January 23, 2016

Russia, China and Saudi Arabia are on the ropes
Three huge, vastly important countries on the world stage are in deep economic and political trouble—far worse than we may realize. I’m talking about Russia, China and Saudi Arabia. Think America has problems? They pale in comparison to what Moscow, Beijing and Riyadh face, and our next president may have quite a bit of geopolitical leverage.  

China's Xi calls for creation of Palestinian state
Chinese President Xi Jinping has called for the establishment of a Palestinian state, with East Jerusalem as its capital, as he announced a series of multibillion-dollar investment plans for the wider Middle East.  

58,586,256 Abortions Later--Obama Celebrates Roe v. Wade: It Affirmed Freedom
President Barack Obama issued a statement today, celebrating the 43rd anniversary of the Supreme Court’s 1973 Roe v. Wade decision that declared abortion a constitutionally protected right.  

Good Samaritan Shot to Death Helping Stranded Driver in North Carolina
A good Samaritan was shot and killed after trying to assist an allegedly intoxicated motorist stranded on an icy highway in North Carolina on Friday. A group of three people pulled over to help when they spotted a stuck car that slid off the road in Catawba around 5:30 p.m. local time, according to Catawba County Sheriff Coy Reid. 
Netanyahu 'hopeful' of normalization of ties with Turkey

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has expressed hope in an interview with Turkish news agency Anadolu towards the normalization of ties with Turkey. "We are talking to them (Turkish officials), and they are talking to us and if we succeed, that will be good for both countries," Netanyahu told the news agency on the sidelines of the World Economic Forum in Davos.  

Tunisia declares nationwide curfew as violent protests against unemployment and poverty spread
Tunisia is under a nationwide curfew after its biggest anti-government protests since the country gave birth to the Arab Spring five years ago. Hailed as the sole example so far of a peaceful Arab Spring revolution, the small North African state has been hit by major street protests in recent days over over unemployment and rising poverty.  

Syria conflict: 'US expanding air strip' in Kurdish north
Satellite imagery appearing to show the US expanding a formerly disused air strip in Kurdish-controlled northern Syria has been seen by the BBC. The images, from the security analysts Stratfor, show a runway near the town of Rmeilan being extended from 700m (half a mile) to 1.3km. That would make it more suitable for a larger aircraft such as a Hercules.  

US strips credentials of five Russian honorary consuls
The US has withdrawn the credentials of five out of Russia's six honorary consuls, citing the harassment of its own staff in Russia. The US State Department said it was ready to take further measures "if there are additional efforts" to impede diplomatic and consular activity. Spokesman Mark Toner said there had been "widespread harassment" of staff.  

Iranian, Chinese presidents agree to expand ties
Iran and China agreed to expand bilateral ties to form a comprehensive strategic partnership, President Hassan Rouhani and visiting Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping said on Saturday, calling it a "new season" in bilateral relations. The Chinese president is the first leader to visit Iran since international sanctions...were lifted on Jan. 16...  

Iran set to be hooked up to global banks in weeks
Iran is set to re-engage with the banking world within weeks as international lenders link up with their Iranian counterparts using global transaction network SWIFT, Iran's Middle East Bank and a senior central bank official told Reuters on Friday. A nuclear deal between world powers and Iran led to the removal of the curbs on Tehran's banking, insurance and shipping sectors last weekend, as well as restrictions on oil exports.  

Saudi-Iranian proxy war over Syria spreads to World Economic Forum meeting
Senior Saudi and Iranian figures clashed behind closed doors...convened by the World Economic Forum in Davos this week to try to promote peace in Syria, participants said. The barbed exchange between Saudi Prince Turki al-Faisal and Iranian Foreign Minister Javad Zarif...underlined the hostility between the two Gulf rivals, who are waging proxy wars in Syria, Yemen and Iraq.  

Switzerland 'made secret deal with PLO' after bomb attacks
Controversy is growing in Switzerland over an alleged secret deal, made almost 50 years ago, between the Swiss government and the Palestine Liberation Organisation (PLO). The agreement, detailed in a new book, was apparently designed to prevent terrorist attacks on Swiss territory.  

French Prime Minister warns Europe will be 'totally destabilized' if it takes all refugees
The French Prime Minister has warned European leaders about saying that refugees will be "welcome" in Europe, because in just seconds their message will be "shared on smartphones in the refugee camps of Libya."  

Why North Korea's Arrest Of An American College Student Should Come As No Surprise
This month's arrest of a 21-year-old University of Virginia student in North Korea may have been shocking, but it was only the latest reported case of a Westerner held in that isolated nation.  

This Is What The Death Of A Nation Looks Like: Venezuela Prepares For 720% Hyperinflation
For citizens of Nicolas Maduro's socialist paradise the news is terrible, and getting worse with every passing day. Yesterday, we reported that one year after our November 2014 forecast, Barclays has decided that Venezuela is now past the "point of no return", and a bankruptcy in 2016 will be "difficult to avoid."  

Haiti postpones Sunday's presidential election as violence erupts
Haiti called off its presidential election on Friday, two days before it was due, over concerns of escalating violence sparked by the opposition candidate's refusal to take part in a process he said was riddled with fraud.  

4 dead after shootings in northern Saskatchewan
A gunman opened fire at a high school and a second location in an aboriginal community in northern Saskatchewan on Friday, leaving four dead and at least two injured, officials said.  

Mitch McConnell Moves To Grant The President Unlimited War Powers With No Expiration Date
This morning, I came across an extremely important story with tremendous long-term negative implications for freedom in these United States. It relates to the fact that the always shady Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell is moving to fast track an Authorization of Military Force (AUMF) for the President that would allow for unrestricted warfare against ISIS.  

State tries to delay Clinton email release, blaming snowstorm
The State Department on Friday sought to delay its final release of emails from Hillary Clinton’s personal server, blaming a massive snowstorm hitting Washington as well as an internal “oversight.”  

January 22, 2016

China's central bank plans to launch its own digital currencies
China's central bank wants to launch its own digital currencies to cut the costs of circulating traditional paper money and boost policymakers' control of money supply, the People's Bank of China said on Wednesday.  

Putin asked Assad to step down
Russian President Vladimir Putin has reportedly asked his Syrian counterpart Bashar al-Assad to step down, the Financial Times reported Friday.  

