United States of Europe

Open Europe press summary: 17 December 2009

2009-12-17T06:52:00.001-08:00

Europe

MEPs to receive extra Â£32,000 a year to work under the Lisbon Treaty
Amid the dispute over a 3.7 percent pay-rise for EU officials and MEPs, the Telegraph reports that MEPs are to receive an extra Â£32,000 a year in staff allowances "following the entry into force of the Lisbon Treaty", with the payments phased in over two years. A European Parliament official said, "With more power comes more work."

MEPs can use the extra funds to employ extra staff or increase the salaries of existing assistants. The increase, which comes at a time of cutbacks and austerity in national public sectors, will take the annual allowance to Â£203,000 in 2010. The article notes that staff expenses will be further increased by another Â£16,000 in 2011, taking the total annual allowance to almost Â£220,000.

As well as staff allowances, MEPs receive a "general expenditure allowance" worth over Â£44,000 without having to provide any receipts. While working in Brussels or Strasbourg, MEPs pocket a Â£265 cash subsistence payment, worth over Â£40,000 tax-free every year.

The boost to staffing payments will come on top of a proposed recession-busting 3.7 percent pay increase for all EU officials, taking the annual salary of an MEP to almost Â£86,000, which twelve member states including the UK and Germany are trying to block.

The BBC reports that EU staff today plan to step up their protests over member states' refusal to grant the pay-rise by holding a one-day strike at the European Council building. European Voice notes that staff unions rejected the offer of a 2 percent increase and the rest being phased in over an undetermined period, with GÃ¼nther Lorenz, Secretary-General of the Union Syndicale trade union declaring the option "illegal". The article notes that the Commission is planning to take the member states to the European Court of Justice, whose judges are also set to benefit from any increase, over the dispute.

EUobserver notes that member states may seek to 'punish' EU civil servants by applying a tough EU entrance exam to any applicants wishing to join the EU's newly created External Action Service.
Telegraph The Parliament Irish Independent European Voice BBC Irish Times European Voice 2 EUobserver OE blog

UK's biggest charity criticises EU's AIFM Directive
Danny Truell, Chief Investment Officer at Britain's biggest charity The Wellcome Trust - which finances medical research in the UK and poor countries around the world - has warned that the EU's proposed AIFM Directive would restrict the charity's ability to invest in non-EU based hedge funds and private equity funds, which in turn could hurt its future performance. Truell is quoted in the FT saying, "Professional investors do gain some benefits in terms of disclosure and regulation from the directive, but these would be more than offset if they were prevented from choosing which funds they invest in."

Meanwhile, in an article looking at the hedge fund industry, Reuters cited Open Europe's study on the AIFM Directive which found that the initial costs for the combined hedge fund and private equity sectors of the new rules could be between â¬1.3 billion and â¬1.9 billion.
WSJ: Wheatcroft FT Open Europe research

Barroso says plans for EU financial supervision have become too "diluted";
MEPs fast-track proposals to keep pressure on member states
EUobserver reports that European Commission President Jose Manuel Barroso has said plans to overhaul the EU's system of financial supervision have been "diluted a bit too much". Earlier this month, EU finance ministers agreed plans to set up three new European supervisory authorities to monitor the bloc's banking, insurance and securities sectors with binding powers over national regulators, and an overarching risk board to act as an 'early warning system' for macroeconomic shocks.

The proposals have widely been seen as a threat to the independence of national regulators and will reduce the UK's influence over regulating the City of London. However, Barroso told MEPs yesterday that "I hope the European parliament will reinforce and rebalance the regulations in this area in the next negotiating phase."

European Voice notes that the European Parliament's Economic and Monetary Affairs Committee has set out an ambitious timetable for its scrutiny of the proposals. According to the timetable, the five MEPs leading the Parliament's work on the reforms are to finish their draft reports on the European Commission's proposals by 5 February. Committee members will then have until 4 March to propose amendments.

The article reports that MEPs want the EU's new supervisory system to be established during 2010, but they fear that national governments are already losing their appetite for reforms that were put forward in the wake of the financial crisis.
EUobserver European Voice Open Europe press release

EU Galileo satellite programme could see a "crab-like" movement to military capability
A feature in Prospect magazine looks at the EU's civilian satellite navigation programme Galileo, due to launch in 2013, and questions whether it will be used for any military purpose. It notes that in a recent response to an MEP's question, EU Transport Commissioner Antonio Tajani refused to rule out its application for military uses. The article argues, "There may be nothing intrinsically wrong with a military role for the satellites, but citizens of the EU are entitled to a greater clarity about the nature of such a role." Richard Whitman, an EU policy expert from the University of Bath, is quoted saying, "What you're much more likely to get is a kind of crab-like move to a much increased EU military capability."
Prospect

Ashton: EU diplomatic service will be the "envy of the world"
Writing in the Times EU Foreign Minister Catherine Ashton reveals that her "first priority will be to build the new diplomatic service that the Lisbon Treaty creates. The European External Action Service (EEAS) will be based in Brussels, with representations throughout the world. It should be a network that is the pride of Europe and the envy of the rest of the world, with the most talented people from all member states of the EU working in our common interest."

El Mundo reports that Spanish PM Jose Zapatero, due to hold the EU's rotating Presidency next year, has said that the EEAS will start with a staff of 300 (of which 30 diplomats and high functionaries will be Spanish) and is predicted to rise to a total of 5,000 diplomats.
Times: Ashton El Mundo OE blog

Queens Law Professor: Lisbon Treaty makes "absolutely no difference" in EU response to financial crisis
At a seminar on the Lisbon Treaty yesterday at King's College London, Takis Tridimas, Professor of Law at Queen Mary University of London, confirmed that the Lisbon Treaty "makes absolutely no difference to the EU's response to the financial crisis", and "very little difference" to the EU's response to the terrorist threat. He said, "I was asking myself the following questions... Does it really enable the European Union to deal with the things which affect the citizens? If we take for example the two greatest crises in the last ten years: the threat from terrorism and the financial crisis. Does the Lisbon Treaty make any difference to the EU response to these crises? I would say to you that it makes little difference - or to put it differently - the absence of the Lisbon Treaty did not substantially inhibit the EU from responding to the terrorist crisis. And it makes no difference whatsoever to the EU's response to the financial crisis, which has been, and continues to be, very extensive."

During the debate surrounding the Lisbon Treaty in Ireland this year, the Irish government said that the Lisbon Treaty would help Ireland during the economic crisis.
Open Europe research

WSJ: EU's carbon scheme means "Corus is being paid to lay off British workers"
A leader in the WSJ looks at the EU's Emissions Trade Scheme and notes that, by closing the Corus steel plant in Redcar, the company will produce six million fewer tonnes of CO2, which could translate into about $300 million a year for the company, which has surplus carbon allowances under the ETS. The leader argues, "Corus is essentially being paid to lay off British workers... The Corus story also shows that cap and trade isn't really a free market. Markets develop to efficiently allocate resources and capital. Carbon cap and trade is a government-rigged market, in which carbon allowances are dispensed based on political influence. Such a system is ripe for manipulation, and Corus is merely the latest example."

Meanwhile, in an interview with City AM, the Chief Executive of Drax power station Dorothy Thompson argues that "The EU got this [ETS] wrong to begin with, and issued too many credits and they could be traded very cheaply. Part of the problem with this market is that it is a construct of EU policy, and unlike a classic market it is difficult to test how flexible supply really is."
WSJ WSJ: Leader City AM Open Europe research Open Europe press release

Greece suffers another debt downgrade;
Germany warns of future fiscal crackdown in thinly-veiled message to eurozone
The WSJ reports that Greece has suffered its second debt-rating downgrade in a week, with Standard & Poor's cutting its rating to triple-B-plus and warning of future downgrades. A leader in the FT notes that "After this torrent of bad news, Greek 10-year borrowing costs are 2.5 percentage points higher than Germany's. For a country in such a condition, this is quite cheap. But the Greek risk premium is being kept relatively low by the assumption of many investors that the debt is, in truth, being backed by the Bundesrepublik."

The WSJ quotes Norbert Barthle, Budget Spokesman for the ruling Christian Democratic Union of German Chancellor Angela Merkel, saying Greece is just "the tip of the iceberg" as fears continue to grow over other eurozone countries such as Italy and Spain.

The FT notes that Germany is "keen to broadcast the message about tougher fiscal discipline" to its eurozone neighbours, with Finance Minister Wolfgang SchÃ¤uble warning that tackling Germany's increasing budget deficit will take "a huge effort" after the recession.
WSJ City AM FT FT: Leader Telegraph BBC FT 2 IHT European Voice Guardian Mail Irish Independent WSJ 2 FT 3 FT 4 OE blog

Writing on Conservative Home, Howard Flight, former Shadow Chief Secretary to the Treasury, argues that the time has come to hold a referendum on the UK's EU membership.
Conservative Home

On an El Mundo blog, Iratxe GarcÃa PÃ©rez, Spanish MEP and member of the Group of the Progressive Alliance of Socialists and Democrats, writes in firm support for the EU's Common Agricultural Policy. He notes that the Spanish EU Presidency will encourage debate on the matter, declaring that: "Spain cannot miss the opportunity to be part of the common defence of agricultural and livestock activity that is so important for our country".
El Mundo Blog

European Voice reports that Slovenia is once again blocking Croatia's negotiations on admission to the EU, with Samuel Zbogar, Slovenia's Foreign Minister, declaring "reservations" over the three accession chapters on the environment, on fisheries, and on foreign, security and defence policy.
European Voice

The WSJ reports that the French government plans to follow UK plans to tax bonuses awarded to bank employees next year at 50 percent.
WSJ City AM

The European Commission yesterday agreed to abandon its decade-old case against Microsoft over abusing its market dominance. EU Competition Commissioner Neelie Kroes called the decision a "Christmas present" for European consumers.
WSJ City AM FT Telegraph IHT EUobserver Irish Times Independent El PaÃs

The European Commission has decided to suspend Sri Lanka's preferential trade status following a probe criticising the island's human rights record.
AFP

World

Ethiopian Prime Minister tables compromise proposal for funding in Copenhagen;
China signals it sees no chance of binding agreement by Friday
The Times reports that Meles Zenawi, Prime Minister of Ethiopia and spokesman for the African Union group of 52 countries, has said that the group would be willing to reduce their demands for compensation from rich countries in exchange for a deal on climate change, and would accept a global climate fund of $100 billion (Â£61 billion) a year by 2020.

African countries had been demanding up to $400 billion, or 1% of developed countries' GDP, in return for a climate change deal. In return, developing nations would assure a reduction in the growth of their greenhouse gas emissions and limit their call for higher reductions from the developed nations. The compromise proposed by Mr Zenawi does not state what mix of public and private cash should make up the figure, reports EUobserver.

