Watchman Newsletter

Two rockets fired from Lebanon towards Israel

Yahoo! News (Link) - Hussein Dakroub (February 21, 2009)

Two rockets were fired from southern Lebanon toward northern Israel Saturday, triggering an Israeli response and raising fears of renewed hostilities on the tense border. Lebanese leaders rushed to condemn the rocket attack and vowed not to allow southern Lebanon to become a launch pad for attacks against the Jewish state.

The brief cross-border exchange was the third this year. Israel and the militant group Hezbollah fought a brutal 34-day war in the region in 2006. More than 1,200 people in Lebanon - most of them civilians - and 159 in Israel died in the conflict.

It was not immediately known who fired the two rockets Saturday, and no group accepted responsibility.

Israel critic reportedly named to top intel post

JTA (Link) (February 20, 2009)

A former ambassador to Saudi Arabia with a history as a critic of Israel reportedly will be named to a top intelligence post in the Obama administration.

ForeignPolicy.com reported Thursday that Chas W. Freeman Jr., who served as U.S. ambassador to the Saudi kingdom from 1989-1992 and is currently the president of the Middle East Policy Council, will be the chairman of the National Intelligence Council, which plays the leading role in producing national intelligence estimates. The publication reported Freeman has told associates that in the role, he would occasionally accompany director of national intelligence Adm. Dennis Blair to give the president his daily intelligence briefing.

In 2005 remarks to the National Council on U.S.-Arab Relations, Freeman said that "as long as the United States continues unconditionally to provide the subsidies and political protection that make the Israeli occupation and the high-handed and self-defeating policies it engenders possible, there is little, if any, reason to hope that anything resembling the former peace process can be resurrected. Israeli occupation and settlement of Arab lands is inherently violent."

Big Pharma Quietly Hikes Drug Prices 100 Percent or More

Natural News (Link) (February 20, 2009)

Without any fanfare, pharmaceutical companies have been raising the prices of many of their drugs by 100 percent or more, according to a study conducted by researchers from the University of Minnesota.

The researchers investigated cases in which drugs had their prices increased by 100 percent or more in a single cost adjustment, finding that drug companies had done so for 26 products in 2006. Questcor Pharmaceuticals, for example, increased the price of its drug Acthar (used to treat spasms in infants) by 1,424 percent, from $1,650 per vial to a whopping $23,000.

The practice seems to be getting more common. In 2004, only 15 drugs had their prices so drastically increased. By only the first half of 2008, however, already the prices of 17 drugs had at least doubled.

"There's no simple explanation," said Stephen Schondelmeyer of the University of Minnesota. "Some companies seem to figure no one is watching so they can get away with it."

Latvian government falls

EU Observer (Link) (February 20, 2009)

The Latvian prime minister and his government have resigned amid growing political and economic strife in the Baltic country. Prime Minister Ivars Godmanis submitted his resignation to the president, Valdis Zatlers, on Friday (20 February) afternoon after the two largest parties in the ruling four-party coalition demanded he step down.

Earlier in the day, Mareks Seglins, the head of the People Party, which held the most seats in the coalition, said that his party and the Union of Greens and Farmers asked him to go.

President Zatlers has said he is to immediately start talks with all parties on the formation of a new government.

Poll: Obama beats Jesus as American 'hero'

WorldNet Daily (Link) - Chelsea Schilling (February 20, 2009)

When Americans were asked whom they admired enough to call their No. 1 hero, the majority of respondents answered "President Obama." In the new online Harris poll, citizens chose Jesus Christ as No. 2, followed by Martin Luther King.

Others in the top ten, in descending order, were Ronald Reagan, George W. Bush, Abraham Lincoln, John McCain, John F. Kennedy, Chesley Sullenberger and Mother Teresa, according to Harris Interactive.

Binyamin Netanyahu targets Iran after he is appointed Prime Minister

Times Online (Link) (February 20, 2009)

Binyamin Netanyahu described Iran as the greatest threat that Israel has ever faced and failed to mention stalled talks with the Palestinians after he was asked to be the country's new Prime Minister today. In a speech made outside the residence of President Shimon Peres, the Likud leader said that protecting Israel would be his greatest responsibility as leader, and condemned "formidable" challenges posed by the Islamic Republic.