Chinese president declares support for Palestinian state
China supports the creation of a Palestinian state along the 1967 borders, Chinese President Xi Jinping said on Thursday during an Arab League convention in Cairo  

French PM says state of emergency to be prolonged
French Prime Minister Manuel Valls said on Friday that a state of emergency declared after 130 people were killed in attacks in Paris in November would be prolonged as long as necessary, the BBC quoted him as saying.  

After sandstorm, Israel braces for mega snowstorm
Israel is still recovering from the major sandstorm that hit on Monday, bringing with it dust particulates and air pollution for at least two days, but now the country is facing a new storm replete with snow, thunder, howling winds and all the rest of the bells and whistles.  

Exclusive: U.S. weighs making Hawaii missile test site operational - sources
The U.S. military has stepped up discussions on converting its Aegis missile defense test site in Hawaii into a combat-ready facility that would bolster American defenses against ballistic missile attacks, according to sources familiar with the discussions.  

Turkish border on brink of becoming a Russian warfront?
Turkey is "closely watching" Russian troop movements in Syria near its border, a government source in Ankara said on Friday, after reports that Russian servicemen had deployed in the Syrian border town of Qamishli.  

A NEW 9TH PLANET BEYOND PLUTO?
Today, planetary scientists, Konstantin Batygin and Mike Brown of Caltech announced intriguing evidence for a Neptune-sized planet orbiting the sun beyond Pluto. Sedna and five other objects in the outer solar system are grouped together as if they are being shepherded by a larger body. That body, say Batygin and Brown, is a planet at least 10 times as massive as Earth...  

Dark 'noodles' may lurk in the Milky Way
Invisible structures shaped like noodles, lasagne sheets or hazelnuts could be floating around in our Galaxy radically challenging our understanding of gas conditions in the Milky Way. They figured out this behaviour was the work of our Galaxy's invisible 'atmosphere', a thin gas of electrically charged particles which fills the space between the stars.  

When Russia's money runs out, the 'real trouble starts'
Stuck in a recession and with no sign of a reprieve in the oil price, Russia could quickly descend into chaos if the money runs out... "I don't think you can underestimate how bad the situation in Russia is right now, you've got oil below any measure where the budget can survive and you've got sanctions from the West. Russia is in what I'd call a real serious economic crisis," William Browder said on Thursday.  

Is Donald Trump the Christian Savior Evangelicals Are Waiting For?
Donald Trump has done it again, making bold statements that endear him to his supporters in a style his competition wouldn’t dare mimic. On Monday night, at Liberty University in Lynchburg, Virginia, he told 10,000 students, “Christianity, it’s under siege.” He reassured them, “We’re going to protect Christianity. I don’t have to be politically correct.”  

Shallow 5.9 magnitude quake jolts northwest China
A shallow 5.9-magnitude earthquake jolted awake residents of China's northwestern Qinghai province on Thursday, with some choosing to sleep in their cars out of fear despite freezing temperatures of -20C (-4F).  

6.6-Magnitude Earthquake Strikes Mexico; No Tsunami Alert Signal Issued
The powerful tremblor, which hit the area at 12:07 p.m. local time, initially registered at 6.9-magnitude on the Richter Scale. However, the U.S. Geological Survey later downgraded the earthquake's intensity to about 6.6.  

Potentially historic blizzard looms over D.C., more than 2 feet of snow projected
Projected snowfall totals have ticked steadily upward, to the point where the National Weather Service — known for its conservative predictions — says more than 2 feet of snow could land on Washington. Residents and elected officials throughout the Eastern United States are heeding the warning.  

Pentagon plans fleet of laser drones to shoot down missiles
The Pentagon has revealed plans to equip drones with powerful lasers to shoot missiles out of the sky. The drones would stay aloft for days at a time, operating at an altitude of 65,000 ft with the power to destroy missiles during their launch phase, before they can deploy decoys or other countermeasures.  

Bizarre birth defect is on the rise, and researchers are baffled
Physicians are seeing more instances of a birth defect in which infants are born with their intestines extruding from the stomach wall, with a particularly sharp rise among babies born to young African American mothers, according to the CDC. Over the 18 years leading up to 2012, the CDC has documented a 263% increase in the birth defect, called gastroschisis, among children born to black mothers under the age of 20...  

Egypt: Cairo bomb blast kills nine during police raid
At least nine people, including six policemen, have been killed in a bomb explosion during a raid on a militant hideout in the Egyptian capital, Cairo. More than 13 others were injured, including the local police chief. Security sources say the blast went off as officers raided an apartment in Giza, near the Pyramids.  

Security forces evacuating Jewish families from disputed Hebron buildings
The Defense Ministry on Friday morning ordered security forces to remove dozens of Jews from a pair of Hebron buildings said to have been abandoned and then purchased legally from their original Palestinian owner. The Jewish settlers initially refused to voluntarily evacuate the premises, and security forces began to forcibly remove them, according to Channel 2.  

At least 19 dead in Somalia Shebab restaurant attack: police
Somalia's Islamist Shebab militants killed at least 19 people when five gunmen detonated a bomb before storming a popular seaside restaurant in the capital Mogadishu, police said on Friday.  

African War Lord Accused Of Ordering Cannibalism
An African war lord is accused of ordering cannibalism among 70 war crime charges. Dominic Ongwen of the Lord’s Resistance Army (LRA) was, up until a year ago, one of the most fearsome men in Africa.  

Lawmaker: Obama Admin Fueling ‘Campaign to Destroy Israel’
A leading member of the congressional Israel caucus says the Obama administration is fueling hatred against the Jewish state following comments by a top U.S. diplomat accusing Israel of not upholding democratic rule of law, according to a letter sent Wednesday to the State Department and obtained by the Washington Free Beacon.  

How Putin ‘probably’ had ex-KGB spy killed with tea and honey
The radioactive poison that killed Russian dissident Alexander Litvinenko was delivered in the most civilized of circumstances — at tea time, as he sipped green tea with lemon and honey with two former spy colleagues at a posh London hotel.  

'Absolute Mess': Mid-Atlantic Blizzard Could Make 'Legitimate' History
"Historic" is an overused word, but it applies to the blizzard that's coming for the national capital region, large parts of which could get more than 30 inches of snow over the weekend.  