However, the G77's Chief Negotiator Lumumba Di-Aping accused Mr Zenawi of capitulating to rich country pressure, saying: "Meles [Zenawi] agrees with the EU perspective and the EU perspective accepts the destruction of a whole continent plus dozens of other states. The EU's very moral foundation is deeply questionable because she accepts that a large section of the human family should suffer in order for her to continue to thrive and prosper."

Around 130 world leaders will attend the talks today, with President Obama arriving tomorrow. A proposed new text circulated by the Danish presidency had still not been published last night and seemed to have been withdrawn, because of objections raised by the G77, who saw it as unbalanced, reports the Irish Times. Die Welt reports that the head of the Chinese delegation Su Wei expressed frustration with the way negotiations were developing, saying: "You can't just make up new proposals out of thin air".

Meanwhile, Reuters reports that a source has indicated that China sees virtually no possibility of an agreement by Friday, and will likely only agree to a brief political declaration.
Times EUobserver EurActiv Reuters WSJ FT FT 2 IHT BBC Irish Times Irish Independent: Webster Irish Times 2 AFP Mail Die Welt Die Zeit FAZ

Open Europe is an independent think tank campaigning for radical reform of the EU. For information on our research, events and other activities, please visit our website: openeurope.org.uk or call us on 0207 197 2333.

Another dishonest Christmas tree seller!

2009-12-16T18:37:00.001-08:00

Why am I not surprised? I've received an email from another dishonest Christmas tree grower and seller, also a German-American (is that a coincidence?), vainly attempting to justify the "mass of Christ" and pagan Christmas trees. Here's my response:

I thank you for responding, but I'm sorry to see your idolatrous traditions blind you - or more likely, prejudice you against the plain truth of the Bible and history. Your drunk friend is also just plain ignorant or dishonest, failing to recognize the spiritual principles Jeremiah 10 teaches us about adopting heathen customs and pagan practices to worship the true God - something both the "Old" and "New" Testaments condemn. There's absolutely no excuse for the accursed Roman Catholic "mass of Christ" that nobody in the Bible kept or would keep since it amounts to dishonest baptized paganism, whitewashed bull. As Jeremiah 10 condemns Christmas trees! testifies:

Those who adorn their Christmas trees and remain in denial about its pagan origin, who play deaf, dumb and blind to the facts, who attempt to dismiss or downplay how it's a heathen custom, are living a lie and shamefully reject the clear commandments of God that speak against such spiritual adultery, mixing and matching pagan error with biblical truth, and will suffer the consequences for being so dishonest and deceitful.

You have a lot of chutzpah, as a Roman Catholic cultist, to pontificate to a Bible-believer who dares to share what history teaches about the Roman Catholic Cult and the pagan holiday masquerading today as the "mass of Christ."

Call for Christmas tree sellers to repent!

David Ben-Ariel

The Nazis were more honest about Christmas than Christians!

2009-12-16T16:59:00.001-08:00

Re: Guess who invented ‘holiday trees’

It's sad that the vile Nazis were more honest about the pagan origins of the "mass of Christ," the whitewashed heathen customs both the Old and New Testaments condemn, than too many Catholics and Protestants!

Call for Christmas tree sellers to repent!

God is with the Jews!

2009-12-16T08:15:00.001-08:00

God is with the Jews!

Quote:
concerning the love affair of Christians with the modern-day state of Israel

It's clear you fail to recognize that Christian Zionist love is for the Word of God that we see wonderfully fulfilled in the modern state of Israel.

Your Jew hatred blinds you to God's faithfulness, power and grace in restoring Judah to the Promised Land in preparation for their repentance and the return of the King of the Jews.

The REAL JESUS Can't Return Until...

Quote:
... consider that Israel has hundreds of nukes and is ready to use them if she is threatened ...

Oh, you mean like the US and Britain and France, to name a few? Why the selective concern? Objective observers note how irrational Jew haters prove themselves to be.

Quote:
Just how many of your righteous Jew friends believe in Jesus?

Only a chosen few, just like the Bible foretold. Same goes for our professing Christian nations of Gentilized Israelites who worship a counterfeit Christ and have fallen for another gospel.

Quote:
Herbert Armstrong was a godly man but he never advocated subservience to the modern state of Israel like you are implying.

Your inferiority complex is glaring, as I've never taught any "subservience" to our Jewish brethren but call for restoration and reconciliation between British-Israelites and Jews, just like the Bible does.

Interesting, nevertheless, is biblical prophecies do reveal that ultimately all will acknowledge God is with the Jews (who will have embraced Yeshua by that time) and with their biblical Sabbath and festivals - unlike the baptized paganism of counterfeit Christianity that composes the Babylonian Mystery religion.

Genesis 49:8
"Judah, you are he whom your brothers shall praise; Your hand shall be on the neck of your enemies; Your father's children shall bow down before you.

It looks like our future "subservience" to our Jewish brethren isn't so bad, according to the Scriptures, does it?

Zechariah 8:23
"Thus says the LORD of hosts: 'In those days ten men [representatives of the Lost Ten Tribes of Israel?] from every language of the nations shall grasp the sleeve of a Jewish man, saying, "Let us go with you, for we have heard that God is with you.""

So the tribes of Israel will acknowledge Judah as a leader among us, and other nations will acknowledge collective Israel and Judah, all 12 Tribes of Israel, as the Servant Nation of God or be punished and/or destroyed.

See - I represent our Great Creator God, the God of the Bible, the God of Israel and speak His plain truth:

Isaiah 60
10 "The sons of foreigners shall build up your walls,
And their kings shall minister to you;
For in My wrath I struck you,
But in My favor I have had mercy on you.
11 Therefore your gates shall be open continually;
They shall not be shut day or night,
That men may bring to you the wealth of the Gentiles,
And their kings in procession.
12 For the nation and kingdom which will not serve you shall perish,
And those nations shall be utterly ruined.

Quote:
you are of the John Hagee type.

No, he's a Protestant who I've read thinks the Jews can be saved without acknowledging Yeshua. I don't believe that nonsense. At least he knows this much: it's the Promised Land of ISRAEL - not some accursed "Palestine!"

Christians Reject "Palestine" for the Promised Land of Israel

Quote:
And stop claiming that anyone who criticizes Israel is a "Jew Hater"

I've never claimed that anyone who criticizes Israel is a Jew hater, as I criticize Israel and Judah often but I offer constructive criticism - unlike you with your selective and irrational attitudes and insane jealousy about and against the Jews.

John 8
37I know that you are [physical] descendants of Abraham [contrary to those who wickedly teach otherwise]; yet you look for an opportunity to kill me, because there is no place in you for my word. 38I declare what I have seen in the Father's presence; as for you, you should do what you have heard from the Father.'

39 They answered him, 'Abraham is our father.' Jesus said to them, 'If you were Abraham’s children [spiritually, not just physically], you would be doing what Abraham did, 40but now you are trying to kill me, a man who has told you the truth that I heard from God. This is not what Abraham did. 41You are indeed doing what your father does.' They said to him, 'We are not illegitimate children; we have one father, God himself.' 42Jesus said to them, 'If God were your Father, you would love me, for I came from God and now I am here. I did not come on my own, but he sent me. 43Why do you not understand what I say? It is because you cannot accept my word. 44You are from your father the devil, and you choose to do your father's desires. He was a murderer from the beginning and does not stand in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he lies, he speaks according to his own nature, for he is a liar and the father of lies. 45But because I tell the truth, you do not believe me. 46Which of you convicts me of sin? If I tell the truth, why do you not believe me? 47Whoever is from God hears the words of God. The reason you do not hear them is that you are not from God.'

Yes, that's what Jesus said to the religious leaders of His day, and He would say the same and more to professing Christian leaders today! (1 John 2:4).

Do You Prefer TRADITION Over Truth?

Is the Plain Truth Too Strong?

You fail, as many are guilty of who are irrational Jew haters, of learning to rightly divide the Word of truth.

2 Timothy 2:15
Be diligent to present yourself approved to God, a worker who does not need to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth.

Did Jesus Call Jews the Children of the Devil?
Jesus acknowledged that Abraham is the father of the Jews physically, but not always spiritually (John 8:37, 39, 42, 44). The same can be said and is true about all Twelve Tribes of Israel. In fact, the commission of the Two Witnesses - in the spirit of Elijah - is to restore our relationship with our Fathers (Abraham, Isaac and Jacob) and thereby through their true religion reconcile us to our Heavenly Father (Malachi 4:6; Isa. 49:5-6).

Romans 11
25 For I do not desire, brethren, that you should be ignorant of this mystery, lest you should be wise in your own opinion, that blindness in part has happened to Israel until the fullness of the Gentiles has come in. 26 And so all Israel will be saved, as it is written:

"The Deliverer will come out of Zion,
And He will turn away ungodliness from Jacob;
27 For this is My covenant with them,
When I take away their sins."

28 Concerning the gospel they are enemies for your sake, but concerning the election they are beloved for the sake of the fathers. 29 For the gifts and the calling of God are irrevocable. 30 For as you were once disobedient to God, yet have now obtained mercy through their disobedience, 31 evn so these also have now been disobedient, that through the mercy shown you they also may obtain mercy. 32 For God has committed them all to disobedience, that He might have mercy on all.
33 Oh, the depth of the riches both of the wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable are His judgments and His ways past finding out!
34 "For who has known the mind of the LORD?
Or who has become His counselor?"
35 "Or who has first given to Him
And it shall be repaid to him?"

36 For of Him and through Him and to Him are all things, to whom be glory forever. Amen.

Instead of always downing our Jewish brethren, you ought to pray and do what you can to see that the true gospel of the Kingdom, the true Yeshua, is presented to them to help clear up the confusion counterfeit Christianity has shamefully spread among them.

The Great Mideast Commission: Reaching the Cities of Judah

Israel and Judah Must Get House in Order Before King Messiah Arrives

www.davidbenariel.org

Open Europe press summary: 16 December 2009

2009-12-16T06:28:00.000-08:00

Europe

MEPs warn governments against blocking controversial 3.7% pay increase for all EU officials;
Final decision will be made by EU judges who themselves benefit from pay rise
The Telegraph looks at the controversy over the 3.7% pay rise for EU officials and MEPs. The article notes that "Eurocrats, including MEPs and their staff, will get the pay rise despite negative or near zero rates of inflation across Europe, soaring unemployment, falling wages and austerity measures in most national public sectors." The British Government, along with those in Germany and Poland, is trying to block the deal which is seen as unacceptable in the current economic climate. However, an internal European Parliament document, seen by the Telegraph, has warned national governments that they have no legal power to block the wage rise.