However, he did not once mention the stalled Israeli-Palestinian peace process or a two-state solution throughout his address, omissions that will cause concern within an Obama administration determined to advance the peace process.

The Likud leader held a brief press conference alongside President Peres after he was appointed to form a coalition government, despite only finishing a close second in Israel's election. "Iran is seeking to obtain a nuclear weapon and constitutes the gravest threat to our existence since the war of independence," Mr Netanyahu said.

Referring to the Iranian-backed Hezbollah movement in south Lebanon, Mr Netanyahu said: "The terrorist forces of Iran threaten us from the north. For decades, Israel has not faced such formidable challenges. "The responsibility we face is to achieve security for our country, peace with our neighbours and unity among us."

Drought to cut off federal water to California farms

My Way News (Link) - AP (February 20, 2009)

Federal water managers said Friday that they plan to cut off water, at least temporarily, to thousands of California farms as a result of the deepening drought gripping the state. U.S. Bureau of Reclamation officials said parched reservoirs and patchy rainfall this year were forcing them to completely stop surface water deliveries for at least a two-week period beginning March 1. Authorities said they haven't had to take such a drastic move for more than 15 years.

The situation could improve slightly if more rain falls over the next few weeks, and officials will know by mid-March if they can release more irrigation supplies to growers.

Farmers in the nation's No. 1 agriculture state predicted it would cause consumers to pay more for their fruits and vegetables, which would have to be grown using expensive well water. "Water is our life - it's our jobs and it's our food," said Ryan Jacobsen, executive director of the farm bureau in Fresno County. "Without a reliable water supply, Fresno County's No. 1 employer - agriculture - is at great risk."

Glenn Beck: Be Prepared

Glenn Beck (Link) (February 20, 2009)

If you believe this country was founded on divine providence — like our founders did — you believe that freedom was important enough that God got involved personally. That's why this country was set up in a very specific way. Our rights and liberties come to us from God and we lend them to the government. Washington currently seems to have a different spin on that: government is god.

But, if you believe in the founders' ideals, it makes sense that God would give us an early warning system. That's your gut — don't dismiss it.

Whether it's Washington or the media, people aren't necessarily telling you the truth, because it's a hard truth. Some don't tell you because there are financial ramifications or others just honestly don't believe these things are possible. But they are possible.

Magnitude-6.9 Earthquake Strikes North of New Zealand

Bloomberg (Link) (February 19, 2009)

A magnitude-6.9 earthquake struck in the vicinity of the Kermadec Islands north of New Zealand at 9:53 a.m. local time, the U.S. Geological Survey said. There were no immediate reports of a tsunami after a warning was issued. The temblor hit today at a depth of 25 kilometers (16 miles) about 250 kilometers northeast of Raoul Island in the Kermadec group, the USGS said. The epicenter was 1,335 kilometers northeast of Auckland.

There was no threat of a large-scale tsunami swamping coastlines around the Pacific, though a surge was possible within 100 kilometers of the quake, according to the Pacific Tsunami Warning Center. There were no reports of casualties or damage. It was the third quake of magnitude-6 or higher to hit the region since December, according to the USGS.

The Kermadec Islands are part of New Zealand’s biggest marine reserve and are uninhabited except for employees of the Department of Conservation who run a weather station there, according to the department’s Web site. The weather station is located on Raoul, the northernmost of the chain.

The islands lie in an area where the Pacific and the Indo- Australian Plates meet. These tectonic plates are constantly shifting, sometimes causing earthquakes that can spark tsunamis. Magnitude-5 or stronger quakes can be destructive depending on their depth.

Livni: Kadima won't join Likud-led gov't

The Jerusalem Post (Link) (February 19, 2009)

Hours before President Shimon Peres was expected to complete his consultations with party representatives and decide who to task with forming the next government, and after Israel Beiteinu chairman Avigdor Lieberman said his party would back Likud leader Binyamin Netanyahu, Kadima leader Tzipi Livni said that her party would not sit in a Likud-led government.

"Today, the foundations of a right-wing extremist government under Likud leader Binyamin Netanyahu were set," Livni wrote in a cellular phone text message sent to Kadima members after she had met with party MKs. "Such a government is not our path and we have nothing to look for there."

"They didn't vote for us in order to provide authorization for a right-wing government and we need to provide an alternative of hope from the opposition," Livni continued. "Kadima will continue to fight for its beliefs and its path - an agenda based on two states for two peoples, and one that also includes dealing with vital civilian issues."