Twitter erupts after Saudi cleric says chess is forbidden
A video clip of Saudi Arabia's top cleric saying that the game of chess is "forbidden" in Islam because it wastes time and leads to rivalry and enmity among people has provoked heated debate, and widespread criticism, among Arabic Twitter users.  

Israeli police arrest left-wing activist after TV report
Israeli police confirmed on Thursday the arrest of a prominent left-wing activist who was caught on tape boasting that he has put the lives of Palestinians who sell land to Israeli settlers at risk.  

Iran: ‘We Welcome War with the United States’
John Kerry said Monday that “the world is safer today” because of the Iran nuclear deal. Details of how loud and long the mullahs laughed have not been released. In reality, the world is more threatened than ever by an aggressive and assertive Iran, confident and swaggering after besting Kerry at the negotiating table.  

January 21, 2015

Sierra Leone has 2nd Ebola case after epidemic believed over
A second case of Ebola emerged in Sierra Leone after health officials thought the epidemic was over, with a close relative of the first victim testing positive for the virus that has killed more than 11,000 people, authorities said Thursday. About 150 of the first victim's contacts have been under monitoring, and the new patient had been in quarantine.  

Trump pledges to move US embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem
Republican presidential front-runner seems to make about-face from prior remarks on committing to recognizing Jerusalem as Israel's undivided capital.  

Arab Media Reports Israeli Proposed Autonomy Plan to Quiet Jerusalem Violence

Under the proposed agreement, the PLO police force would secure the neighborhoods without the need for prior coordination with Israel, thus granting the area a form of autonomy within the capital.  

France says airstrikes against Islamic State will accelerate
French President Francois Hollande says airstrikes against Islamic State extremists will accelerate in coming months. In a speech Thursday to the country's diplomatic corps, Hollande said that this year must be one "of transition in Syria."  

Senior PA official: Palestinian state in West Bank just a phase
A senior member of Palestinian Authority leader Mahmoud Abbas's inner circle has insisted that any "two-state solution" with Israel would merely be a "phase" in the ultimate dismantlement of the State of Israel. Bahrain: Gulf States building ballistic defense system against Iranian threat
An officer in Bahrain’s Air Force said that the Gulf States are joining forces in order to construct a ballistic defense system and that they hope to announce successful results in the near future.  

Caltech Researchers Find Evidence of a Real Ninth Planet
Caltech researchers have found evidence of a giant planet tracing a bizarre, highly elongated orbit in the outer solar system. The object, which the researchers have nicknamed Planet Nine, has a mass about 10 times that of Earth and orbits about 20 times farther from the sun on average than does Neptune (which orbits the sun at an average distance of 2.8 billion miles). In fact, it would take this new planet between 10,000 and 20,000 years to make just one full orbit around the sun.  

Magnitude-6.4 Earthquake Rattles Northwest China, Homes Damaged But No Casualties Reported
China's official Xinhua News Agency said that the epicenter of the quake was in an unpopulated area, about 20 miles from Menyuan county in Qinghai province. The U.S. Geological Survey put the quake's magnitude at 5.9 and said it struck at a depth of 6 miles on the western edge of the Plateau of Tibet, the AP reported. The tremor was also reportedly felt in the provincial capital of Xining.  

IDF deploys artillery battery on Gaza border
In an unusual move, the IDF has deployed an artillery battery on the Gaza border after a recent incident of roadside bombs planted near the border fence, targeting IDF patrols. The artillery forces were stationed next to the Gaza Division posts along the border.  

Mapped: How the migration crisis is a strain on Europe's democracies
The migration crisis which swept Europe in the summer of 2015 put a strain on Europe's democracies and will further weaken relations between member states as populist parties gain traction... The impact of the crisis will "last decades" and see EU nations make greater decisions on a national level - using their opt-outs more - said the Economist's Intelligence Unit (EIU) in their Democracy Index 2015 report.  

Internet providers want to know more about you than Google does, privacy groups say
...Internet providers can see that you’re listening to Spotify while watching Netflix and Googling for reality TV shows...And that gives Internet providers a major potential advantage. "An ISP has access to your full pipe and can see everything you do" online if you aren’t taking extra steps to shield your activities, said Chris Hoofnagle, a law professor at the University of California Berkeley.  

Global Stocks Sink on Fresh Growth Fears
Global stocks plunged, driven by heightened concerns about growth and fading confidence in the willingness or ability of central banks to boost their economies. The concern is the outlook for inflation...Another sharp fall in oil prices and weak consumer-price data in the U.S. on Wednesday gave traders fresh reasons to doubt what already were dismal expectations for the year.  

Iraq's oldest Christian monastery destroyed by Islamic State
Satellite images confirm that the oldest Christian monastery in Iraq has been destroyed by the jihadist group Islamic State (IS). St Elijah's stood on a hill near the northern city of Mosul for 1,400 years. But analysts said the images, obtained by the Associated Press, suggested it had been demolished in late 2014, soon after IS seized the city.  

Egyptian police killed in Sinai checkpoint attack
Five policemen have been killed in an attack on a checkpoint in the north of Egypt's restive Sinai peninsula, the interior ministry says. Three conscripts were also also wounded when gunmen opened fire at the checkpoint in the town of El-Arish. Security forces were searching for the attackers, who managed to flee.  

Brazil Zika outbreak: More babies born with birth defects
New figures from Brazil show a further rise in the number of babies born with abnormally small heads to mothers infected with the Zika virus. There have been 3,893 cases of microcephaly since October, when the authorities first noticed a surge, up from 3,500 in last week's report. Zika is transmitted by the bite of the Aedes aegypti mosquito, which also spreads dengue and chikungunya.  

ISIS sets sites on overthrowing governments of Morocco and Tunisia
In the wake of growing civil unrest in Tunisia and Morocco, ISIS has launched a new media campaign directed at Muslims in the Islamic Maghreb, which focuses mainly on the 'apostate' governments of Tunisia and Morocco. The campaign, launched on Thursday...call on Muslims to join ISIS...in order to oust the apostate democratic governments of Tunisia and Morocco and replace them with an Islamic regime based on Sharia law.  