The document states, "The Council has no leeway to determine itself how European civil service remuneration should be adjusted since it is required to apply the law...Dealing [with] these complaints and legal action would force administrations to draw on scarce resources which can be better used on implementation of the Lisbon Treaty."

The Telegraph quotes Open Europe's Mats Persson saying, "During the worst recession for generations, EU institutions are expecting a substantial pay increase for already well-paid MEPs and bureaucrats. In contrast, many member states are proposing pay freezes for public sector workers such as doctors and nurses in order to cope with massive public deficits."

Die Presse reports that Austrian MEPs have tried to distance themselves from the payrise, with MEP Richard Seebr saying: "average people are no longer able to follow". SPÖ MEP Jörg Leichtfried called for a "moderate" increase in salaries, which was comparable to Austria, adding that both the date and amount of the increase were "completely incomprehensible for EU citizens." The Coulisses de Bruxelles blog reports that French Green MEP Daniel Cohn-Bendit said yesterday, "there is no justification for further increasing €16,000-per-month salaries at this moment".

EU ambassadors will meet today to discuss the pay deal amid concerns that refusing to sign off the rise will be defeated by European judges, themselves beneficiaries of the wage increase. According to some sources, the only option may be to phase the increase in over two years, by using a "crisis levy" to shave 1.7 percent off the rise until 2011. The Parliament reports that European Parliament staff yesterday staged a 30-minute protest in Strasbourg for the 3.7% pay rise. The incident followed a four-hour walk-out by employees at the European Council headquarters in Brussels on Monday. Meanwhile, average pay rises in Britain have fallen to one percent, the lowest increase on record.

Open Europe's Lorraine Mullally is quoted by The Parliament saying, "EU bureaucrats in Brussels are living on another planet. Why should they get an inflation-busting pay rise while back in the real world public sector workers face pay cuts? EU officials are already very well paid. In the middle of a recession, the last thing taxpayers need is EU bureaucrats demanding bigger salaries. How out of touch can you get?"
Telegraph The Parliament Irish Times The Parliament 2 Die Presse Les Coulisses de Bruxelles El Mundo OE blog

Parliamentary Ombudsman blasts Government agency over maladministration of EU grants
PA reports that the Parliamentary Ombudsman Ann Abraham has urged the Rural Payments Agency (RPA) to apologise and pay compensation to farmers, after finding that they had suffered injustice as a result of its maladministration of EU grants under the Single Payment Scheme. PA quotes Ms Abraham saying: "These failures of the 2005 Single Payment Scheme took a direct personal and financial toll on the two farmers whose complaints I have investigated. My report shows that the RPA was unable to keep its timetable for handling the digital mapping of land or for making payments to farmers."

The Ombudsman's finding comes as a new report on the administration of the Single Farm Payment from the House of Commons Public Accounts Committee (PAC) describes the oversight of the £1.6 billion-a-year scheme in England as "a singular example of comprehensively poor administration on a grand scale". The report blamed "poor leadership" in the RPA and "complacent oversight" from Defra.

The National Audit Office found that claims cost an average of £1,743 to process in England, six times the £285 level in Scotland. The PAC described the cost of administration as "unacceptably high" and dismissed Defra's own estimate of £700 for the cost of each claim as an unconvincing "smokescreen".
Today programme Public Accounts Committee report OE blog

Fishermen to be given quota "bonus" if they allow CCTV on boats
The Times reports that, as part of a deal struck last night over the annual allocation of fishing quotas under the EU's Common Fisheries Policy, fishermen are to be offered extra catches next year if they agree to fit "big brother" closed-circuit television cameras on to their boats to monitor conservation measures. All fleets face reductions in catch quotas next year, but those accepting cameras -- three per vessel -- can add 5 percent to their quota share.
Times EUobserver Irish Times

MEPs' assistants face intrusive new vetting procedure
Die Welt reports on new procedures for vetting candidates wanting to be MEPs' assistants. A dossier is compiled on each candidate through a compulsory investigation, in which the candidates must answer intimate questions. It reports that there are particularly intrusive questions for women, regarding their menstruation cycle.

There are about 1,500 positions for MEPs' assistants and the 'standard compulsory investigation' can take several months to complete, and applies to all candidates, even those who are only seeking a one year contract. Candidates are asked whether they have ever seen a psychiatrist and if they have, they must give the reason for the visit as well as the psychiatrist's name and contact details. Cornelia Ernst, an MEP from the German party Die Linke, said the investigation was: "neither necessary nor justifiable", warning that it "opens the door for discrimination".
Die Welt

EPP leader Joseph Daul: It's good to become an MEP and "work at the ground level"
There is continued coverage of French MEP, and ex-Justice Minister, Rachida Dati's complaints over her new job as an MEP. She was overhead saying, "I can't stand this. I really can't stand this. I think there's going to be bloodshed before the end of my term". She added, "I'm forced to stay here messing around because there's media with me and there's the re-election of [Commission President] Barroso...The thing is, when you're in Strasbourg they can see if you vote or not. If not, it means you weren't there." EPP leader Joseph Daul said: "It is a good thing that from time to time, and especially at her age, one can become an MEP and re-learn humility and work at the ground level."
Times Telegraph EUobserver Welt FAZ France Soir Guardian

Incoming Commissioners to face grilling on EU-wide taxes and EU bonds
EUobserver reports that groupings in the European Parliament yesterday called for transparency and information about the nominees for EU Commissioners, ahead of the hearings to begin on 11 January, with the Bulgarian nominee emerging as the most controversial. EurActiv reports that Rumiana Jeleva, Commissioner-designate for Humanitarian Aid, has come under scrutiny from Bulgarian media as her husband Krassimir Jelev is branch manager of the Central Cooperative Bank, reportedly part of the secretive 'TIM' business group, believed to be linked to 'shady' Russian funds.

Meanwhile, ALDE group leader Guy Verhofstadt tabled a 30-page long document which includes guidelines for each Commissioner-candidate to successfully come through the hearings, saying: "They have to know in advance what the priorities are for the Alliance of European Liberals and Democrats (ALDE)". The guidelines reportedly focus on economic recovery, the introduction of EU taxes and the creation of EU bonds.
EUobserver EurActiv

Van Rompuy to chair EU meetings and bilateral summits during Spanish EU Presidency
El Pais, El Mundo and Standaard report on Spanish Prime Minister Jose Zapatero's meeting with EU President Herman Van Rompuy yesterday. The meeting comes amid reported disagreements between the two 'Presidents': Spain will take over the EU Presidency on 1 January. Yesterday, Zapatero clarified that Spain would be in "loyal service" from 1 January and that "the Spanish Presidency will work fully coordinating and uniting efforts with the President of the European Council...[Van Rompuy] has at his service the rotating presidency, all of our organisational capabilities and previous experience to push ahead with the leadership role."

El Pais reports that "according to Spanish government sources, Van Rompuy will preside over all meetings of heads of state and government, during the Spanish presidency. This is to say, not only the European Council meetings held in Brussels (ordinary sessions in March and June, special session in February), but also at many of the bilateral summits planned to take place in Spain (with Latin America, Central America, Mercosur, the Caribbean, the Andean Community, Morocco, Mexico, Chile and the United States)." The article remarks that "Zapatero will sit at his [Van Rompuy's] right hand side." A total of fourteen summits will occur during the Spanish Presidency term, however they have yet to announce who will be attending many of these, with EU representation at the G20 unknown, and an indication from Zapatero that Van Rompuy is currently not interested in attending the Japanese and Russian summits.
La Moncloa El Pais El Mundo Standaard El Pais 2

German Constitutional Court to rule on implementation of EU Data Retention Directive

AFP reports that the German Federal Government is being forced to defend the EU's controversial Data Retention Directive before the country's Constitutional Court. The German government has argued that the Directive, which requires service providers to store all phone and Internet connections, is necessary for the prosecution of criminal offenses. However, FDP politician Burkhard Hirsch, described the law as a "fundamental breach of the right to communicate without surveillance, as long as one is not under concrete suspicion". The Court's verdict is expected in the spring. In the UK, the Directive was passed without debate in Parliament.
AFP Open Europe research

US refuses to budge on emissions targets;
Brown to pledge more money to developing nations in hope of deal
The Times reports that Gordon Brown last night raised the possibility of the Copenhagen summit failing to reach a deal as the US said that it would not improve its offer on cutting emissions. The FT notes that Todd Stern, the chief US negotiator, has ruled out any increase in the US target of reducing emissions by 17 percent below 2005 levels by 2020. "I do not think there's going to be any change in that commitment," he said.

President Obama is expected to make a significant financial commitment to a global climate protection fund when he joins the conference on Friday rather than improve on his provisional offer of cutting emissions. Brown has already committed the UK to providing £1.5bn to the EU's climate change fund to help developing countries combat climate change, making the UK the biggest contributor. However, the Mail and the Telegraph note that he is preparing to offer to make another payment into a $100bn international fund in a "final push" to reach a global agreement.

The FT notes that the US and China continue to be the key players in any deal. The article quotes Andreas Carlgren, Environment Minister of Sweden, holder of the rotating EU Presidency, admitting the negotiations were proving "frustrating". However, Carlgren stressed the EU would not unilaterally offer to cut its emissions by 30 per cent by 2020, rather than the 20 per cent cut already promised, to kick-start the talks.

Meanwhile, Reuters notes that EU Environment Commissioner Stavros Dimas has warned that trade in controversial carbon rights under the Kyoto Protocol after 2012 could undermine any emissions targets agreed in Copenhagen. Under the Kyoto treaty, which expires in 2012, nations that are comfortably below their greenhouse gas emissions targets can sell the difference in the form of rights called Assigned Amount Units (AAUs) to countries struggling to meet their own targets. "If we have this amount of AAUs (post-2012), no matter how ambitious we are in Copenhagen, it will not be enough because of this hot air," Dimas said. Seven eastern European countries, including Poland, Bulgaria and Romania, have called for AAUs to be bankable for use post-2012.

