fein line-upmore interesting news...
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Prophecy News Update
April 6, 2007
End-Time News Reportby Herb Peters Herb is a newspaper columnist converted to an end-time prophecy reporter. He has been studying prophecy for over 30 years and owns the #1 Endtime Prophecy News website. NEWS topics concerning Mr. Europe: Covenant with many – including Israel, Heads NATO, 10-nation military alliance in Europe, Subdues 3 nations, EU creates Office for first Mr. Europe, Two documents numbered 666, Implements his 10 nation’s Assembly, Gives himself emergency powers, Negotiates secret treaty with Washington ...more >
The Secret of Solomon's Key Revealed by Michael Hoggard Like the fictional character Robert Langdon in Dan Brown’s The DaVinci Code, Michael Hoggard reveals from the illuminati the most darkest, diabolical secrets in the world. Using the elements of Scripture numeric’s, Bible Typology, and the prophetic Word of God, Michael reveals the truth behind: The meaning behind the sacred design of Washington D.C., God’s Longitude, Freemasons using children to bring in the New World Order...more >
In This Issue
'Islamic world in cold war'
Homosexual Activists Consider Targeting Private Christian Schools for "Homophobia"
Cashless society by 2012, says Visa chief
AFA founder says Episcopal church leaders disregard Scripture
Solana to restore EU ties with Syria
German native population shrinking; Islamic influence rising
Europe claims Israel preparing for war
Prominent evangelical backs out of pro-Israel event over proselytizing disclaimer
Chinese military superpower?
Unchurched Population Nears 100 Million in the U.S.
Bill calls for NAFTA pullout
Hostage drill at NJ school features mock 'Christian terrorists'
The botched US raid that led to the hostage crisis
USS Nimitz, other warships leave San diego for the Persian Gulf
'We cannot come to God on our terms'
Houston: The Wal-Mart of North American Union
Texas Senate prayer excludes Christians
Scientists close to Potter-style 'invisibility cloak'
Abolition of Electoral College under way
Driver's licenses to feature radio chips
Report: Russia could head new Mideast gas cartel
Disney Opens Weddings to Gay Couples
Atomic Iran
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'Islamic world in cold war'Israeli experts: Shiite-Sunni conflict dramatically escalated in recent months, Sunnis obsessed with Iranian threat Yaakov Lappin The Islamic world is entering a cold war period as the divide between Shiites and Sunnis escalates, Israeli experts said during a conference at Tel Aviv University on Tuesday afternoon.
Dr. Uzi Rabi, of the Department of Middle Eastern and African History at Tel Aviv University, said both Iran and Sunni nations were sending envoys to battle it out in Iraq.
"There are many reports of Saudi Arabia indirectly supporting al-Qaeda, in order to prevent a Shiite takeover of Baghdad," Rabi said.
"There is a cold war going on in the Middle East between the agents of Iran and Sunni states," he argued, adding: "pragmatic Arab states, such as Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Jordan, and the small Gulf states, have recently joined into a bloc aimed at checking the Shiite phenomenon sweeping the Middle East."
He added that for the first time in Israel's history, there was a possibility for the country to "partially join this Sunni strategic alliance."
Homosexual Activists Consider Targeting Private Christian Schools for "Homophobia"OTTAWA, Ontario, February 27, 2007 (LifeSiteNews.com) - Ontario private schools are coming increasingly under the lens of homosexual activist groups for "homophobic" teaching stemming from the schools' primarily religious foundations, a report in Ottawa's homosexual news media indicated earlier this week.
In an article warning about the increasing trend toward private and religious schools in the province, Ottawa's Capital Xtra objected to religious schools that teach children "only their own values."
The article quotes Tony Lovink, a homosexual Christian teacher in the Ottawa public school system, as saying, "All private schools tend to be at least implicitly homophobic. And I would say all religiously formed independent schools are definitely homophobic."
The Coalition for Lesbian and Gay Rights in Ontario said they were concerned the provincial ministry of education wasn't "exerting more control" over the curriculum used by private religious schools. Unless a school wants to grant students government-recognized Secondary School Diplomas, Ontario private schools are free to use their preferred curriculum. Even schools that do grant the government diplomas may teach any additional material they choose, so long as the required curriculum is covered.