Switzerland made secret deal with PLO to avoid terror attacks on Swiss soil
Following the hijacking of two Swissair flights in 1970, the then Swiss foreign minister met in Geneva with senior officials of the Palestinian Liberation Organization (PLO) headed by Yasser Arafat...to negotiate diplomatic ties and form a pact to avoid further terror attacks on Swiss soil. While full details of the agreement are protected by a 50-year statute of limitations, according to the report.  

Lawmaker: Obama Admin Fueling ‘Campaign to Destroy Israel’
A leading member of the congressional Israel caucus says the Obama administration is fueling hatred against the Jewish state following comments by a top U.S. diplomat accusing Israel of not upholding democratic rule of law, according to a letter sent Wednesday to the State Department and obtained by the Washington Free Beacon.  

Supreme Court Justice Judge Judy?
A report that claims that there is a crisis in civic education in the United States says that nearly 10% of all college graduates think that TV's 'Judy Judy' is on the Supreme Court.  

One Gallon of Milk Is Now Worth About Two Gallons of Oil: Chart
Crude oil is at a 12-year low and that means it’s even cheaper than milk. The price of one gallon of West Texas Intermediate crude is equivalent to about half a gallon of Class III milk, the benchmark traded on the Chicago futures market. That’s the lowest ratio since 2004.  

Migrants Fleeing Cuba 'Increasingly Violent'
The U.S. Coast Guard says it's documenting increasing instances of violence and noncompliance at sea among Cuban migrants. U.S. immigration policies haven't changed with the restoration of diplomatic relations between Havana and Washington. But the chief of response for the Coast Guard's 7th District says an ongoing surge in Cubans fleeing their homeland by sea is fueled by rumors they soon will lose the benefits of the so-called "wet-foot, dry-foot" policy allowing Cubans reaching U.S. land to stay and pursue citizenship.  

Justice Ginsburg Leads Supreme Court Majority To Deliver Blow To Big Business
In a 6-to-3 opinion in Campbell-Ewald v. Gomez, a case testing the limits on federal courts considering class-action disputes, the justices ruled that businesses can't just "moot" a case by simply offering to settle it with the person who first brought it -- let alone if the person rejected the offer.  

Israeli officials approve West Bank land expropriation
Israel's Ministry of Defense said Wednesday that officials have approved the expropriation of some 370 acres (150 hectares) of land in the West Bank near the city of Jericho, in a move that drew sharp condemnation from the Obama Administration.  

Europe on the verge of collapse: Soros
Billionaire financier George Soros reportedly has warned that the European Union is on the "verge of collapse" over the migrant crisis and is in "danger of kicking the ball further up the hill" in its management of the issue which has seen more than a million migrants and refugees arrive in the region in 2015.  

January 20, 2016

Top Ten Giant Discoveries in North America
Over 1000 accounts of seven-foot and taller skeletons have reportedly been unearthed from ancient burial sites over a two-hundred-year period in North America. Newspaper accounts, town and county histories, letters, scientific journals, diaries, photos and Smithsonian ethnology reports have carefully documented this.  

Winter Storm Jonas to Become Major East Coast Snowstorm; Blizzard Watch for D.C., Baltimore
The nation's capital is now under a blizzard watch, the first watch of its kind issued in advance of Winter Storm Jonas. Now is the time to prepare for Winter Storm Jonas, which is expected to kick into high gear Friday and pummel parts of the East through the weekend with heavy accumulations of snow and ice.  

Oldest Christian monastery in Iraq razed
Satellite photos obtained by The Associated Press confirm what church leaders and Middle East preservationists had feared: The oldest Christian monastery in Iraq has been reduced to a field of rubble, yet another victim of the Islamic State group's relentless destruction of heritage sites it considers heretical.  

These Four Contenders for Biblical Villain Gog Might Surprise You
Today, in Jewish sources, there are four contenders for the title: former US President George H.W. Bush, Russian President Vladimir Putin, current US President Barack Obama, and, in a surprising new twist, the United Nations itself. In chapters 38 and 39 of the Book of Ezekiel, Gog is mentioned a number of times. Gog is generally understood to be a political and/or military leader and Magog is his nation.  

Delusional EU Releases Peace Process Guidelines
“The EU is convinced that only the reestablishment of a political horizon and the resumption of dialogue can stop the violence,” the statement read. “Security measures alone cannot stop the cycle of violence. The underlying causes of the conflict need to be addressed.” In hoping to achieve its vision of a two-state solution, the EU stated that it will continue to ensure the viability of its two-state vision for both Israel and the PA.  

Emergency planners work on playbooks for the deadly Big One
Seismologists say a full rupture of a 650-mile-long offshore fault running from Northern California to British Columbia and an ensuing tsunami could come in our lifetimes, and emergency management officials are busy preparing for the worst. Federal, state and military officials have been working together to draft plans to be followed when the "Big One" happens.  

Swedish MPs challenge Wallström to debate over Israel comments
As relations between Sweden and Israel grow increasingly tense, a small group of Swedish MPs vowed Tuesday to publicly challenge their foreign minister’s controversial call last week for an investigation into what she termed Israel’s “extrajudicial executions” of Palestinians.  

Lawmaker: Journalists should register with government
State Rep. Mike Pitts, R-Laurens, filed a bill in the S.C. State House Tuesday to establish a “responsible journalism registry.” The registry would be run by the S.C. Secretary of State’s office.  

Burqa-clad special ops raid ISIS bunker, kill chief Read more at http://www.wnd.com/2016/01/burqa-clad-special-ops-raid-isis-bunker-kill-chief/#y50vF
Burqa-clad special operations forces from Britain’s Special Air Service raided a bunker on the Islamic State group’s home turf and killed a terror chief. An eight-man squad went behind enemy lines in Raqqa, Syria, earlier this month and posed as ISIS wives before taking out a high-value target.  

SOUTHERN CORONAL HOLE
High above the sun's south pole, a vast hole has opened in the sun's atmosphere. This is called a "coronal hole", Coronal holes are places in the sun's atmosphere where the magnetic field opens up and allows solar wind to escape.  

‘Time to help them’: Israeli justice minister calls for independent Kurdish state
Israeli Justice Minister Ayelet Shaked has spoken out in favor of an independent Kurdish state. She also urged increased cooperation between Israel and the Kurdish people. Shaked sees this as an opportunity to weaken Israel’s rivals in the region.  