The FT reports that almost 30 percent of projects initiated under the UN's Clean Development Mechanism (CDM) have failed to come to fruition. These projects are meant to give rise to CDM credits, each representing a tonne of carbon reduced, that richer nations can buy in order to offset against their own emissions. A PointCarbon analyst said that one of the reasons for the failure was "the fact that some projects have not been able to demonstrate emission reductions appropriately."
FT FT 2 Times Telegraph EUobserver EurActiv IHT Mail Irish Independent Spectator: Coffee House blog FT 3 Reuters Express Open Europe blog Irish Times

Banana prices could fall by 12% following end to EU-Latin America trade dispute
The EU yesterday reached an agreement on banana import tariffs with Latin American countries, ending the world's longest running trade dispute. The price of bananas could fall by 12%, with duty on imports cut from €176 per tonne to €148, as a result of the agreement, the BBC reports. Under the deal further cuts will be made annually, bringing the tariff down to €114 per tonne over the next seven years. In return, the Latin American bloc will drop its case against the EU at the WTO, and the US has also agreed to settle a related dispute with the EU.
EUobserver EurActiv European Voice BBC BBC 2 Irish Times El Mundo El Pais

Greece faces strikes over austerity measures to regain control of deficit
The FT reports that Greek trade unions have vowed to go ahead with a 24-hour strike tomorrow, further undermining the Prime Minister's efforts to push through reforms to calm market fears of a sovereign default. Measures announced on Monday - including a freeze on monthly salaries above €2,000 and a 10 percent cut in allowances - have incensed public sector trade unions, although lower-paid workers will receive above-inflation increases next year. The FT argues that "with Greece's budget deficit at record levels and the country's banks exposed to troubles both at home and abroad, doomsayers are predicting that Greek banks will go the way of Iceland's."

Meanwhile, Reuters quotes Norbert Barthle, senior budgetary spokesman from Angela Merkel's party, saying that Greece is "just the tip of the iceberg", pointing to Italy, Spain, Ireland, Latvia and Hungary as other EU countries with economic problems. He added, "It's not the job of the EU to rescue bankrupt states".

El Pais reports that EU Commission President José Manuel Barroso yesterday ruled out the possibility of creating a joint Eurozone bond market. He is quoted saying: "It does not seem to me very appropriate to think of such a measure with regard to specific situations, because it could convey a wrong idea".
Reuters Bloomberg Sun El Pais Le Monde: Ugeux WSJ Irish Times Open Europe blog FT FT 2 FT 3 AP El Pais El Pais 2

Economist blog: Catherine Ashton unlikely to be able to influence British opinion on EU security policy
The Economist's Charlemagne notebook looks at the EU's new Foreign Minister Catherine Ashton and argues that one of the reasons for her appointment was the impression that a Brit might be able to encourage further British participation in European security and defence policy. The blog asks, "Will she be able to influence opinion in Parliament, or on the British airwaves? The blunt truth is that Lady Ashton is not a well-known figure in Britain, her native country...She was never elected to the House of Commons, and her government experience at home did not include any posts at the Foreign Office or Ministry of Defence. In short, she does not have much of a constituency back in London...if anyone thought appointing a British High Rep was a quick and easy solution to one headache: how to convince the British to become more involved in ESDP, they may find they were being naïve."

Meanwhile, Cathy Ashton will travel to the Middle East next year to attempt to revive peace talks. EUobserver reports that her first speech on the Middle East in Strasbourg yesterday had a "cooler tone" towards Israel than last week's statement from EU ministers.
Irish Times EUobserver Economist: Charlemagne notebook

The Mail reports that RBS Chief Executive Stephen Hester has said the combined impact of the restructuring imposed by the EU and UK Government decision on bonuses has reduced the value of the bank by 40 percent.
Mail Mail 2 Guardian

The facts are there

2009-12-15T17:01:00.003-08:00

Re: Uganda: Why Black People Have Remained Backward

As a black man I TOTALLY AGREE WITH THIS. The facts are there. No excuses!
- Malik

The Mafiosi State (II) (Mafia Scandal in Kosovo)

2009-12-15T16:31:00.000-08:00

Newsletter 2009/12/09 - The Mafiosi State (II)

PRISTINA/BERLIN (Own report) - A new mafia scandal involving Berlin's Kosovo partner is creating unrest in Pristina. A former agent of the Kosovo intelligence service explained that a close associate of Kosovo's incumbent Prime Minister, Hashim Thaci, had commissioned the assassinations of political opponents. According to his report, spies from Thaci's entourage were also responsible for threats and assaults on witnesses, who were to testify against former UCK commanders before the ICTY war crimes tribunal. The European Union, who's "Rule of Law Mission" (EULEX) has known of the accusations for months, is still dragging its feet. Hashim Thaci, who, from the beginning has been rumored to have been involved in organized crime, has been collaborating closely with Berlin and Brussels. In the German capital, he is considered to be the guarantee for preventing unrest in Kosovo, whose secession is being examined for its compatibility with international law by the International Court of Justice since last week. Whereas German jurists, with eccentric argumentation, are seeking to lend the illegal secession from Serbia an appearance of
legality, Spanish jurists are confirming that the act was illegal.

more
http://www.german-foreign-policy.com/en/fulltext/56306

Warmongerer Obama turn down peace prize?

2009-12-15T15:55:00.001-08:00

Re: Ron Paul: Obama should have turned down the Nobel Peace Prize

For the president usurper Obama/Soetoro/Obama to turn down the prize would mean he was somewhat of an honorable character and we know better and he's proven it...again.

President Usurper Obama

Emperor Obama

Shame on conservative cowards!

Obama's failure

Savior or Saboteur? Obama in a Realistic Light

Treacherous Obama and DNC comrades

President Barack Obama sound good to you?

BLACK DAY IN AMERICA: Obama Wins, America Loses

Has Obama played you for the fool?

2009-12-15T13:12:00.001-08:00

President Usurper Obama

Emperor Obama

Shame on conservative cowards!

Obama's failure

Savior or Saboteur? Obama in a Realistic Light

Treacherous Obama and DNC comrades

President Barack Obama sound good to you?

BLACK DAY IN AMERICA: Obama Wins, America Loses

Halos and other pagan images

2009-12-15T12:42:00.001-08:00

Pagan Sun Worship and Catholicism
The Sunburst Image, the Queen of Heaven and Baal

Joe Lieberman fails to make the move to Israel!

2009-12-15T10:05:00.001-08:00

Re: Joe, Start Acting Jewish!
by Lee Siegel

************
Joe Lieberman, like most Jews, has failed to follow Judaism to the Jewish homeland of Israel, as it requires, instead preferring his sinful self-imposed exile among Gentilized Israelites, Joes (many Americans are of the tribe of Manasseh, the son of Joseph), blathering "NEXT year in Jerusalem." It's always NEXT year, isn't it?

“In all times, a Jew should live in the Land of Israel, even in a city where most of the inhabitants are idol worshippers, and not live outside of the Land, even in a city where most of the inhabitants are Jews.”
- The Talmud

La Raza and the NAACP get a free pass

2009-12-15T08:29:00.001-08:00

Re: “Not-So-Silent”: Coolidge and Civil Rights

Why is it whenever people of white color love their race and seek to preserve their heritage it's always tar-brushed as "hate" or "hatred" toward other races? Yet La Raza and the NAACP get a free pass.

Would to God we would restore the immigration policy that would protect people of white color and preserve our advances, and if only our schools and neighborhoods were still segregated we wouldn't suffer the dumbed down education folks receive today and the disproportionate black on white violence.

Diversity Demands: Segregate Now!

Abraham Lincoln was right: we're not equal and we shouldn't pretend otherwise. The disastrous effects of living such a lie are evident for those who aren't in denial, who are realists.

The English-Speaking Nations of White Israelites

This Week in The Beacon

2009-12-15T07:40:00.000-08:00

Visit the Independent Institute's Spanish-language blog, El Independent. Below are the past week's offerings from our English-language blog, The Beacon.

"Paul A. Samuelson, 1915-2009," by Robert Higgs (12/14/09)
"'Not-So-Silent': Coolidge and Civil Rights," by Jonathan Bean (12/13/09)
"Lord Monckton and Greenpeace Campaigner at U.N. Copenhagen Conference," by David Theroux (12/13/09)
"More on Climategate and the Alarmist Hoax," by David Theroux (12/13/09)
"Are They Nuts? Oh Wait, It is the United Nations!" by Jonathan Bean (12/12/09)
"The Federal Bureaucracy-Plutocracy," by Robert Higgs (12/12/09)
"Shattered Dreams," by Randall Holcombe (12/11/09)
"The 'Trick' to 'Hide the Decline,'" by Mary Theroux (12/11/09)
"Boeing and the Higgs Effect," by Peter Klein (12/9/09)
"The Auto Bailout One Year Later: Was It Necessary? Did It Work?" by Randall Holcombe (12/8/09)

News from EUobserver.com

2009-12-15T07:37:00.000-08:00

THE NEWS
**********

1. Greek PM outlines deficit-cutting measures - 15.12.2009 - 09:26

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Greek Prime Minister George Papandreou has outlined a series of new budgetary measures, in a bid to convince markets and European partners that the country is capable of tackling its rising debt problem.

http://euobserver.com/9/29157/?rk=1

2. Climate talks almost derailed by bad faith between rich and poor -
14.12.2009 - 19:05

----------------------------------------------------------------------------
UN climate talks in Copenhagen were briefly suspended on Monday as anger bubbled over among developing nations, which accused their richer counterparts of trying to "kill off" the Kyoto Protocol.

http://euobserver.com/9/29154/?rk=1

LATEST BLOG POSTS
*******************

Heartwarming moment / The Digger
http://blogs.euobserver.com/gardner/2009/12/13/heartwarming-moment/

No sensitiveness - precisely / Europa-Transparent
http://blogs.euobserver.com/friedrich/?p=569

Seeing Herman and other summitry / Behind the Scenes
http://blogs.euobserver.com/mahony/?p=618

Open Europe press summary: 15 December 2009

2009-12-15T07:06:00.001-08:00

Europe

Tax fraud within EU's carbon trading market costing taxpayers €5bn
The Guardian reports that EU taxpayers are likely to have lost at least €5bn (£4.5bn) to VAT fraud related to the EU's carbon trading system (ETS) and there is a risk that the criminals will now shift their attention to Europe's electricity and gas markets, according to Europol - the EU's policing agency. The article quotes Rob Wainwright, the Director of Europol, saying, "These criminal activities endanger the credibility of the European Union Emission Trading System and lead to the loss of significant tax revenue for governments."

The fraud involves a criminal registering to be able to trade carbon permits in the ETS. The criminal then starts buying carbon permits in one EU country from another, free of VAT, then sells them on with the VAT added. But instead of passing the VAT on to the relevant tax authority, he disappears without trace.

Yesterday, Open Europe published research showing that, under the ETS, oil and gas companies' operations in the UK were granted a surplus of carbon permits worth €28.6m in 2008. In addition, heavy industrial polluters such as Corus received €47m, while cement firms Hanson and Lafarge received €17.3m and €20.2m. The research also found that the increase in carbon trading is providing Europe's leading carbon exchanges with revenues of €245,000 a day, in transaction fees alone.
Guardian Irish Times Open Europe press release

EU civil servants threaten to disturb ministerial meetings to get pay increase
El Mundo reports that around 2,500 EU civil servants went on strike yesterday, protesting at a proposed cut to their annual pay rise, from which 50,000 staff are set to benefit. The BBC reports that the civil servants have said they will disrupt ministerial meetings if their demands are not met. However, the reporter comments: "with good employment terms, secured jobs, and generous allowances, it's hard to see many people having much sympathy with the Brussels bureaucrats. And even if they do disrupt ministerial meetings, nobody outside the Brussels quarter is likely to notice."

