It is error alone which needs the support of government. Truth can stand by itself. -- Thomas Jefferson

Thursday, July 31, 2014

NEPAL Nepal, Christians alone rush to aid of flood victims - Asia News



The following excerpts are from AsiaNews.it:

Kathmandu (AsiaNews) - In less than 24 hours dozens of people have been killed and tens of thousands displaced by the floods that have hit Nepal. For the moment only the Church, its institutions and some NGOs are working to rescue the affected people. As every year, the population denounce, the government inaction has led to a lack of prevention and emergency measures.

Floods have swamped the western part of the country. The most affected districts include Doti, Mahakali, Kailali, Kanchanpur, Bardia, Dang, Banke, Siraha, Saptari and Nawalparasi, but 40 other districts reported a variety of problems.

Minister of Information and government spokesman, Minendra Rijal, said: "We are aware of the problem and we are trying to do our best with limited resources. The government is grateful that several organizations, Christian and non, are helping the affected population".

According to the Central Disaster Management Office at least 10 thousand homes were damaged, 100 thousand people have been displaced and hundreds more are in need of aid.

Pom Bahadur Pun, who has been displaced from Jajarkot, says: "We risk our lives but the government is not doing enough to save us. We lost everything, but we want to save our lives." At the same time, however, he adds, "we are very grateful for the help and prayers of the Christians".


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NEPAL Nepal, Christians alone rush to aid of flood victims - Asia News



Tuesday, July 29, 2014

Ground Zero cross can stay at 9/11 museum, appeals court rules - The Washington Post



The following excerpts are from The Washington Post:

NEW YORK — A cross-shaped beam from the wreckage of the World Trade Center can remain on display in the National Sept. 11 Memorial and Museum at Ground Zero, a three-judge panel of the 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruled, dismissing a lawsuit brought by atheists.

American Atheists filed a federal suit in 2012 claiming the 17-foot display at the museum built with a mix of public and private funds was unconstitutional. The group said its members suffered from both physical and emotional damages from the presence of the beamed cross, resulting in headaches, indigestion and mental pain.

The atheist group filed an appeal after a lower court dismissed the lawsuit, shifting the focus from the cross to asking for an added plaque that would say something like “atheists died, too.”

An observer would understand that the cross was also an inclusive symbol for any persons seeking hope and comfort in the aftermath of the 9/11 attacks, federal Judge Reena Raggi wrote in the court’s decision.

Such an observer would not understand the effect of displaying an artifact with such an inclusive past in a Museum devoted to the history of the September 11 attacks to be the divisive one of promoting religion over nonreligion,” she wrote. “Nor would he think the primary effect of displaying The Cross at Ground Zero to be conveying a message to atheists that they are somehow disfavored ‘outsiders,’ while religious believers are favored ‘insiders,’ in the political community.”


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Ground Zero cross can stay at 9/11 museum, appeals court rules - The Washington Post


Monday, July 28, 2014

European Court: Gay Marriage is not a Human Right



The following excerpts are from C-FAM (Catholic Family and Human Rights Institute)::

NEW YORK, July 25 (C-FAM) The highest human rights court in Europe shattered hopes that it would judicially impose same-sex marriage when it told a male to female transsexual and his wife that a civil union should be good enough for them.

European human rights law does not require countries to “grant access to marriage to same-sex couples,” according to a judgment of the European Court of Human Rights in a case that tests the remote boundaries of possibility in law and fact.

The parties to the litigation and supporters of same-sex marriage acknowledge the result was predictable. Nevertheless the judgment has a devastating effect on gay rights in Europe, dashing hopes that same-sex “marriage” can become a reality there. The facts of the case are distinctive.

Heli Hämäläinen of Finland had a sex change operation in 2009 to appear anatomically as a woman, despite having fathered a child with his wife of over 10 years in 2002. Before the operation, he tried to change his legal identity from male to female without success.

He sued before the European court when he was told that it would not be possible so long as he remained married, because Finland does not allow persons of the same sex to marry each other. Hämäläinen and his spouse insist that their religious beliefs prevent them from seeking a divorce and that civil unions do not give them the same benefits as marriage in Finnish law.

The European court was unequivocal. It not only said that European human rights law does not contemplate same-sex marriage, it said that civil unions are good enough for same-sex couples.

The court confirmed that the protection of the traditional institution of marriage is a valid state interest—implicitly endorsing the view that relations between persons of the same sex are not identical to marriage between a man and a woman, and may be treated differently in law.