European liberal left leaves Europe in decay, Wallstrom-style
Wallstrom has a talent for finding Israel guilty for all of Sweden’s woes. When, according to Swedish intelligence, over two hundred Swedes were reported to have joined ISIS, Wallstrom pointed at Israel when she said, “Clearly we have a reason to be worried not only here in Sweden but around the world because there are so many who are being radicalized.  

Putin offers European Jews refuge in Russia
As anti-Semitic attacks increase throughout Europe, Russian president Vladimir Putin has invited European Jews to immigrate to Russia. Putin made the offer on Tuesday in a meeting with members of the European Jewish Congress (EJC) that took place in the Kremlin.  

China tells Taiwan to abandon independence 'hallucination' after vote
Taiwan should abandon its “hallucinations” about pushing for independence, as any moves towards it would be a “poison”, Chinese state-run media said... Tsai Ing-wen and her Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) won a convincing victory in both presidential and parliamentary elections on Saturday, in what could usher in a new round of instability with China, which claims self-ruled Taiwan as its own.  

Kuwait Air Ends New York City Flights Rather Than Carry Israelis
After Kuwait Air was ordered by the US Department of Transportation to cease “unlawful discrimination,” regarding their refusal to carry Israeli passengers -- the carrier doubled down and ended the flight route entirely. ...Kuwait Air announced that they will cease passenger service from New York JFK airport to London Heathrow by January 18, and as of the 19th the route is no longer an option on their website.  

Federal deficit to soar in 2016 after Ryan-Obama tax deal
The tax-cut deal inked by President Obama and House Speaker Paul D. Ryan last month has put a major dent in the federal budget, helping send the deficit soaring by 24 percent... The $544 billion deficit projected for 2016 marks the first year since 2009 that the red ink has grown, and it powers the deficit back up over the half-trillion mark, where it had been for most of Mr. Obama’s tenure.  

Barack Obama's migrant plan taken up by US Supreme Court
The US Supreme Court has said it will consider a challenge to one of President Barack Obama's key immigration reform plans. The plan would lift the threat of deportation from five million migrants living illegally in the US. A coalition of 26 mostly conservative states, led by Texas, has been successful in lower court challenges.  

Pakistan Taliban kill at least 19 as they storm university
Islamist Taliban militants stormed a university in volatile northwestern Pakistan on Wednesday, killing at least 19 people and wounding dozens as the army hunted for any gunmen still holed up on the campus, officials said. A security official said the death toll could rise to as high as 40 as army commandos cleared out student hostels and classrooms.  

'WORSE THAN 2007': Top banker warns of looming wave of worldwide bankruptcies
The world’s financial system has become dangerously unstable and faces an avalanche of bankruptcies that will test social and political stability, according to a leading global banker.  

50 percent pay cut: a tough break for ISIS fighters
Violent jihad, it turns out, is a rough business. According to documents leaked from inside the Islamic State (IS) group, all IS fighters have reportedly had their salaries cut by half.  

In besieged Syrian city, hungry residents sell gold for food
In Syria’s eastern city of Deir el-Zour, supplies are running so short that desperate residents are selling their gold, valuables and even their homes for food or an exit permit allowing them to escape a siege by both government troops and Islamic State militants.  

IS Acknowledges Death of 'Jihadi John' in Magazine
The Islamic State group has acknowledged the death of the masked militant known as "Jihadi John," who appeared in several videos depicting the beheadings of Western hostages, in an article in its online English-language magazine Dabiq.  

Here’s the Bomb the US Hopes It Never Has to Use Against Iran
The good news: Iran seems to be living up to its end of the treaty with six other nations that requires a halt to Iran’s uranium enrichment and processing activities. In short—they can’t make nuclear weapons. The bad news: Last December, Iran launched the second ballistic missile test in violation of its nuclear arms agreement. The missiles are housed in an underground storage bunker 1,640 feet underground.  

A 'gay lobby' at the Vatican? One cardinal says it's real, and Pope Francis is responding
The influential Cardinal Oscar Maradiaga has acknowledged the presence of a “gay lobby” in the Vatican. In a new interview, he says that Pope Francis has adopted a gradual approach to address it – and that Catholic teaching won’t change.  

France might not have any Jews in the future – and here's why
An increasingly violent wave of anti-Semitic words and acts in France threatens the very existence of Jewish communities there, one human rights advocacy group warned in a new report. The attacks are “a harbinger of societal breakdown,” said Susan Corke of Human Rights First. “Left unchecked, antisemitism leads to the persecution of other minorities, and to an overall increase in repression and intolerance.”  

Humans as we know them to be GONE by 2100 and replaced by ALIEN children
Seth Shostak, a senior astronomer, said this may be the last century humans as we know them dominate the earth. Desinger babies and artificial intelligence (AI) will lead to a new dominant species, he said.  

January 19, 2016

MONSTER ERUPTIONS: Panic as two of world's deadliest volcanoes EXPLODE simultaneously
More than 1,200 people have been evacuated from within a 1.9-mile containment zone around Mount Egon in Kupang, eastern Indonesia - one of the most volcanic parts of the globe. It was followed moments later by the eruption of Zhupanovsky on Russia's eastern coast which spewed lava FIVE MILES into the air. 
62 Members Of The Elite Have As Much Money As The Poorest 3.6 Billion People On The Entire Planet

These brand new numbers come from a shocking report that was just put out by Oxfam, and they show that income inequality continues to grow at a very rapid pace all over the world. As you will see below, the total wealth of the poorest half of the global population has plunged by 41 percent since 2010 while the wealth of the elite has continued to surge upward. The debt-based financial system that now has the entire planet in its grip funnels wealth to the very top, and the global elite are more than happy to hoard as much of it as they possibly can. 
Global stocks rise as slowing China growth boosts stimulus prospects

Shares in Europe and Asia rose on Tuesday and the dollar gained after data showing China's economy grew last year at its slowest pace in a quarter of a century led investors to anticipate more efforts by Beijing to spur growth. Wall Street, closed on Monday for the Martin Luther King Day holiday, looked set to open higher, with index futures up 1.6 percent.  

Swedish Foreign Minister under investigation for bribery
Outspokenly anti-Israel Foreign Minister, Margot Wallstrom, under investigation for illegally circumventing years-long housing wait list.  