On his Coulisses de Bruxelles blog, Jean Quatremer defends the EU civil servants striking for a 3.7% pay increase - despite noting that their jobs are "particularly well paid" for the public sector - noting that it is the member states who agreed to the index used to calculate the rise. He quotes the Austrian Chancellor Werner Faymann saying that the Commission should propose "a better legal rule", and that the current mechanism, which is based on the GDP of 8 of the EU's richest member states, "cannot last forever." However the current arrangement is a deal for 2004 to 2012 and cannot be changed until then.

NOS reports that the striking civil servants are pressing for a quick solution, because the level of their Christmas bonus is dependent on the annual salary increase.
El Mundo Coulisses de Bruxelles BBC Mail: Synon blog Economist: Charlemagne notebook NRC Handelsblad NOS Video Standaard Elsevier OE blog OE bulletin

30% of UK citizens say EU membership is a good thing
The latest Eurobarometer poll from the European Commission, conducted in October and November, has found that only 30% UK voters think that EU membership is a good thing, compared with an EU average of 53%, however this is a slight rise of 2% since the last poll. 30% think it is a bad thing, compared to an EU average of 15%, and 34% think it is neither a good nor a bad thing, compared with an EU average of 28%. When asked if the UK had benefited from EU membership, 36% said it had, compared to an EU average of 57%, also a rise of 2% since the last poll. 49% said it had not benefited, against an EU average of 31%, and 15% said they didn't know.

The UK is the least trusting among member states of the European Parliament and Commission. 56% tend not to trust the European Parliament and 53% the European Commission, compared to an EU average of 33% and 32% respectively.

UK citizens are also much more concerned about immigration, rating it as the third most important issue facing the country, compared to the EU average rating it as the seventh. When asked, "In order to boost growth in a sustainable way, which of the following aspects should be prioritised in the European Union?", ten countries placed support for agriculture highest, with over 50% of respondents in Romania and Hungary placing it top. UK citizens prioritised the need to "Control migratory flux to respond to European economy needs".

UK citizens are also much more pessimistic about the future of the EU. 34% of respondents in the UK think the EU is going in the right direction, compared to an EU average of 40%, and 37% percent think it is going in the wrong direction, compared to an EU average of 28%.
Eurobarometer Eurobarometer fact sheet PA

Copenhagen climate talks branch off into two 'tracks' amid disagreement over Kyoto protocol
The Copenhagen climate change conference became stalled yesterday for five hours, when African countries and others withdrew their cooperation and accused the UN Conference chair of trying to "kill" the Kyoto protocol, according to the Guardian. Negotiations are now running on 'twin-tracks' on whether or not a new Treaty should follow on from the Kyoto protocol, which makes no binding demands on emissions from developing countries, including India and China. This means world leaders will have to contend with two draft treaties when they make their final decisions. EUobserver reports that "behind the scenes, the EU and Japan are seen as the main actors trying to kill off the protocol."

Gordon Brown will fly to Copenhagen today, two days earlier than planned, with the Times noting that he has more to lose than most because he has effectively staked his reputation on securing a robust agreement. The IHT reports that China and the US are at an impasse over how cuts in emissions should be monitored, with China rejecting independent monitoring of its emissions, agreeing only to national monitoring.

Meanwhile the Telegraph reports that there is growing support in Copenhagen for either a tax or emissions trading system specifically for aviation and shipping to provide up to a quarter of funding for a £100bn "climate aid" fund to help poorer states deal with global warming.
Guardian Mail Times WSJ Irish Times BBC Telegraph FT IHT EUobserver EurActiv Telegraph 2

Osborne meets German Finance Minister in bid to calm "isolation" fears
George Osborne, Shadow Chancellor, yesterday held a lunch with the conservative German Finance Minister Wolfgang Schäuble in Berlin in what is being described by the FT as "the latest stage of a diplomatic programme intended partly to allay City concerns that he would be isolated in Europe if the Tories won the election."

Meanwhile, John Wyles, former head of the FT's Brussels bureau, writes in European Voice looking at the appointment of Michel Barnier as the Internal Market Commissioner. Criticising Gordon Brown, he notes, "At some late stage in the allocation of portfolios it may have dawned on the UK's prime minister that he had completely mismanaged the politics of appointments to Brussels. His first error was to run Tony Blair for president of the European Council. Blair's chances were never better than 50:50...But having backed a losing horse in the presidential stakes, Brown then looked for compensation by entering Catherine Ashton in the race for the post of high representative. It is a bizarre view of the national interest that thinks it better to place an ingénue in an uncertain and largely unknown role than to bid for the leadership of European - and global - reform of financial markets and services."
FT Conservative Home European Voice

Greek PM announces austerity measures warning that Greece is "sinking" in debt
Under pressure from the EU, the Greek government has promised to radically cut its budget deficit over the next four years. The WSJ reports that Prime Minister George Papandreou said late yesterday that his country would bring its deficit down from nearly 13 percent of gross domestic product this year to 3 percent in 2013. "Greece faces the risk of sinking under its debt," Mr. Papandreou said.

A leader in the Telegraph argues "This seems an appropriate moment to remember that, for political reasons, the rules governing eurozone membership were bent to facilitate the entry of countries that were unsuited to the financial rigour required... Political imperatives trumped economic common sense, and the consequences are now being felt. There is little clear understanding of what might happen next."
City AM Telegraph FT FT 2 Irish Independent IHT EUobserver BBC WSJ Telegraph: Leader De Tijd Le Monde

Estonian President calls for newer member states to be better represented in EU diplomacy
EUobserver reports that Estonian President Toomas Ilves has said the EU's newest member states are under-represented in the bloc's diplomatic service and among senior EU Commission officials. He told Polish daily Gazeta Wyborcza yesterday, "So as not to be subjective, let's look at the figures. Out of 158 so-called European Union embassies, only one is headed by a diplomat from a new member state". He went on, "There are 41 directorates-general in the EU. We're in our sixth year of membership, and none of them is headed by a director from a new member state. These are figures, not back-chat". President Ilves called on the EU's new President to change the situation saying: "Mister Van Rompuy, please explain this to me, I'm begging you! Why is it like this? I don't understand".
EUobserver

EU Commission approves RBS state aid plan;
ECB pressures Austria to nationalise Hypo bank
The European Commission yesterday approved the restructuring and impaired asset relief scheme for Royal Bank of Scotland. EUobserver reports that the scale of the support from the UK Government is estimated by the EU's Competition department at £60-100 billion, and is the largest government subsidy in the EU's history. EU Competition Commissioner Neelie Kroes is quoted by City AM saying: "RBS will itself pay a sufficient share of the restructuring costs and distortions of competition will be limited by substantial divestments." She also warned that if RBS did not deliver on its targets for reducing its balance sheet by 2013, the Commission reserved the right to intervene again and request more divestments from the bank.

Meanwhile, the Telegraph reports that the European Central Bank has pressured the Austrian government to nationalise the ailing Hypo Group bank after fears that its collapse could cause a "domino effect" throughout the Austrian banking sector. Under the deal, majority shareholder Bayern Landesbank, which underpins much of the troubled German regional banking sector, has agreed to surrender its 67 percent stake for a token €1 and to waive a further €825m in liabilities.
Telegraph FT IHT WSJ City AM Telegraph 2 EUobserver European Voice

Dutch paper: Belgians want EU Foreign Minister and President to be Europe's "true spokesmen"
El Mundo reports on EU President Herman Van Rompuy's visit to Madrid today to speak with Prime Minister Jose Zapatero about coordinating with the Spanish EU Presidency which begins on 1 January. The main sticking point remains over what protocol to follow during bilateral meetings, such as those planned with the US and Latin America, and those taking place outside the EU such as with Russia and Japan. Van Rompuy will return to Spain on 8 January with Commission President Jose Barroso.

Het Financieele Dagblad reports that the Spannish Presidency could well be the last time that a country uses the EU Presidency to openly set the agenda. The article notes that Belgium takes up the Presidency in the second half of 2010 and is planning to break with the tradition of a powerful rotating presidency. The paper notes that, according to diplomats, the country wants to give the new Lisbon Treaty and chance to be effective, arguing that the new President and High Representative need to become the true spokesmen of Europe.

An El Mundo blog notes that the cost of the Spanish EU Presidency will be €55 million.
El Mundo El Mundo 2 FD

Narrow majority of Swedes back joining the euro
Svenska Dagbladet writes that, according to a poll by Statistics Sweden 44% of Swedes are now in favour of the country adopting the euro, while 42% are opposed. Around 50% of Swedish men support the EU, while only 37% women are in favour. The article quotes Carl Hammer, analyst at Statistics Sweden, saying that the result is surprising, as the economic crisis would have hit Sweden harder if the country was a member of the Eurozone. "We've had a lot of help from the relatively weak krona", he said.
Svenska Dagbladet

French MEP: "I think I'm going to have a breakdown before I finish my term."
Le Figaro reports that Rachida Dati, the French politician who left President Nicolas Sarkozy's cabinet to become an MEP, had a private phone conversation after a press conference in the European Parliament, but forgot she was still wearing a microphone. She said: "I am in the hemicycle of the Parliament in Strasbourg. I can't put up with it anymore! I can't put up with it anymore! I think I'm going to have a breakdown before I finish my term."
Le Figaro

UN official calls on EU to open doors to migrants
The IHT reports that the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, António Guterres, said yesterday that EU member states are playing into the hands of human traffickers by tightening immigration policies at a time when their economies increasingly depend on migrant labour.
IHT

French MEP: Commission should act as the "itching powder" for member states not endorsing the "community method"
EurActiv reports that French MEP Sylvie Goulard, who recently won the €10,000 European Book Prize for her book 'Europe for dummies', has said that too often, citizens are offered incorrect depictions of what the EU actually is, adding: "We always consider the European Union as technical and annoying, whereas it is lively and dynamic". Insisting that the gap between citizens and European elites is not only due to a lack of communication, but because "the EU in recent years has not provided the citizens what they wanted", she said: "The Community method is to think together to find the appropriate answer to a problem and not to address it from closed national positions". Member states which do not want to go further should take responsibility, Goulard said, stressing that the Commission should act as the "itching powder" of the EU.
EurActiv

Bloomberg reports that Deutsche Bank CEO Josef Ackermann has said that Germany has a "comparative advantage" over other financial hubs because it doesn't plan to tax bonuses like Britain and France.
Bloomberg

The Irish Times reports that the Irish parliament's Committee on Agriculture has called for a derogation from the EU regulation requiring the mandatory electronic tagging of sheep.
Irish Times

Poul Nyrup Rasmussen has been re-elected as leader of the Party of the European Socialists, with the party pledging to put forward a candidate for European Commission President before the 2014 European elections.
EUobserver

The FT reports that French President Nicolas Sarkozy has earmarked €750m to 'digitise' France's cultural heritage and compete with Google's project to make millions of books available online. The French government has also urged the EU to undertake its own book digitisation project.
FT IHT

Die Zeit has an interview with British journalist Charles Clover, in which he criticises the EU's Common Fisheries Policy.
Die Zeit

UK

A Guardian/ICM poll shows the Conservatives' lead cut to nine points on 40 percent, followed by Labour on 31 percent. The Lib Dems are on 18 per cent. A leader in the paper notes that a March election looks increasingly likely.
Guardian Guardian: Kettle Guardian: Leader

Obama ducks tough questions

2009-12-14T15:42:00.001-08:00

President Obama’s athletic prowess is becoming a real advantage in office as he recently has taken the duck-and-run approach to the media. Instead of defending himself in front of the open microphone, he is dispatching his cronies to defend his policy positions. Our commander-in-chief isn’t living up to his campaign promise of presidential access and transparency.