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European Court: Gay Marriage is not a Human Right


Saturday, July 26, 2014

IRAQ - VATICAN Saddened by "the timidity of the civilised world," Baghdad patriarch's heart bleeding "for the innocent in Iraq, Syria and Gaza" - Asia News



The following excerpts are from AsiaNews.it:

Baghdad (AsiaNews) - With a heart bleeding "for the innocent who die or are driven from their homes," his thoughts turned to the "the situation in Iraq, Syria and Gaza" and full sadness for the timidity of the civilised world towards us" as well as the lack of action by the international community, Louis Sako, patriarch of Babylon of the Chaldeans (Baghdad) wrote to Card Philippe Barbarin, archbishop of Lyon (France). His message will be heard today during a march organised by the diocese in solidarity with Iraqi Christians, whose fate has become tragic after the invasion of north central Iraq by the Islamic Army, which set up an Islamic Caliphate in Mosul, and issued in recent days an edict calling on Christians either convert to Islam, pay the dhimmi tax or abandon everything and flee.

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IRAQ - VATICAN Saddened by "the timidity of the civilised world," Baghdad patriarch's heart bleeding "for the innocent in Iraq, Syria and Gaza" - Asia News



Tuesday, July 15, 2014

Kidnapped Assyrian Nuns Released

Sister Utoor Joseph (left) and Sister Miskintah, who were kidnapped June 28 in Mosul, have been released (photo: Ishtar TV).

The following excerpts are from AINA.org:

The Assyrian website ankawa.com is reporting that five Assyrians, including two nuns, have been released. Chaldean Patriarch Louis Sako said via telephone the victims are now in the city of Dohuk (Assyrian Noohadra) and in good health. No ransom was paid for their release.

The two Chaldean nuns from the Daughters of Mary Order, Sister Miskintah and Sister Utoor Joseph, as well as Hala Salim, Sarah Khoshaba and Aram Sabah were kidnapped on June 28.


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Kidnapped Assyrian Nuns Released



Monday, July 14, 2014

G.O.P. Animosity For Everything Conservative



The GOP seems intent on dismissing the Tea Party, and conservatives in general, as an embarrassment that is best gotten rid of by any means necessary, even to the point of utilizing dirty tricks such as those used by the Democrats for years.

Paying registered Democrats... many who had already voted in the Democratic primary in Mississippi...to illegally vote again in the Republican primary... is just one example of the GOP's determination to become...as some have called it...Democratic Party #2.

Why did the GOP lose the last two elections to President Barack Obama? Because either they were determined to rid themselves of the conservative "embarrassment" and play to the independents, the undecideds, or they just took the conservatives.... both those in the party and those conservative independents... votes for granted.

What they did accomplish, was to alienate the conservatives altogether, and lost elections that could and would have turned out differently, if they had given us a viable conservative candidate, instead of giving us two wishy-washy flip floppers who gave lip service to whatever group they were in front of at any particular time.

Thus, the GOP by its actions caused conservative voters to either stay home or vote third party. The GOP has apparently not learned anything.

So, GOP take note. The wishy washy candidates you love are not what the voters want. Period. And don't try thinking you can appease us by having every two bit flip flopper you have telling us they are the "conservative choice". Stop thinking we are dumb, and that we are just a bunch of sheep that can be led by someone proclaiming themselves "conservative". We know who the real conservatives are...and are not.


What you, the GOP, fails to understand....or chooses to ignore....is that we conservatives are informed. We know what is going on better than you seem to understand, and apparently, we are more informed and concerned about the direction of this nation than you are because we are living it. Every day.



Saddam's Deputy: Baghdad Will Soon Be Liberated

Izzat Ibrahim al-Douri, who was Iraq's vice-president when U.S.-led coalition forces invaded in 2003 (photo: Reuters).

The following excerpts are from AINA.org:

The fugitive former powerful deputy of Iraq's executed President Saddam Hussein has released an audio recording urging all Iraqis to join efforts to "liberate" the country and praised Sunni militants who led last month's dramatic offensive through northern Iraq.

The recording features a 15-minute speech in a raspy voice purported to be that of 72-year-old Izzat Ibrahim al-Douri, who was Iraq's vice-president when U.S.-led coalition forces invaded in 2003.

The recording, which could not be immediately confirmed to be that of al-Douri, was released on a website loyal to Saddam's ousted Baath Party.


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Wednesday, July 9, 2014

Chaldean Bishop of Aleppo: City Living in Hope and Fear



The following excerpts are from AINA.org:

The Chaldean bishop of Syria's second largest city Aleppo says residents are living with a mixture of hope and fear as government forces look poised to recapture rebel-held areas.

Bishop Antoine Audo SJ, told Fides News Agency July 8 that in recent days, fewer rocket attacks could point to an offensive by the Syrian army.

"This may suggest the calm before the storm," he said. "Everyone says that, when it happens, the battle in Aleppo will be the 'final battle'. But we do not know yet what it will mean for us all. There is widespread expectation of a release, there is the hope of being freed from the war of position which has divided the city for almost two years. But there is also the fear that all areas are appalled by the bombing, or reprisals carried out by the rebels. Or even the fear of ending up like in Mosul.