As well, the CLGRO objected to provincial standards that permit private schools to hire teachers based on the school administration's own qualification requirements.
In October 2006 the Quebec government ordered private Christian schools in the province to begin teaching sex education and Darwinism in compliance with the provincial curriculum, threatening schools with closure if they failed to comply.
Dr. Janet Epp Buckingham, then-director of law and public policy with the Evangelical Fellowship of Canada, told LifeSiteNews at the time that parents’ right to educate their children in accordance with their religious beliefs is protected under the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms.
Cashless society by 2012, says Visa chiefPaying for goods with notes and coins could be consigned to history within five years, according to the chief executive of Visa Europe.
Peter Ayliffe said that, by 2012, using credit and debit cards should be cheaper and more convenient than cash.
Some retailers could soon start surcharging customers if they choose to buy products with cash, because of the greater cost of processing these payments, he warned.
Visa Europe briefed the British Retail Consortium last month on new "contactless" cards that can be waved in front of a scanner to make small payments.
However, the consortium dismissed this vision and claimed that card processing fees, which regulators are investigating, are still too high.
One member of the consurtium said that the estimated "interchange" fee charged to retailers amounts to some 4p for each transaction.
Nick Mourant, treasurer at Tesco, said: "There is a duopoly between Mastercard and Visa in the UK. Their setting of fees is anti-competitive."
AFA founder says Episcopal church leaders disregard ScriptureThe founder of the American Family Association says the Episcopal Church, the U.S. wing of the worldwide Anglican Communion, has proven it has no desire to mend relations with conservative members of the denomination. It is time, says Rev. Donald Wildmon, for any conservative Christians in ECUSA to leave that denomination.
The divide between conservative and liberals in the denomination was heightened four years ago when the leadership of ECUSA consecrated the church's first openly homosexual bishop, V. Gene Robinson, who now oversees the Episcopal Diocese of New Hampshire. Last month, during a meeting in Africa, leaders of the worldwide Anglican Communion adopted an ultimatum calling for creation of a parallel leadership structure to oversee the conservative minority of Episcopalians -- essentially, Anglicans in America -- who oppose their church's liberal views on homosexuality. But the Episcopal House of Bishops has rejected that demand.
Solana to restore EU ties with Syriaavier Solana, the European Union’s foreign policy chief, will restore high-level EU contact with Syria when he visits Damascus next week for the first time in more than two years.
The trip is designed to encourage Syria to help end the Lebanon political crisis, which pits pro-Syrian parties against a government supported by the west.
Diplomats on Friday linked the dispatch of Mr Solana with the US’s decision to sit down with Syrian officials at Saturday’s Baghdad security conference.
The EU move also comes at the end of the presidency of France’s Jacques Chirac, who has resisted initiatives to re-establish close contact between Syria and the EU as a whole, although officials such as Miguel Angel Moratinos, Spain’s foreign minister, have visited Damascus.
German native population shrinking; Islamic influence risingA human-rights activist dedicated to debunking the overpopulation myth says even the German government admits that a low birth rate and Islamic immigration may forever change the face of the German nation. The Germans, he says, have nobody to blame but themselves.
German journalist and university lecturer Udo Ulfkotte recently warned that Islam is slowly but surely taking a grip on the European culture. He said more and more institutions are making allowances for Muslims, and even Islamic "sharia" law is beginning to take hold because 40 percent of Germany's Muslims are convinced the country's constitution is incompatible with Islam.
Europe claims Israel preparing for warTEL AVIV – European officials have been claiming to Syrian leaders the past few weeks Israel is preparing for a military confrontation with Damascus, in some cases providing Syria with inaccurate information, WND has learned.
A top source in Syrian President Bashar Assad's Baath party told WND European leaders visiting Damascus in recent weeks delivered messages stating Israel was taking measures in advance of a large-scale conflict with Syria, including updating battle plans, training reservist soldiers and preparing the home front for missile attacks.
One senior European Union official told Assad the Israeli government instructed its major hospitals not to allow staff to take vacation time during the summer months for fear a conflict will break out during that period, according to the Baath party source.