Read more by Floyd G. Brown
Obama ducks tough questions

The Gospel Truth Europe Needs to Hear!

2009-12-14T09:38:00.001-08:00

Gospel

How Adam and Eve Reflect the Kingdom of God
"For we are members of his Body, of his flesh, and of his bones. For this cause shall a man leave his father and mother, and shall be joined to his wife, and they TWO shall be ONE FLESH. This is a GREAT MYSTERY: but I speak concerning Christ and the Church" (Ephes. 5:30-32).

Overcome in Christ Daily
GOOD NEWS: Yeshua is able to break the bonds of sin and set free those who are slaves, saving us from both sin's eternal death penalty and delivering us from the sin. Some deny this POWER and only want the pardon but the Throne of Grace offers both.

Man Questions Whether We'll Be Angelic Or Divine
Even as we have been fully mortal and human like Adam, we shall be fully divine and holy Spirit like Christ the Second Adam, being born again into the literal Kingdom-Family of God. How Satan is insanely jealous of this fact!

Born Again and Heaven and Hell
Yeshua said that which is born of the flesh is flesh (like we are now in this life), but that which is born of the Spirit IS SPIRIT. He also said you can't even see or enter into that Kingdom of God unless you're born again...

Sneak Preview of the Kingdom of God
If I may, as God is my Witness and Judge, when I was only 17 years young, God UNEXPECTEDLY gave me a VISION while I was in prayer. I was within that vision as a glorified Spirit-Being, whiter than glistening snow and like a brilliant white cloud with the sun shining on it, appearing smooth, dressed in a white robe - even my hair was that brilliant white - holding a Book in my hands and teaching two flesh and blood mortals who were sitting on the ground, in an outdoor setting like a park or meadow.)

Born Again: The Kingdom of God!
GOD IS REPRODUCING HIMSELF! That's the glorious Good News that Jesus boldly proclaimed! The Gospel of the KINGDOM OF GOD announces the GOD KINGDOM: a Spirit-Born Kingdom of God-Beings! A Royal Family that we can enter (Rev. 3:21). A Divine Family that will administer God's Government throughout the universe and eternity (Isa. 9:7; Dan. 7:18).

A Higher Calling: Quest for the Kingdom of God
Jesus clearly said, "No man can come to Me, except the Father who has sent me draw him..."(John 6:44). Jesus is the Way, the Truth and the Life. The Christian calling includes recognizing Jesus is the only way to the Father, learning all about Him as the Incarnate Word of God and walking in that light as a way of life, following Jesus by the lead of the Holy Spirit, the power and influence of God (Romans 8:14, 1 John 2:6).

Kingdom of God-Beings to Rule Earth from Jerusalem!
Yeshua has gone to Heaven and is preparing for the coming Kingdom of God, making room for us (converted Christians then transformed) in His Administration, preparing our positions and government seats in the Kingdom-Family of God, and will then return and receive us to Himself, sharing His glory and power and honor with us from Jerusalem, the seat of God's government, the Throne of David, the Throne of the LORD.

The Great Mideast Commission: Reaching the Cities of Judah
So there is a physical preparing, as well as a spiritual, in preparing the way for Messiah's Coming! Further, God says we are to SHOUT, with amplified power, to the CITIES OF JUDAH the glad message that the Messiah is soon coming" - Autobiography of Herbert W Armstrong, Volume II, pages 469-470

Gospel

Open Europe press summary: 14 December 2009

2009-12-14T06:21:00.001-08:00

Europe

EU environmental policy awards millions in windfall profits to oil companies and heavy industry
As national ministers meet this week in Copenhagen to discuss a new climate change deal, Open Europe has found that under the EU's Emissions Trading Scheme (ETS), oil and gas companies' operations in the UK were granted a surplus of carbon permits worth €28.6m in 2008. For example, ExxonMobil received €4.3m and Total received €5.4m.

Meanwhile, heavy industrial polluters such as Corus received €47m, while cement firms Hanson and Lafarge received €17.3m and €20.2m.

Due to the economic downturn, many heavy polluters, such as oil and gas companies and heavy industrials, have been left with a surplus of carbon permits - essentially a free asset that firms can sell on to bolster their short term profits.

The glut of surplus permits on the market has driven down the price of carbon and led to a sharp increase in the number of permits being traded via carbon exchanges. Open Europe has found that the two largest carbon trading exchanges, European Climate Exchange and Bluenext, which includes members such as Barclays Bank, JP Morgan, Merrill Lynch and Shell, have earned a combined average of €245,000 a day from the trading of carbon permits so far in 2009, in transaction fees alone. In total, they have made over €57m between them in 2009.
Open Europe press release

18 'ghost' MEPs to receive full pay from New Year
The Telegraph reports that a source in the Swedish government, which currently holds the rotating EU Presidency, has said the 18 'observer' MEPs whose seats were created by the Lisbon Treaty but who cannot do any work until an agreement has been ratified by all 27 member states, will be put on full pay in the New Year. A European Parliament source said the ratification process could take between two to four years. MEPs earn £81,745 from their salary alone, and if the observers receive the other perks and allowances available to MEPs, the 18 extra MEPs will cost the taxpayer more than £6 million a year.

Open Europe Director Lorraine Mullally is quoted saying, "It's typical of the bloated EU institutions to pay 18 superfluous politicians to do absolutely nothing and for no good reason. We're in the middle of the worst recession since the 1930s and yet here we are paying for nobodies to do nothing in the European Parliament. It's madness. So much for streamlining things - Lisbon just adds to the ridiculous waste and bureaucracy and taxpayers have to foot the bill."

The UK stands to gain one additional MEP, but who it will be has still not been decided. Sources indicate that the extra seat will go to the West Midlands region, with the Conservative candidate Anthea McIntyre probably appointed. However, Scotland and London are seeking an exception to the existing rules so that their region would receive the new MEP. El Mundo notes that Spain is the biggest winner from the new arrangements and will receive an extra 4 'observer' MEPs.

Meanwhile, Conservative MEP Daniel Hannan's Telegraph blog notes that, since July, MEPs have been paid a standardised salary and taxed directly by the EU, at around 20%, with national governments entitled to levy an additional rate. However, he writes: "As far as I can tell, only two governments have availed themselves of this facility: the United Kingdom and Sweden. MEPs from the other 25 states pay no national taxes."
Telegraph: Hannan blog Telegraph OE research El Mundo

Polish Prime Minister vows to be "stubborn" over EU civil servants' pay rise demands
Thousands of EU civil servants in Brussels are striking today in protest over attempts by 20 member states to block an inflation-busting 3.7% pay rise. Saturday's Independent described the move as "a public relations disaster", and noted that nearly 45,000 bureaucrats are in line for the rise.

EU salaries are pegged to civil service wages in eight of the richest EU countries in an automatic legal mechanism. But some politicians have said the hikes should be put aside at a time when many EU citizens are struggling because of the recession. On Friday Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk said "I have had enough of hypocrisy. At the summit, at the level of leaders, everybody says: There is no question of higher expenditure, there is a crisis. But later, somewhere on the sly, this process goes on. So we're going to be stubborn to the end on this one." An unnamed ambassador from a Nordic EU country said, "It would send out completely the wrong signal to go ahead with the rise at this time. It would portray Brussels as a gravy train of fat cats that keeps on rolling while everyone else is tightening their belts."

However, the Independent noted that the challenge could unleash a bitter wrangle, and quoted an EU diplomat saying "We've never managed to overturn this rule in the past," referring to the oil crisis of 1972 when member states lost a case against the European Commission. Officials believe that the Council will eventually be forced to accept the pay increase this year but they fear that governments will try to renegotiate the method early next year. Renzo Carpenito, the EU Council delegate to the FFPE union, said: "This subject has been blown out of proportion by the media, so the member states are looking for a way out. It's all about saving face. The personnel here work very hard, often late into the evening, to solve European problems."

Meanwhile, a leader in the FT Deutschland argues: "If EU staffers insist on their pay rise, they will prove to be criminally lacking in political instincts. Instead of threatening strikes, the bureaucrats of the institutions in Brussels should rather adopt a voluntary pay freeze. That would be a service to Europe, of which they could be proud."
FTD Leader Independent Telegraph: Hannan blog EUobserver WSJ: Editorial OE bulletin

Government still to estimate cost of EU temp rules to NHS
A Parliamentary answer has revealed that the UK Government has not yet calculated the cost to the NHS of the EU's Temporary Agency Workers' Directive, to come into force in 2011. The article notes that the NHS is one of the biggest public sector employers of agency staff. The Directive, which will give temporary workers equal rights and pay to full-time staff, will cost the private sector between £1.2bn and £1.5bn a year, while the cost for the public sector as a whole will be £227m to £337m a year, according to the Government's Impact Assessment. But the exact cost to the NHS is unknown.