Like Livni, Labor chairman Ehud Barak said earlier Thursday that his party was heading for the opposition. Nevertheless, Netanyhau said he would still appeal to the two in a bid to try and form a unity government, and Peres was due to invite the Likud and Kadima leaders to meet with him in person on Friday.

Czech president questions "ever closer" EU political integration

China View (Link) (February 19, 2009)

Czech President Vaclav Klaus, whose country holds the rotating EU presidency, said on Thursday that the attempts to speed up and deepen EU integration could endanger all the positive things achieve in Europe in the last 50 years.

In a speech at a plenary session of the European Parliament in Brussels, Klaus said that the situation must not be allowed "where the citizens of Member countries would live their lives with a resigned feeling that the EU is not their own, that it is developing differently than they would wish, that they are only forced to accept it".

He also questioned whether decision-making at the EU headquarters was always the best way to achieve the goals of EU integration. "Are you really convinced that every time you take a vote, you are deciding something that must be decided here in this Chamber and not closer to the citizens, i.e. inside the individual European states?" he asked the members of the EP.

Czech Republic: Scorn for the European Union

The New York Times (Link) - Steven Erlanger (February 19, 2009)

President Vaclav Klaus, a well-known skeptic about grand ideas for the European Union, on Thursday indirectly compared the union to the former Soviet Union, saying that there was a similar uniformity of thought. There is an “uncriticizable assumption that there is only one possible and correct future of the European integration,” he told the European Parliament in Brussels. “Those who dare thinking about a different option are labeled enemies.” He said that people in Eastern Europe had “lived in a political system that permitted no alternatives” and that “with no opposition, there is no freedom.” He declined to say whether he would sign the Lisbon Treaty, which would create a permanent European president and foreign minister.

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See also: Czech president questions "ever closer" EU political integration

The Hijacking of America

321 Gold (Link) (February 19, 2009)

Watching the perverted circus of corrupt politicians and administrators in Washington and New York the last six months is enough to make anyone with a brain want to shout a primal scream of disgust and anger. I use the word "brain" because it is becoming increasingly apparent that many Americans unfortunately are no longer using the gray matter that exists between their ears with regards to what is going on in our country. The rapidly accelerating chain of events moving us faster and faster towards economic oblivion is beyond shocking. It is happening much quicker than I anticipated.

The numbers these stooges in Washington and New York are throwing around for the bailouts and economic stimulus package are simply too big for the average person to comprehend. This is one of the reasons why they can get away with it, because they know the average citizen can't understand it. The old adage "if you can't convince them, then confuse them" comes to mind and the politicians certainly have become very adept at doing that lately. (But why we let them get away with this is another story in and of itself for another time).

At some point large numbers simply become figures on the page, well beyond human scale and intuitive understanding. And yet as discussion about the economy and the gargantuan numbers that come along with it continue to dominate the news, it may be more important than ever to try to understand what these numbers actually represent. The politician's figure as long as they can keep you in the dark, you won't demand any accountability from them. And accountability to a politician is what a heart attack means to your average 55 year old.

Analysis: Turkey's shift toward Iran, Syria is no short-term blip

The Jerusalem Post (Link) - Jonathan Spyer (February 19, 2009)

Last weekend, a conference held under the title "Gaza the victory" took place at hotel near Istanbul's Ataturk airport. The conference brought 200 Sunni clerics and activists together with senior, Damascus-based Hamas officials.

Closed meetings held after the main conference sessions focused on the creation of a "third jihadist front" against Israel - the first two being Iraq and Afghanistan, in the view of the conference delegates. The gathering was addressed by Muhammad Nazzal, a top Hamas official from Damascus.

In an echo of the attempts by Islamists across the Middle East to pressure Egypt during the recent Gaza operation, Nazzal called on regional governments to "open the borders and let the fighters through."

BofA and Citi shares fall on nationalization fear

Yahoo! News (Link) - Juan Lagorio (February 19, 2009)

Citigroup Inc shares fell to almost 18-year lows on Thursday, with Bank of America Corp stock also plunging, amid renewed fears that growing losses could lead to government control of troubled U.S. banks, wiping out shareholders.