Magnitude 5.7 earthquake rattles southeastern Taiwan
Taipei, Jan. 19 (CNA) An earthquake measuring 5.7 on the Richter Scale jolted southeastern Taiwan's Taitung County at 10:13 a.m. Tuesday, according to the Central Weather Bureau.  

Moderate quake jolts North Maluku
An earthquake measuring 5.1 on the Richter scale jolted the eastern Indonesian province of North Maluku at 4.21 a.m. East Indonesia Standard Time (WIT) on Tuesday.  

California Shuts Down Commercial Crab Season "Indefinitely" Cites "naturally-occurring toxin" but real culprit is Radiation
California officials have offered the following absurd reason to the public for this action: Global warming has heated the ocean to the point that a particular algae, Pseudo-Nitzchia, is blooming in great swaths along California's coast. The algae produces a neurotoxin called domoic acid which accumulates in crab and other seafood. If consumed by humans the neurotoxin can cause memory loss, tremors or death.  

Iran's Khamenei welcomes sanctions lift, warns of U.S. 'deceit'
Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei on Tuesday welcomed the lifting of international sanctions against Iran, but warned that Tehran should remain wary of its old enemy the United States. State television reported that Khamenei wrote to President Hassan Rouhani to congratulate him on implementing the nuclear deal, which resulted in U.S., European Union and United Nations sanctions being lifted over the weekend.  

Hebron has become 'terror central'
The brutal attack Sunday in Otniel symbolizes two important points regarding the current wave of terrorism: an escalation in the severity of attacks and the fact that Hebron has become the "terror center" of this wave. The first point is the escalation of the severity of the attacks and the transition from stabbings at intersections and on roads...which is more focused and much more deadly.  

Lyme disease–carrying ticks are now in half of all U.S. counties
The ticks that transmit Lyme disease, a debilitating flulike illness caused by Borrelia bacteria, are spreading rapidly across the United States...Over the past 20 years, the two species ...have together advanced into half of all the counties in the United States. Lyme disease cases have tripled in the United States over the last 2 decades, making it the most commonly reported vector-borne disease in the Northern Hemisphere.  

STARTING WEDNESDAY: Mercury, Venus, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn to align in night sky
Get ready for a spectacular sight in our skies this week. For the first time since 2005, the planets Mercury, Venus, Mars, Jupiter and Saturn will all be visible at the same time. According to EarthSky.org , the 5 planets will be visible just before dawn starting Wednesday, January 20, 2016.  

Dissolvable brain implant the size of a grain of rice invented by scientists
A surgical implant no bigger than a grain of rice which measures a patient’s temperature and blood pressure for several days before dissolving harmlessly in body fluids has been invented by scientists. The biodegradable device could be implanted into the brain or other vital organs to monitor a patient’s medical recovery without the need...to remove the implant once its job is done, the researchers said.  

Big banks brace for oil loans to implode
Firms on Wall Street helped bankroll America's energy boom, financing very expensive drilling projects that ended up flooding the world with oil. Now that the oil glut has caused prices to crash below $30 a barrel...Dozens of oil companies have gone bankrupt and the ones that haven't are feeling enough financial stress to slash spending and cut tens of thousands of jobs.  

Syrian opposition faction: Russia is bombing civilians, not ISIS
A prominent Syrian opposition faction is challenging Russia’s claims that a well-documented air strike it carried out in Syria targeted ISIS positions, claiming instead that the attack targeted civilians unconnected to the terrorist group. New video released by the media institution of Ahrar al-Sham, one of the largest Syrian opposition groups, presents ostensible evidence of the Russian bombardment of Syrian civilians.  

Islamic Professor Muslims Can Rape Non-Muslim Women
Here's an important thing to understand; this woman is a moderate. And I'm not saying that sarcastically. In Islamic terms, her position is a moderate one. She's specifically staking out a position against concubinage and slavery within Muslim society.  

China economic growth slowest in 25 years
China's economy grew by 6.9% in 2015, compared with 7.3% a year earlier, marking its slowest growth in a quarter of a century. Beijing had set an official growth target of "about 7%" for the world's second-largest economy.  

Germany: 1st suspect held over Cologne sex assaults
A 26-year-old Algerian man has become the first person arrested in connection with a string of sexual assault during New Year's celebrations in Cologne that sparked a debate about Germany's ability to integrate migrants.  

Desertions deplete Afghan forces, adding to security worries
Afghan Lieutenant Amanullah said he was ready to fight to the death to stop the Taliban making gains across the south of the country, where insurgents have already overrun a series of districts in their traditional heartland.  

Jail to jihad: Indonesian prisons a breeding ground for militancy
Afif was an inmate in a high-security Indonesian jail when he transformed from aspiring radical Islamist to soldier for Islamic State, ready to sacrifice his life for a group based thousands of miles away in the Middle East.  

Half of U.S. Fracking Industry Could Go Bankrupt as Oil Prices Continue to Fall
So the slide continues with no end in sight. As expected this morning, the oil price has fallen below $28 a barrel on the back of the historic news over the weekend of sanctions being lifted on Iran. This is the lowest level for oil since 2003.  

US West Coast Earthquake Warning as Cascadia Subduction Zone Surges
An ocean data buoy is alerting to an “event” in the Cascadia Subduction Zone off the west coast of Oregon. This is where a magnitude 9 earthquake hit in 1700. According to the data buoy, the water column height (depth) fell sharply within minutes off the coast of Oregon, signaling the land beneath the ocean has suddenly “sunk.”  

Magnitude-6 quake strikes south of Fiji
A strong earthquake struck off the southern coast of Fiji this morning, but there are no reports of damage.  

January 18, 2016

More than 50 earthquakes rock Italy's Molise in five days
The region of Molise, in south-central Italy, has been hit by more than 50 small earthquakes over the last five days, causing panic and misery for inhabitants in around its capital, Campobasso.  

Welcome to the Banana Republic... With a wave of his wand, Obama defies the law
In case you were just enjoying the weekend with your family and not listening to the news, the world changed over the past 48 hours. The United States has now officially become a Banana Republic.  