Israeli security officials and spokesmen for several major Israeli hospitals denied the claim.
Prominent evangelical backs out of pro-Israel event over proselytizing disclaimerChristian radio talk-show host Janet Parshall, a high-profile American evangelical known for her strong support of Israel, has dropped out of a Jerusalem conference sponsored by a Christian caucus of the Israeli Parliament.
Parshall says she decided not to speak at the conference after she learned that the Knesset Christian Allies Caucus "condemns" and does not associate with groups that share the gospel of Jesus Christ. Parshall says she is also troubled that the strict religious political party Shas has yet again introduced legislation in the Knesset that would give up to a one-year prison sentence for people who share the gospel in Israel. "I thought, wait a minute: we can't just blindly support Israel," she observes. "We have to be able to tell them, as a friend, [that] you can't do that. You can't silence us."
The Christian radio commentator says Israel understands by now who evangelical Christians are and that their very nomenclature as evangelical Christians "means that we share the love of Jesus Christ." Individual Israelis may not accept Jesus as the Messiah, she notes, but they "cannot silence us from sharing [the gospel] with whomever might be interested in that message."
Chinese military superpower?On March 4, China's National People's Congress announced it would increase the country's military budget 17.8 percent in 2007 to a total of $45 billion. Though this was the biggest single annual increase in China's military spending, the Chinese government reassured the world this spending hike was normal and need not worry anyone.
But the evidence suggests China's intent is to challenge the U.S. as a military superpower. Within a decade, perhaps much sooner, China will be America's only global competitor for military and strategic influence. National Intelligence Director Michael McConnell told the Senate Feb. 27 that the Chinese are "building their military, in my view, to reach some state of parity with the United States."
Nor is this a revelation to Washington policymakers. Mr. McConnell's predecessor, John Negroponte, testified to the Senate Intelligence Committee in February 2006 that "China is a rapidly rising power with steadily expanding global reach that may become a peer competitor to the United States at some point."
In June 2005, Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice observed that the United States must help integrate China into the international, rules-based economy before it becomes a "military superpower." Miss Rice, with a doctorate in Soviet studies and years of experience in the White House during the last days of the Cold War, would not use the term "superpower" lightly.
Unchurched Population Nears 100 Million in the U.S.(Ventura, CA) - Life in America has changed greatly since 1994, with massive changes in technology, global politics, lifestyle choices and family dynamics. But one constant has been the proportion of adults in the population who are unchurched. During that period there have been noteworthy shifts in religious behavior, but the percentage of adults who have steered clear of churches for at least the past six months has remained stable since 1994.
A new survey released by The Barna Group, which has been tracking America’s religious behavior and beliefs since 1984, reveals that one out of every three adults (33%) is classified as unchurched - meaning they have not attended a religious service of any type during the past six months. While that figure is considerably higher than the one out of five who qualified as unchurched in the early Nineties, it is statistically unchanged since 36% were recorded as having avoided religious services in the company’s 1994 study.
Bill calls for NAFTA pulloutWASHINGTON – Three members of the House of Representatives have co-sponsored a resolution calling on President Bush to provide notice of withdrawal from the North American Free Trade Agreement.
Republican Reps. Virgil Goode of Virginia, Walter Jones of North Carolina and Democrat Gene Taylor of Mississippi introduced the bill, which has been referred to the House Subcommittee of Trade.
The trio objects to NAFTA because of the rising U.S. trade deficits with Canada and Mexico, the loss of American jobs, the safety threat posed by foreign truckers on U.S. highways and the security risks it has meant in increased crime and drugs and the potential for terrorist activity.
Hostage drill at NJ school features mock 'Christian terrorists'The head of a national, Texas-based pro-family group says a recent hostage drill at a New Jersey high school, which portrayed conservative Christians as terrorists, is reflective of a dangerous philosophy that has become prevalent in many parts of America, where it is having negative effects on education.
A local paper reports that a drill at Burlington Township High School in New Jersey involved police portraying mock gunmen, described as "members of a right-wing fundamentalist group called the 'New Crusaders' who don't believe in the separation of church and state." The fake gunmen were said to have been "seeking justice because the daughter of one [member] had been expelled for praying before class."