In addition, insurance companies' stocks plummeted -- led by Hartford Financial Services Group -- as declining stock and bond market values added to concerns about weakening investment portfolios and capital positions. "When you talk about nationalization you hear the names Citi and Bank of America as the top two names burning out," said Walter Todd, a portfolio manager at Greenwood Capital Associates, which holds shares of Bank of America.

Wednesday in plenary: EU role in the Middle East, cooperation with NATO

European Parliament (Link) (February 19, 2009)

MEPs discussed foreign policy and the EU's relationship with NATO Wednesday afternoon in Brussels. Europe's foreign policy chief Javier Solana told MEPs about the problems in the Middle East and the EU's search for peace in the region. The House discussed the strengthening of EU-NATO relations following a subtle convergence of certain military projects.

EU, NATO, US: 21st Century Alliance For Global Domination

Global Research.ca (Link) - Rick Rozoff (February 19, 2009)

With France's reintegration into NATO's military command after a 33 year hiatus to be formalized at this year's Alliance summit in Strasbourg, which will also upgrade the 1999 Strategic Concept with increased emphasis on NATO-EU-US military integration, and with the EU intensifying the creation of a 60,000-troop rapid deployment force and its own and affiliated Nordic battlegroups for use around the world, the mutual relations obtaining among the three major centers of Western economic, political and military power - the EU, NATO and the US - require urgent examination.

To date the conventional wisdom in establishment circles has largely consisted of a set of four false dichotomies:

• The progressively more ambitious development of EU military capabilities is in competition with if not a direct challenge to NATO and the strategic trans-Atlantic alliance with Washington.

• NATO is a multilateral antidote to US unilateralism.

• The EU is a principled practitioner of peaceful diplomacy whereas the US and NATO are often too hasty in relying on the military necessity.

• The EU is a or even the main competitor of the US in Europe and increasingly throughout much of the world.

One is free to believe as many of these canards as one chooses, but the words and the actions of the policymakers and officials in charge of enforcing policy in the EU, NATO and the US foreign policy establishment refute them at every turn.

Blueprint for EU Army to Be Agreed

Telegraph UK (Link) - Bruno Waterfield (February 18, 2009)

A security blueprint charting a path to a European Union army will be agreed by Euro-MPs on Thursday. The plan, which has influential support in Germany and France, proposes to set up a "Synchronised Armed Forces Europe", or Safe, as a first step towards a true European military force. The move comes as France, a supporter of an EU army, prepares to rejoin Nato and to take over one of the Alliance's top military posts. General Charles de Gaulle withdrew French forces in 1966.

Geoffrey Van Orden MEP, the Conservative European defence spokesman, warned that British ministers are "in denial". He said: "They are sleepwalking towards a European army and seem to have little awareness of what is going on."

The EU proposals, drafted by Karl von Wogau, a German MEP, envisage a "dynamic to further development of co-operation between national armed forces so that they become increasingly synchronised - this process [should] be given the name Safe".

MEPs to debate EU-NATO relations for first time Wednesday

European Parliament (Link) (February 17, 2009)

In a troubled world wracked with terrorism, environmental destruction and where failed states threaten havoc, the EU and NATO should develop a closer relationship, according to a report to be debated by MEPs Wednesday. It calls for both sides to avoid competition and develop greater cooperation in crisis-management operations. It also calls on the EU to develop its own security and defence capabilities. However, some MEPs are critical of more EU involvement in NATO.

The debate about the parliament's first ever report on the EU-NATO relationship is sure to be contentious. It comes as the military alliance prepares to celebrate 60 years in April.

Large Hezbollah rally in Lebanon

BBC News (Link) (February 16, 2009)

Lebanon's Hezbollah movement has held a mass rally in southern Beirut to mark the anniversary of the assassination of top military commander Imad Mughniyeh. Mughniyeh is believed to be behind a wave of deadly violence in the 1980s.

The Hezbollah leader, Sheikh Hassan Nasrallah, praised "martyrs" fighting against Israel during a speech broadcast live on a big screen. The rally comes two days after Lebanon marked the fourth anniversary of the killing of former PM Rafik Hariri.

Major swing in favour of Lisbon treaty as 51% would now vote Yes

Irish Times (Link) - Stephen Collins (February 16, 2009)

Support is growing for the Lisbon Treaty with a further swing to the Yes camp in recent months as the State’s economic situation deteriorated, according to the Irish Times/TNS mrbi poll.