The Conservatives' Shadow Business Minister, Jonathan Djanogly, is quoted in the FT saying that the lack of an estimate for the NHS showed "the government does not have a handle on what the impact is on the public sector". It was "absolutely unacceptable" to be driving through such regulations without being aware of the detailed effects on the public sector, he said. John Cridland, CBI Deputy Director-General, warned that the new rules would mean employers were "going to have to make radical changes to their business model". The Directive was agreed last year following a deal between the unions and the CBI to agree to the rules, in return for the UK maintaining its opt-out from the EU's maximum 48-hour working week.
FT Open Europe research

Le Monde: Van Rompuy to travel to Spain to explain to Zapatero "that he is now the boss"
Le Monde reports that even though he will not take up his position formally until 1 January 2010, EU President Herman Van Rompuy has already made his mark at last week's European Council meeting, changing the rules to keep in the spirit of the Lisbon Treaty, starting by excluding European foreign ministers from the meeting, and announcing an extraordinary summit will take place in February 2010 in order to find "a clear economic strategy" over the next six months. The article notes that Spain, which will hold the rotating Council Presidency from January, is resisting the new Lisbon rules. It says: "Prime Minister Jose Luis Rodriquez Zapatero wants to receive South American leaders but also Barack Obama. Mr Van Rompuy will go to Spain on 15 December to explain to him that he is now the boss." It adds that EU Foreign Minister Catherine Ashton has been to Madrid to discuss the sharing of roles with Spanish Foreign Minister Miguel Angel Moratinos.
Le Monde

House of Lords committee blasts EU's AIFM Directive
The House of Lords EU committee has written to City Minister Lord Myners warning him against accepting the EU's proposed AIFM Directive, following an inquiry by the committee into the draft Directive. The Committee, which will publish a full report on the proposal in February, says the Directive risks seriously damaging the EU economy unless it permits the marketing of non-EU funds within the EU and also allows EU funds to invest outside of the EU. They say that the Directive is 'protectionist' and brings with it the danger that pension funds, charities and other institutional investors in Alternative Investment Funds will see diminishing investment returns.

Baroness Cohen, Chairman of the House of Lords EU Sub-Committee on Economic and Financial Affairs, said, "Alternative Investment Funds are an important part of the economy and while they should be regulated properly, they must not be driven out of the EU. It is vital that the European Commission have regard to the international competitiveness of European based Alternative Investment Funds. The most important thing is that regulation in Europe complements international regulation and works alongside proposals in the US. We are concerned that the current proposals do not achieve that. We will keep the AIFMD under scrutiny until we are convinced it has been improved to be in the best interests of the UK and EU economy, and of EU investors."

Law firm Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer has warned that if proposals for restrictions on hedge fund managers' remuneration, entailed in later drafts of the AIFM Directive, became law the impact would be "rapid and decisive...no hedge funds will operate from within the EU", according to the FT.

Meanwhile, according to the German fund industry association BVI, the Directive could add about €1bn to the annual costs for Germany's institutional funds industry because of higher fees and reduced returns.
House of Lords press release Open Europe research FT FT2 FT3

UK Government claims to have cut £3bn in red tape
According to the Better Regulation Executive's annual report, the UK Government is saving almost £3bn a year, following moves to cut red tape, reduce burdensome form-filling and introducing the latest technology, as part of the so-called Administrative Burdens Reduction Programme. The Government plans to slash a further £6.5bn worth of regulation over the next five years, the Guardian reports. In the past 12 months, the BRE has pushed through more than 280 changes to the UK's vast array of business rules, according to the report.
Guardian Open Europe research

Commission warns Government over failure to implement EU anti-discrimination directives
The Guardian reports that the European Commission has said that parts of UK law to protect people from discrimination at work, including provisions on sexual orientation and disability, are inadequate and are failing to comply with EU anti-discrimination directives. It warns that the Commission could refer the situation to the European Court of Justice.

EU Equal Opportunities Commissioner Vladimir Spidla said: "This [Equal Treatment] directive was agreed unanimously by all EU countries in 2002 but, to be effective, it needs to be fully and correctly transposed into national law. We call on the UK government to make the necessary changes to its gender equality legislation as soon as possible so as to fully comply with the EU rules."
Guardian

EU pledges €7.2 billion in climate funding over three years to developing countries
EUobserver reports that EU leaders agreed to offer around €7.2 billion to help developing countries deal with the effects of climate change over the next three years at their summit on Friday, with approximate contributions ranging from €1.6 billion from the UK down to €30,000 from Latvia. Poland will offer €50 to €60 million, with this money coming not from the government but from the sale of excess carbon allowances. The European Commission itself will also contribute €150 million. China's Ambassador to the EU Song Zhe told European Voice that the pledge from EU leaders "still falls far short of the recommendations of a United Nations report issued in September".

The FT reports that leading EU companies have attacked proposals for the bloc to increase existing commitments to cut greenhouse gas emissions from 20% by 2020, to 30% by 2020. Fulvio Conti, Chief Executive of Enel, Italy's largest utility, said: "A 30 per cent reduction by 2020 would be physically impossible." The Guardian reports that Gordon Brown and Nicolas Sarkozy, in a joint statement on Friday, proposed the idea that a global 'Tobin' tax on financial transactions could be used to fund the fight against climate change.

The Times reports that a draft text published by the UN says that there should be a review of any deal in Copenhagen in 2016, which the article suggests negotiators from developed countries are planning to use to justify failing to agree the 25-40 percent cut on 1990 emissions levels by 2020, recommended by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change.

Meanwhile, in the Sunday Telegraph Christopher Booker noted that steelmaker Corus' plans to close production at Redcar will mean a reduction in emissions of up to six million tones of CO2 a year, allowing the company to benefit from surplus carbon allowances which could, according to European Commission projections, be worth up to £600 million over the three years before current allocations expire. In addition, by increasing steel production in India in the same period, and replacing inefficient old plants with new ones, Corus' owner Tata could claim a further £600 million under the UN's Clean Development Mechanism.
Sunday Telegraph: Booker Mail EU Referendum FT Independent Guardian FT: Brussels blog EUobserver European Voice Saturday's Mail Saturday's Independent Sunday Times Times WSJ WSJ 2 Guardian 2 Die Welt

Barroso asks for "binding" standards on member states' budgets
Handelsblatt reports that "the EU has put its member states on a leash", noting that as a consequence of the Greek debt crisis, European Commission President Jose Manuel Barroso has called for binding "quality control" on member states' budgets. The article argues that: "Governments seem to be prepared to allow the intervention in their national fiscal sovereignty".

The stronger control on budgets is a part of the "Growth Strategy 2020" which the EU wants to tackle the challenges of globalisation. Commission President Barroso will produce concrete proposals for the strategy in January and a special summit is being planned at the beginning of February. As part of this, Barroso wants to enforce mandatory standards for national budgets. The article adds that the Commission has blamed the failure of the Lisbon strategy, which preceded the Growth Strategy 2020, on the fact that it was non-binding.

Meanwhile, the front page of the FT reports that Greek Prime Minister George Papandreou will outline structural reforms today aimed at cutting the budget deficit from 12.7 percent to 3 percent of GDP over the next four years. EU Economic and Monetary Affairs Commissioner Joaquin Almunia told El Pais yesterday that Greece could not rely on the eurozone to come to its rescue, saying "If Greece does not take the necessary measures to overcome its problems, the eurozone won't be able to take them in the name of Greece".

Ambrose Evans-Pritchard writes in the Telegraph: "Before we blame Greece for making a hash of the euro, let us not forget how we got here. EMU lured Club Med into a trap. Interest rates were too low for Greece, Portugal, Spain, and Ireland, causing them all to be engulfed in a destructive property and wage boom. The ECB was complicit. It breached its inflation and M3 money target repeatedly in order to nurse Germany through slump...This was poison for overheating Southern states. The deeper truth that few in Euroland are willing to discuss is that EMU is inherently dysfunctional - for Greece, for Germany, for everybody."

Meanwhile, a leader in the FTDeutschland accuses Germany of "wage dumping", as it notes that Greece has lost competitiveness because "between 1999 and 2009 Greek labour costs per unit have risen by 26 percent whereas in Germany only by 8 percent."
FT FT: Munchau Guardian Irish Times Telegraph Die Presse FTD Leader

EU leaders adopt five-year plan on 'Stockholm programme'
EUobserver reports that EU leaders on Friday adopted a five-year plan on the so-called 'Stockholm programme', reconfirming the aim of setting up a common asylum system by 2012. Friday's Stockholm agreement called for the development of an EU-wide "internal security strategy," focusing on the division of labour between Brussels and national capitals in counter-terrorism, border management, civil protection and judicial co-operation in criminal matters.
Euractiv EU Observer Open Europe research

PA reports that three days of talks between EU fisheries ministers over the annual allocation of fish quotas under the EU's Common Fisheries Policy begin today, amid warnings that more than 80% of EU stocks are over-fished, compared with a global average of 28%. EU Fisheries Commissioner Joe Borg is recommending cuts of up to a quarter in permitted catches for some species next year.
No link

The Mail on Sunday reported that David Miliband has banned British diplomats from assisting BNP MEPs Nick Griffin and Andrew Brons.
Mail on Sunday

The Mail reports that, amid growing speculation that the Speaker of the House of Commons could be defeated by former UKIP leader Nigel Farage at the next General Election, John Bercow has proposed a new seat for the Speaker, called St Stephen's, with only MPs for constituents.
Mail

The Sunday Express reported that the EU's guidance on 'Gender-Neutral Language' could bring an end to such bingo calls as "Two Fat Ladies, 88, Old Age Pension, 65". A campaign to prevent players being forced to use the language is underway on the internet.
Sunday Express: Leader

Speaking in London on Friday, European Central Bank President Jean-Claude Trichet joined the chorus of criticism against bankers' bonuses, Saturday's Guardian reported. Trichet said, "I will say that the so-called bonus culture is one of the many factors that can drive the financial system in the wrong direction - away from intermediation to self-referential speculation; away from medium-term stability to short-term orientation; and away from being a service sector to being a self-serving sector."
Guardian

Several papers report that the European Commission is calling for a suggested maximum volume to be set on MP3 players, to protect users' hearing. In January, a two-month consultation of all EU standardisation bodies will begin on proposals for a default maximum setting of 85 decibels, with a final agreement expected in the spring.
Mirror Independent BBC Sunday Express

Catalonia yesterday held an informal referendum on independence. Although not officially mandated by the Spanish government, turnout was at 30%, with around 95% of those voting for Catalonia to become independent.
BBC EUobserver EurActiv AD

EUobserver reports that part of the ceiling in the European Parliament complex in Strasbourg, housing communication staff, fell down over the weekend, the second such incident in 18 months.
EUobserver

FTD reports that Germany has obtained a top EU appointment as Uwe Corsepius becomes General Secretary of the European Council.
FTD

UK

A ComRes poll for the Independent on Sunday put the Conservatives on 42 percent, 17 points ahead of Labour with 24 percent. The Lib Dems were on 21 percent.
Independent on Sunday

Conservative leader David Cameron has said that a snap General Election in March is "quite likely", with 25 March being widely touted as a possible date.
Independent Guardian Express Telegraph

Jerusalem

2009-12-13T19:21:00.001-08:00

Last chance in Jerusalem

By Adam J. West (guest columnist) | Sabbath, December 12, 2009

Is it the destiny of Europe to become more actively involved in the Middle East as events hurtle toward the climactic return of Jesus Christ? Will it begin to exercise a strong influence in the region of, and even militarily occupy, the Holy Land? Your Bible plainly affirms that this will be the case.