Historian and constitutional expert David Barton is president of WallBuilders, a national pro-family organization that distributes historical, legal, and statistical information and helps citizens become active in their local schools and communities. He says the stereotyping used in the high school's drill is an accurate indicator of what is being taught in public schools in the Northeast region of the country.
The botched US raid that led to the hostage crisisA failed American attempt to abduct two senior Iranian security officers on an official visit to northern Iraq was the starting pistol for a crisis that 10 weeks later led to Iranians seizing 15 British sailors and Marines.
Early on the morning of 11 January, helicopter-born US forces launched a surprise raid on a long-established Iranian liaison office in the city of Arbil in Iraqi Kurdistan. They captured five relatively junior Iranian officials whom the US accuses of being intelligence agents and still holds.
In reality the US attack had a far more ambitious objective, The Independent has learned. The aim of the raid, launched without informing the Kurdish authorities, was to seize two men at the very heart of the Iranian security establishment.
USS Nimitz, other warships leave San diego for the Persian Gulf SAN DIEGO - The USS Nimitz and several other American warships left San Diego today for the Persian Gulf to join another locally based aircraft carrier strike group already in the region.
The nuclear-powered aircraft carrier will join the San Diego-based John C. Stennis Strike Group and relieve the USS Dwight D. Eisenhower, according to Naval Air Forces Public Affairs.
Military officials said in a statement that the two-carrier presence in the Persian Gulf area is intended to demonstrate U.S. "resolve to build regional security and bring long-term stability to the region."
The Nimitz's departure comes amid heightened tensions in the region following the detention of 15 British sailors and marines by Iran. Iran maintains the detainees were operating in its territorial waters, a charge the British government denies.
President Bush ratcheted up the rhetoric over the weekend, calling the detainees "hostages" -- a term not even the British had used.
The tension over the detainees coincides with international pressure on Iran to give up its uranium enrichment program, which it maintains is strictly for peaceful purposes. The United States and other nations fear Iran is working toward the development of nuclear weapons.
'We cannot come to God on our terms'Three activists for the pro-homosexual organization Soulforce have been arrested for trespassing at a Christian university after officials there rejected requests to "dialogue" over the issue, saying, "We cannot come to God on our own terms."
"God requires us to come to Him on His terms," said a statement released yesterday by officials at Bob Jones University. "We must see our sinful actions and attitudes as God sees them. Through Christ's death, which satisfies God's anger over sin, sinners who come to Christ in repentance are made righteous and given eternal life. A true believer will then demonstrate his belief by obedience to the Bible."
So what about the "conversations" or "dialogue" sought by members of the "Soulforce Equality Riders" bus teams to talk about the university policies forbidding homosexuality.
Houston: The Wal-Mart of North American UnionHouston could be the new Wal-Mart of North America, replacing the West Coast as the delivery door for consumer goods delivered to the continent, with shipping and trucking plans that only enhance the concept of a combined North American Union.
As Commerce Secretary Carlos Gutierrez pushes for "major trilateral initiatives" that would capture the vision of the integration of the U.S., Mexico and Canada, and state lawmakers fight a rearguard action to restore confidence in the U.S. sovereignty, officials in Houston are watching plans to expand the Panama Canal, and measuring the depth of the port's water to see what limits there would be on ship sizes.
Jim Edmonds, chairman of the Port of Houston, told WND Houston already has 73 percent of the container market in the Gulf of Mexico, and 94 percent of the container market in Texas, and it is preparing to take advantage of the planned expansion of the Panama Canal. "So, it would be logical to assume that whatever growth in Gulf container traffic that comes from the expansion of the Canal would most likely come into Texas," he told WND.
Texas Senate prayer excludes ChristiansA controversial Texas imam who at one point participated in a "tribute to the great Islamic visionary" Ayatollah Khomeini, has offered a prayer to open the state Senate that excluded both Christians and Jews.
"Oh, Allah, guide us to the straight path, the path of those whom you have favored, not of those who have earned your wrath or of those who have lost the way," prayed Imam Yusuf Kavakci of the Dallas Central Mosque.