The poll shows that 51 per cent would now vote Yes, an increase of eight points since the last Irish Times poll in November, with 33 per cent saying they would vote No, a drop of six points. There are still 16 per cent in the “Don’t Know” category (down 2 points). When undecided voters are excluded, the Yes side has 60.7 per cent, with 39.3 per cent in the No camp. That compares to the referendum result last June of 53.4 per cent No and 46.6 per cent Yes.

Despite the turnaround in the public mood since last June, there is no guarantee the Yes side will win the second referendum and everything will hinge on the campaign.

Maccabee-era relics found near Jerusalem shed light on ancient Jewish warriors

Haaretz (Link) (February 16, 2009)

Three fragments of a Greek inscription, believed to be part of the "Heliodoros stele" were recently found at an Israel Antiquities Authority excavation at the National Park of Beit Guvrin.

The Heliodoros stele, dating back to 178 B.C.E. and consisting of 23 lines inscribed in limestone, is considered one of the most important ancient inscriptions found in Israel.

Dr. Dov Gera, who studied the inscriptions, determined that the fragments were actually the lower portion of "The Heliodoros stele". This discovery confirmed the assumption that the stele originally stood in one of the temples located where Maresha- Beit Guvrin National Park stands today.

The New World Order

MacLeans.ca (Link) - Paul Wells (February 16, 2009)

For all the assorted domestic and foreign woes weighing down on it, the administration of U.S. President Barack Obama is still in the relatively sunlit early days when it can afford to plan a few steps ahead. So when Vice-President Joe Biden showed up at the Munich Security Conference with a sunny and soothing speech, his largely European audience should have known other emissaries with a darker message wouldn’t be far behind.

By itself Biden’s was an extraordinary speech, and when he delivered it on Saturday morning to the world’s foreign policy elite in a packed ballroom at the Bayerischer Hof hotel, it was obvious why Barack Obama had chosen him for the No. 2 slot. Biden enhances the credibility of his boss’s foreign policy message simply by being the guy who delivers it. A veteran U.S. senator, he knows the Munich crowd well. He has attended the annual weekend getaway in the Bavarian capital many times. He knows it is a more focused, less ostentatious and arguably more important gathering than the glittering World Economic Forum in Davos. A perfect place for the Obama team to road-test its message to the world.

Iran, Russia to Boost Defense Cooperation

FARS News Agency (Link) (February 15, 2009)

Tehran and Moscow are to review ways to enhance military cooperation during an upcoming visit to Russia by Iranian Defense Minister Brigadier General Mostafa Mohammad Najjar.

According to the Iranian defense ministry, Najjar is scheduled to travel to Moscow on Monday to discuss military and technical cooperation and review implementation of agreements already signed by the two countries. He is also slated to pay a visit to Russian defense industries.

The Iranian defense minister is also due to discuss possibility for more military agreements between Tehran and Moscow in his meetings with Russian officials. Tehran and Moscow have expanded ties in bilateral, regional and international grounds and Iran is one of Russia's defense products customers.

Obama warned over 'welfare spendathon'

Times Online (Link) (February 15, 2009)

Ronald Reagan started it, Bill Clinton finished it and last week Barack Obama was accused of engineering its destruction. One of the few undisputed triumphs of American government of the past 20 years – the sweeping welfare reform programme that sent millions of dole claimants back to work – has been plunged into jeopardy by billions of dollars in state handouts included in the president’s controversial economic stimulus package.

As Obama celebrated Valentine’s Day yesterday with a return to his Chicago home for a private weekend with family and friends, his success in piloting a $785 billion (£546 billion) stimulus package through Congress was being overshadowed by warnings that an unprecedented increase in welfare spending would undermine two decades of bipartisan attempts to reduce dependency on government handouts.

Robert Rector, a prominent welfare researcher who was one of the architects of Clinton's 1996 reform bill, warned last week that Obama’s stimulus plan was a “welfare spendathon” that would amount to the largest one-year increase in government handouts in American history.

Douglas Besharov, author of a big study on welfare reform, said the stimulus bill passed by Congress and the Senate in separate votes on Friday would “unravel” most of the 1996 reforms that led to a 65% reduction in welfare caseloads and prompted the British and several other governments to consider similar measures.