0.0% of Icelanders 25 years or younger believe God created the world, new poll reveals
Iceland seems to be on its way to becoming an even more secular nation, according to a new poll. Less than half of Icelanders claim they are religious and more than 40% of young Icelanders identify as atheist. Remarkably the poll failed to find young Icelanders who accept the creation story of the Bible. 93.9% of Icelanders younger than 25 believed the world was created in the big bang, 6.1% either had no opinion or thought it had come into existence through some other means and 0.0% believed it had been created by God.  

“The Days of Ishmael Ruling in the Land of Israel Are Over,” Proclaims Rabbi Baruch Abuhatzeira
It is finished and from today on, the years in which Ishmael (the Arabs) rule over the Jews are finished,” he stated. “There are signs the Messiah is imminent.” Beseeching God, Rabbi Baruch called out, “Enough already! The nation of Israel can no longer bear it. Everything that is happening today, in Israel and all over the world, may the evil ones be cursed, it is spoken about in Kabala.”  

Five places where Pope Francis’ political lightning might strike next
What we’re looking for are places where the stars seem aligned in such a way that a nudge from Francis, at the right moment, could mean the difference between real change and a return to the status quo.  

Prime Minister Netanyahu: “We Will Not Allow Iran To Have Nuclear Weapons”
“Pursuant to the nuclear agreement with Iran, Israel will continue to monitor all international violations by Iran including the nuclear deal, the agreement on ballistic missiles and terrorism,” said Israel’s Prime Minister. “Israel’s policy was and continues to remain exactly as it was, not to allow Iran to acquire nuclear weapons,” added Netanyahu.  

'Death list' and IRS ravaged 'women of Clinton'
Women in Clinton’s past were targeted by the IRS and reportedly found themselves on death lists. Clinton paramour Monica Lewinsky and Lewinsky confidante Linda Tripp – who secretly recorded phone conversations about the White House intern’s trysts with the president – found their names on those death lists.  

Pope visits Rome synagogue in sign of interfaith friendship
Pope Francis made his first visit to a synagogue as pope Sunday, greeting Rome's Jewish community in their house of worship as his two predecessors did in a show interfaith friendship at a time of religiously-inspired violence around the globe.  

New York Values? Video Shows Trump Supporting ‘Gays’ in Military, Partial Birth Abortion
In light of the controversy over Ted Cruz’ remarks during Thursday’s Republican presidential debate that Donald Trump espouses “New York values,” video has surfaced of Trump himself expressing how his New York upbringing influenced his support for open homosexuals in the military and partial birth abortion.  

Muslims ‘practically impossible’ to integrate into Europe - Czech president
Existing ghettos and the recent sexual harassment scandals involving Muslim migrants in European cities are evidence the integration of the Muslim community into Europe is next to impossible, Czech President Milos Zeman said in an interview on Sunday.  

Mega sandstorm brings with it suffocating air pollution
The massive sandstorm due for Monday has already caused air contamination levels in the coastal region and south to spike, as dust particulates clog up the airways.  

CHANCE OF STORMS
On Jan. 15th, a magnetic filament in the sun's southern hemisphere exploded. Debris from the blast formed a CME that could sideswipe Earth's magnetic on Jan. 18-19. NOAA forecasters say there is a 45% chance of minor geomagnetic storms when the storm cloud arrives.  

Officials: Earthquake widely felt in Anchorage area
Officials say a moderate earthquake was widely felt as it rumbled beneath the Anchorage area, but there were no immediate reports of damage. The Alaska Earthquake Center says the magnitude-4.8 temblor struck at 7:05 p.m. Sunday and was centered about 70 miles northwest of Anchorage.  

Modern Day "Pastors" Or False Teachers Of The Last Days?
While their statements about there always being some people who fit the warnings are true, we are now seeing so-called pastors who are openly touting their beliefs that Peter called "damnable heresies."  

Podcast: Why Israel's new gas prospect is a bombshell
For over a year there's been a very loud political conversation in Israel on how to regulate its two large natural gas reserves, Tamar and Leviathan. On Sunday, Israelis awoke to the prospect that a third reserve, Daniel, would enter the mix. ...Energy and environment reporter Sharon Udasin explains what the new prospect could mean for Israel's gas market and how it will affect the controversial gas outline.  

Iran says new US sanctions illegitimate, citing 'war crimes' against Palestinians
Iran on Monday said new US curbs on the Islamic Republic's ballistic missile program were illegitimate, vowing to continue developing its conventional military deterrent. The United States imposed sanctions on 11 companies and individuals on Sunday for supplying Iran's ballistic missile program in a move delayed by over two weeks so as not to endanger this weekend's release of US prisoners.  

ISIS cuts fighters' salary in half amid financial hardship
A new document released in December by Bayt al-Mal, the Treasury Ministry of ISIS, in Raqqa, reveals that ISIS has decided to cut the salaries of all its fighters in half due to the "exceptional circumstances" ISIS has been witnessing. The "exceptional circumstances" ISIS has been witnessing were not detailed in the document...  

'Death to heathen Christians' scrawled on walls of Jerusalem's Dormition Abbey
The Israeli police have opened an investigation into a graffiti attack on the Dormition Abbey in Jerusalem, where messages scrawled on the walls by vandals called for the death of Christians.  

Iran sanctions: Middle East stock crash wipes £27bn off markets as Tehran enters oil war
Stock markets across the Middle East saw more than £27bn wiped off their value as the lifting of economic sanctions against Iran threatened to unleash a fresh wave of oil onto global markets that are already drowning in excess supply.  

Suicide bomber kills 13 in attack on prominent Afghan family
A suicide bomber targeting a gathering in a volatile eastern province of Afghanistan killed 13 people, including seven members of a prominent pro-government clan, Afghan officials said.  

Four die in violence in Turkey's mainly Kurdish southeast
A Turkish police officer and a soldier were killed by sniper fire and two Kurdish militants were shot dead in separate incidents in the mainly Kurdish southeast's biggest city, security sources said on Sunday.  

U.S. working to locate Americans reported missing in Iraq
The U.S. government is aware of reports that three U.S. citizens have gone missing in Iraq and is working with Iraqi authorities to find them, a U.S. State Department official said on Sunday.  

San Jose Shakes to 4.7 Earthquake
according to OVSICORI-UNA, the epicenter was located 11.6 km southwest of the Cerro de la Muerte in San Isidro De El General. This is near Los Quetzales National Park in the southwestern part of the country. The earthquake’s depth has been listed at 13 km.  