Islam, of course, teaches that Jews and Christians both have earned the wrath of Allah by failing to follow Islam, and also have lost the way by following the teachings of the Torah for the Jews or the Bible for Christians.
Scientists close to Potter-style 'invisibility cloak'Scientists say they have finally come up with a workable design for an invisibility cloak.
Physicists figured out the complex mathematical equations for making objects invisible by bending light around them last year.
Now a group of engineers at Purdue University in Indiana have used those calculations to design a relatively simple device that ought to be able to - one day soon - make objects as big as an aeroplane simply disappear.
The design calls for tiny metal needles to be fitted into a hairbrush-shaped cone at angles and lengths that would force light to pass around the cloak. This would make everything inside the cone appear to vanish because the light would no longer reflect off it.
"It looks pretty much like fiction, I do realise, but it's completely in agreement with the laws of physics," said lead researcher Vladimir Shalaev, a professor of electrical and computer engineering at Purdue.
"Ideally, if we make it real it would work exactly like Harry Potter's invisibility cloak," he said. "It's not going to be heavy because there's going to be very little metal in it."
Abolition of Electoral College under wayA movement is sweeping the nation that could eliminate the Electoral College in national elections, and with it much of this country's republican form of government, instead giving unstoppable control over the White House to any coalition the major population centers would choose to create.
Maryland's state legislature already has given approval to a proposal that would, in conjunction with other states' efforts, eliminate the college, and similar plans have already been approved by single legislative houses in Hawaii, Colorado and Arizona. In seven more states – Washington, Montana, California, New Mexico, Louisiana, West Virginia and Connecticut – the plans have been endorsed by legislative committees.
And in 28 more states the proposals have been introduced while legislative writers in another eight states are working on plans, according to a report from the group called National Popular Vote, which is lobbying for the change.
Driver's licenses to feature radio chipsThe state of Washington announced a pilot project to introduce a driver's license "enhanced" with a radio frequency identification, or RFID, chip that would encode personal information and possibly serve as a passport-alternative if approved by the Department of Homeland Security.
Democratic Gov. Christine Gregoire signed a bill March 23 allowing Washington residents to apply for the $40 voluntary driver's license beginning in January.
Gregoire spokeswoman Kristin Jacobsen told WND in an e-mail the enhanced license is intended to be an alternative way of complying with theWestern Hemisphere Travel Initiative mandated by the Intelligence Reform and Terrorism Prevention Act of 2004.
Report: Russia could head new Mideast gas cartelWASHINGTON — Russia and Middle East countries could decide to form a gas cartel a new report warns.
Algeria, Iran, Qatar and Russia have scheduled a meeting of the 15-member Gas-Exporting Countries Forum in Doha on April 9, Middle East Newsline reported.
Industry analysts said the session could result in a decision to form a cartel that would control gas supplies to the West. Russian officials said Moscow had no plans to establish a cartel.
Disney Opens Weddings to Gay CouplesLOS ANGELES (AP) - Same-sex couples who want to exchange vows in front of Cinderella's Castle now have the chance.
The Walt Disney Co. had limited its Fairy Tale Wedding program to couples with valid marriage licenses, but it is now making ceremonies at its parks available to gay couples as well.
"We believe this change is consistent with Disney's long-standing policy of welcoming every guest in an inclusive environment," Disney Parks and Resorts spokesman Donn Walker said Friday.
"We want everyone who comes to celebrate a special occasion at Disney to feel welcome and respected."
The company said it made the change after being contacted by a gay couple who wanted to use the wedding service, which offers ceremonies at Disneyland in California, Walt Disney World Resort in Florida and Disney's cruise ships.
The service offers flowers, dining, music and many optional Disney touches, from ceremonies in front of the parks' iconic attractions to having Mickey and Minnie Mouse in formal wear as guests. The packages start at $8,000 and can cost more than $45,000.
Groups not affiliated with Disney have held annual "gay days" celebrations at Disney parks for years. Company officials have taken a tolerant attitude to the weekend, allowing party promoters to rent out parks after hours and rebuffing religious groups that condemned Disney.
In 2005, Southern Baptists ended an eight-year boycott of the Walt Disney Co. for violating "moral righteousness and traditional family values."
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