"Everyone senses, albeit vaguely, that what is happening here is not a local issue, but it is conditioned by regional and global power clashes," he said.

Bishop Audo's comments come amid growing rumors that in the areas of Aleppo under government control, elite military teams seem to have already arrived, accompanied by Hezbollah militiamen, the Lebanese Shiite party.

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Chaldean Bishop of Aleppo: City Living in Hope and Fear



Democrats File Bill to Overturn Supreme Court Decision Protecting Hobby Lobby | LifeNews.com


The following excerpts are from LifeNews.com:


  • As promised, Senate Democrats filed legislation today to “overturn” the Supreme Court’s decision protecting Hobby Lobby and other companies from being forced to comply with the HHS mandate that compels them to pay for abortion-causing drugs for their employees.
  • The Supreme Court ruled that the Christian-run Hobby Lobby doesn’t have to obey the HHS mandate that is a part of Obamacare. The high court issued a favorable ruling in Sebelius v. Hobby Lobby Stores, Inc., a landmark case addressing the Constitutionally guaranteed rights of business owners to operate their family companies without violating their deeply held religious convictions.
  • Now, Senate Democrats want to change the Religious Freedom and Restoration Act in a way that would force companies to pay for birth control, contraception and those abortion-causing drugs.
  • Senators Mark Udall (D-Colo.) and Patty Murray (D-Wash.), both abortion advocates, are behind the new legislation and they said, “The Protect Women’s Health from Corporate Interference Act would ban employers from refusing to provide health coverage — including contraceptive coverage — guaranteed to their employees and dependents under federal law.”
  • “After five justices decided last week that an employer’s personal views can interfere with women’s access to essential health services, we in Congress need to act quickly to right this wrong,” Murray said. “This bicameral legislation will ensure that no CEO or corporation can come between people and their guaranteed access to health care, period. I hope Republicans will join us to revoke this court-issued license to discriminate and return the right of Americans to make their own decisions, about their own health care and their own bodies.”
  • Not one Senate Republican has signed on to the legislation, which pro-life groups will undoubtedly strenuously oppose. House Republicans will not take up the bill, making it so the legislation will not reach President Barack Obama, an abortion advocate who would sign it into law.

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Democrats File Bill to Overturn Supreme Court Decision Protecting Hobby Lobby | LifeNews.com



Wednesday, July 2, 2014

5 Assyrians, Including Two Nuns, Missing in Mosul

Sister Utoor Joseph (left) and Sister Miskintah, who disappeared on late Saturday, June 28 in Mosul (photo: Ishtar TV).

The following excerpts are from AINA.org:

  • The Assyrian television channel Ishtar TV is reporting that 5 Assyrians have gone missing in Mosul. Two Chaldean nuns from the Daughters of Mary Order, Sister Miskintah and Sister Utoor Joseph, as well as Hala Salim, Sarah Khoshaba and Aram Sabah have not been heard from for nearly two days.
  • Sisters Miskintah and Utoor managed an orphanage for girls in Mosul, in the Khazraj neighborhood near Miskintah Church. After Mosul fell to ISIS, the two nuns brought the orphaned girls to the city of Dohuk for safety. The Nuns returned late Saturday to Mosul, accompanied by Hala, Sarah and Aram, to inspect the monastery but there has been no contact with them nor any trace of their whereabouts since then.
  • It is believed they have been kidnapped by Muslims.
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UN Officials Voice Concern About Iraq Humanitarian Situation, Abuse of Women, Girls

[Steve says: Why are all you feminists who scream about the non-existent "War On Women" in the United States, so deafeningly silent over real violence against women in Iraq? Just doesn't fit your agenda, does it?]

An Iraqi woman from Mosul holds her daughter in one hand and empty water containers in the other. Two other children follow her in search of water near the Garmava temporary camp in central Iraq (photo: UNHCR/S. Baldwin).

The following excerpts are from AINA.org:

  • Amid reports of deliberate targeting of women and girls in Iraq, senior United Nations officials today voiced deep concern about the deteriorating humanitarian and security situations in the country, where more than 1.2 million people have fled their homes in fear for their lives.
  • "As the security situation continues to worsen, I am extremely worried about the families urgently in need of water, food, shelter, healthcare, sanitation and protection from violence," said Valerie Amos, Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs and UN Emergency Relief Coordinator.
  • That includes targeting of women and children, who have reportedly been kidnapped, raped and forcibly married to militants of the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL/ISIS) and other armed groups.
  • Phumzile Mlambo-Ngcuka, Executive Director of UN Women, expressed deep concern yesterday following the reported suicides of some women who had been raped, and of men who had been forced to watch the rape of their wives and daughters.
  • "UN Women strongly condemns sexual and gender-based violence, and calls on all parties to address such reports and protect the rights of Iraqi women and girls," she said.

Read more by clicking below:
UN Officials Voice Concern About Iraq Humanitarian Situation, Abuse of Women, Girls



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