5.5 magnitude earthquake jolts Indonesia
Eight people were hurt and about 120 houses damaged when a 5.5-magnitude earthquake shook remote eastern Indonesia on Sunday, a government official said.  

3.0 earthquake reported in West Va.
A 3.0 earthquake on the West Virginia and Virginia border rattled some homes and nerves of those in the area Sunday evening, according to Quake Reports. The earthquake occurred about two miles from Bolivar, West Virginia.  

January 17, 2016

Canada's high court gives green light to assisted suicide
The Supreme Court of Canada decided on Friday to allow doctor-assisted suicide across the country under certain circumstances, while giving the government more time to pass a law governing the practice.  

After Iran Nuclear Sanctions Lifted, US Issues Fresh Embargo Over Ballistic Missile Program
Obama spoke at the White House Sunday to laud the lifting of economic sanctions on Iran while vowing the U.S. would not sacrifice its own safety in the name of Iranian diplomacy. The president's followed Secretary of State John Kerry's announcement of new sanctions against 11 companies and individuals over a ballistic missile test in Iran.  

Saudi Stocks Plunge On Fresh Oil Worries After Lifting Of Iran Sanctions; Egypt Follows
Shares in Saudi Arabia fell more than 6 percent Sunday morning as investors reacted to the lifting of sanctions against Iran, fearing that the move may worsen the global oil glut as Iran looks to ramp up its crude oil exports. Global oil prices dropped below the $30 mark, settling at $29 per barrel Friday. Egypt's market also hit its lowest point in two years.  

New Ebola Death In Sierra Leone Leads To Quarantines Of More Than 100 People
Barely two months after the World Health Organization declared Sierra Leone to be Ebola-free, local officials on Sunday confirmed a new death caused by the disease, according to the Agence France-Presse. Officials also stated that 109 people, 28 of whom are considered to be at high risk for infection, had been quarantined in an attempt to prevent the disease’s further spread.  

Episcopal Church Suspended from Anglican Communion
The Anglican Communion voted to censure its American branch, the Episcopal Church, during a meeting in Canterbury, England, called to reflect on the future of the communion. The vote Thursday (Jan. 14) to suspend the Episcopal Church from voting and decision-making for a period of three years was leaked a day ahead of a press conference that had been scheduled for Friday.  

Massive sandstorm bearing down on Israel
Heavy haze nationwide, snow on Mt. Hermon, rain in the north, dust everywhere - citizens warned to close their windows as the storm nears.  

Iran Preparing For Armageddon? Islamic Republic Backs Shiites In Syria, Iraq, Afghanistan, Pakistan And Yemen
Maj. Gen. Mohammad Ali Jafari said recent violence across the region, including the rise of the Islamic State group, was a sign the arrival of the messianic Muslim leader was imminent, the Turkish newspaper Daily Sabah reported.  

Real World Economics: China's selloff of U.S. bonds affects us all
But there is not much we can do about it. Hope -- nay, pray -- that fear does not become panic, creating a true classic foreign exchange crisis for China this year. That is the last thing the global economy needs in 2016. But the probability of it happening is there.  

Flint, Michigan water contamination: Obama declares emergency
US President Barack Obama has declared a state of emergency in Flint, Michigan, where the water has become contaminated with lead. The city's water became contaminated after a change in supplier in 2014. Corrosive water leached lead from old pipes into the water supply. The emergency declaration will unlock $5m (£3.5m) in federal funding.  

Syria conflict: 'Hundreds' abducted in IS attack on Deir al-Zour
Islamic State militants in Syria are said to have abducted 400 civilians during a bloody assault on the eastern city of Deir al-Zour. The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, an opposition monitoring body, said people were taken from areas in the north-west of the city. The report from the London-based group could not be independently verified.  

Netanyahu hints at understanding with US about deterring Iranian threat
...“Israel's position was, and remains just as it was: not to allow Iran to get nuclear weapons,” Netanyahu stressed. He added that...Iran will now have more resources to turn to in its “terrorist and aggressive activities in the region and the world... Netanyahu noted that Israel is...in the midst of concluding a new 10-year Memorandum of Understanding with the US which will govern the level of US military aid to Israel over the next decade.  

Obama’s Middle East Policies Dictated by Phony Iran Deal
The Obama administration continues to capitulate to Iran’s demands in order to ensure that an unworkable, unsigned international agreement somehow restrains that regime’s quest for nuclear weapons. The media are also working overtime to make sure that Obama’s White House isn’t embarrassed by its repeated concessions to Iran.  

Fierce clashes as regime battles IS in Aleppo: monitor
Fierce fighting raged Saturday between regime forces backed by Russian air strikes and Islamic State group fighters in northern Aleppo province, a monitor said.  

Nuclear sanctions lifted as Iran, U.S. agree on prisoner swap
Iran emerged from years of economic isolation on Saturday when world powers began to lift crippling sanctions against the Islamic Republic in return for Tehran complying with a deal to curb its nuclear ambitions.  

The Terminator could become REAL: Intelligent AI robots capable of DESTROYING mankind
Dr Amnon Eden said more needs to be done to look at the risks of continuing towards an AI world. He warned that we were getting close to the point of no return in terms of AI, without a proper understanding of the consequences.  

The author of the book on which Michael Bay's new Benghazi movie is based stands by his depiction of a pivotal scene
"Stand down," says the actor playing the CIA station chief in Michael Bay's new film, "13 Hours: The Secret Soldiers of Benghazi." He's speaking to the security team that wants to go help Americans under siege less than a mile away in a U.S. diplomatic compound under fierce attack. His order keeps the team from leaving for a crucial 20 minutes, before they decide to ignore him and go anyway.  

Markets suffer their worst start to the year since Great Depression
The start of this year has been the worst for financial markets since the onset of the Great Depression, with stock prices slumping around the world amid mounting concern over the situation in China.  

Village suffers 'biblical' non stop rain for 81 DAYS and even the livestock are 'depressed'
Fed-up residents in a Welsh village are holding their breath for a day of dry weather after 81 days of consistent rainfall. People living in Eglwyswrw, Pembrokeshire, have experienced rainfall every day since October 26.