An interesting Euobserver.com article titled, “EU faces ‘last chance’ for peace in Israel”, offers an insight into what may be the beginnings of a more crucial role for Europe in the Middle East. In the article, Mr. Meir Margalit, a Jerusalem city councilor on the front lines of the mid-east peace process, states: “We have reached the last moment when it is still possible to divide and share Jerusalem. If it [decisive action] does not happen this year, it will become impossible to implement any plan like the two-state solution.” (emphasis mine) The leadership of Jerusalem is imploring the European Union to get involved in the political and geographical division of Jerusalem.

Mr. Margalit continues by saying, “This is not an internal conflict. You [the EU] are part of this conflict,” he added. “I am talking about terrorism. I am talking about another London [referring to the tube bombing which occurred in 2005], about the clash of civilisations. The clash of civilisations started in Jerusalem and it will end in Jerusalem.” A study paper headed by Mr. Margalit dated November 23rd adds, “...that ‘senior’ EU officials who visit EU missions in the occupied territories should hold ‘dinners’ with Palestinian officials as a sign of good will, but should refrain from traveling with Israeli security corteges or meeting Israeli officials on the occupied side.”

The lines of allegiance are being drawn and even though Germany, the Netherlands, and the Czech Republic, who are among the 21 diplomatic delegations in the region, may block any hostility toward Israel, according to the article, it may well begin to define a unified agenda among the whole of EU delegates on the side of the Palestinian authority.

Mr. Margalit adds further that he “believes the situation has reached such a dangerous point” and has “rejected the argument that Europe cannot influence Israeli policy unless it acts jointly with the US,” a stance taken by European policy makers. He states that “The EU is not a bunch of boy scouts... It is the biggest power here [in the region of Israel] after the US…” The risks to Europe are greater than those the United States would potentially suffer, making the threat felt by the EU more poignant.

If this truly is the “last chance” for Jerusalem being divided into a Palestinian/Israeli state, and the hand of the European Union does stretch to exert “influence” in the region of Jerusalem, we are most certainly in momentous times, for the Bible speaks of a time when God says He “…will gather all the nations to battle against Jerusalem; the city shall be taken, the houses rifled, and the women ravished. Half of the city shall go into captivity…” (Zechariah 14:2, emphasis mine).

Take note of what is being said – half of Jerusalem’s inhabitants will be taken, and led away, into captivity. Other prophecies clearly state that captivity is coming for the modern day descendants of ancient Israel as well. You need to understand the identity of who these modern-day peoples are. The answer may shock you!

The armies gathered together, surrounding Jerusalem just before Christ’s return, will fight against Him in what men call the battle of Armageddon.

To learn more about this exciting yet terrifying battle to occur in Jerusalem in the final climactic world war, and to find out what you can do to protect yourself from the terror that is to come, read Armageddon and Beyond and continue to watch events unfold in the mid-east powder keg!

Indian Jewish Converts Are Not Bnei Menashe!

2009-12-13T19:00:00.001-08:00

India's Bnei Menashe Celebrate Chanukah
by Hana Levi Julian

(IsraelNN.com) The 7,200 members of the Bnei Menashe community of northeastern India ushered in the festival of Chanukah this weekend with joy and ceremony. The community also hopes to make Aliyah to Israel.

"For most of their sojourn in exile, the Bnei Menashe did not observe Chanukah nor were they aware of its existence until the modern era due to a very simple reason: their ancestors were exiled from the land of Israel some 560 years before the historical events which the holiday commemorates," said Shavei Israel Chairman and Founder Michael Freund.

read more

**********
The legitimate sons of Manasseh, the Bnei Menashe or Bnai Menashe, are many Americans of Anglo-Saxon-Celtic origins - not Indian converts to Judaism! Only the legitimate sons of Manasseh, from the United States, bear the biblical birthmarks of fulfilled prophecies concerning Joseph's son, Manasseh, specifically about becoming a prosperous SINGLE GREAT NATION (Genesis 48:19).

Shame on those who promote the fraud of Indian converts to Judaism being Joes, being Bnei Menashe! Such claims are illegitimate!

Historic Fraud: Indian Bnei Menashe
Legitimate Israelites versus Jewish converts
Judaism's replacement theology and identity theft condemned
Michael Freund's fraud: Indian converts pretending to be Joes!

Rabin Secretary Interview Sheds New Light on Video

2009-12-13T17:55:00.001-08:00

by Gil Ronen
(IsraelNN.com) An interview granted by outgoing “secretary to the prime ministers” Marit Danon provides some new evidence regarding the videotape of the Rabin assassination filmed by amateur cameraman Ronny Kempler. Danon, who served as secretary under Prime Ministers Shamir, Rabin, Peres, Barak and Sharon, granted an interview to Maariv's Ben Caspit this weekend upon her retirement.

The interview indicates that the videotape was already in the hands of the Shin Bet just a few days after the assassination. This contradicts the official version, according to which Kempler did not show the tape to anyone for six weeks after the assassination, until he sold it to Channel 2 news for NIS 1 million. The tape was broadcast on December 18, 1995; Rabin was killed on Nov. 4.

In interviews, Kempler claimed that he kept the tape to himself for so long because he saw “no special public interest” in the video.

Danon spoke to Caspit about the days after the assassination and of the way Shimon Peres behaved when he entered office as Rabin's replacement. “I remember us several days after the murder sitting in the cabinet room and watching a videotape that someone filmed from the nearby roof,” she is quoted as saying.

Danon's interview testimony indicates that the video was viewed by the top Israeli government and security establishment immediately after the assassination – thus raising the question why was the public misled to believe that Kempler did not show the tape to anyone until mid-December.

Arutz Sheva's Hebrew site published an exclusive interview seven years ago with a woman whose identity it did not reveal, who said that she and her husband viewed the tape at the home of a senior Shin Bet official three days after the assassination. She said that the official, a close friend of theirs, was so upset when he viewed the tape that she does not believe the theories that the Shin Bet was somehow involved in the assassination.

http://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/134949

***********
Who stood the most to gain over the fall of Yitzhak Rabin? The bloody vulture Shimon Peres whom Yitzhak Rabin exposed as an "indefatigable subversive."

Shimon Peres, with the corrupt Israeli oligarchy, were instrumental in sacrificing Yitzhak Rabin to appease their German-Jesuit masters whose evil eye is on Jerusalem.

Shimon Peres came to power over Rabin's dead body! Those who fear to dare to share this plain truth, overly concerned with being ostracized and delegitimized, are like those conservative cowards who fail to question the president usurper Obama, "Where's the birth certificate?"

Such shameful appeasement erodes any confidence in their leadership abilities and foolishly enables the treacherous opposition to dismiss the debate and call the shots.

Shimon Peres Came to Power Over Rabin's Dead Body
Avishai Raviv, Eyal, and Yitzhak Rabin
Shimon Peres Charged with the Murder of Yitzhak Rabin?
Vatican Linked to the Assassination of Yitzhak Rabin?

Friendly fire?

2009-12-13T17:28:00.001-08:00

Bad News at My Doorstep - Surprises After a Target Shoot
December 11, 2009
Ruvy

A couple of weeks ago, I got a call at night. The conversation was in Hebrew but since most of you reading are not familiar with the language....

"Ruvy?" The fellow sounded familiar, but I couldn't place him.

"Yes?" I waited.

"Ruvy, we have target practice scheduled for next week. You have a choice between Monday the 7th and Wednesday the 9th."

I sighed. I really didn't need this. The target practice was to make sure I could still carry the M16 I use on guard duty for the village - which is now, for me, the effort to stay awake in a patrol truck between 02:00 and 05:00 in the wee hours of the morning. If I didn't go, I wouldn't be able to carry the weapon or go on patrol, and another 250 shekels would be added to my monthly taxes to the village of Ma'ale Levona. When I get rich, I won't care. In the meantime, I go on patrol.

I turned all this over in my head. I was busy on Monday. I had a meeting in Jerusalem to try to figure out what my oldest son, who is leaving high school, would do next year. On Wednesday, we was supposed to be in the south of the country for "parents day" at the pre-military academy our younger son is attending.

"Nu, Ruvy? What should I put you down for? Monday or Wednesday?" The security officer of the village, Itzik, like most Israelis, was extremely impatient.

"What time does it start?" I asked him. "About 17:00 - like last time," he answered me. Last time, I waited for hours for the idiots to get started. A pig in molasses moves faster than the IDF when it comes to working with civilians. Even the Israel Police are more efficient!

Read more

For clarification, also read Confrontation at Ma'ale Levona

Christmas is about GETTING!

2009-12-13T08:01:00.001-08:00

"Christmas is about giving" - Says Who?

Who started that BIG LIE? Undoubtedly those with something to sell, the modern moneychangers! Look at the folks about you rushing like sheep to the slaughter, to the "sales" and such that they simply cannot afford. Going into debt certainly isn't biblical, so why not break free from the trance? The "Christmas" rush is a "drug" pushed by commercial pimps prostituting a supposedly Christian holiday for their ungodly profits! They hold hands around the cash register and sing, "What a friend we have in Jesus."

In all honesty, Christmas is about GETTING! The whole idea of giving gifts has gotten out of hand. First it's not Jesus' birthday. Second the wise men didn't exchange gifts with each other but gave their gifts fit for a King to the King of the Jews (two years old and living in a house at that time - which is why Herod slaughtered the children two years and under trying to abort the Messiah's ascension to David's Throne).

If Christmas is supposed to be about Christ (and some sincerely believe it is, still in denial that it's a pagan holiday God wants no part of), why let Santa steal the show? Why do folks pretend they care that Jesus was born when they deny His life the rest of the year? Why do folks get angry when you mention these facts and they're not even religious? The herd doesn't want their trance broken, so they'll go broke keeping alive pagan festivals and foolishness that will be the death of many. Too many prefer tradition over truth, grieved to say.

"Harmless" Christmas celebrations, abominations to God and rejected by Christ, are setting the stage for our worst nightmare: our family and friends are going to be shipped off like cattle, since our countries are prophesied to suffer national defeat and deportation due to such idolatrous ideas and tinsel traditions, as brought out in: Shape up or get shipped out!

WAKE UP: Christmas is an ABOMINATION. That's why I no longer celebrate Christmas, refusing to live a lie. The plain truth of the Bible and history has set me free from such traditional Babylonian bondage!

Blasting Roman Catholic Bull!

2009-12-12T19:02:00.001-08:00

Re: Happy Hanukkah!

Quote:

Originally Posted by Marvin

You don't know your bible.

I do know the Bible and testify to its plain truth which is what Roman Catholic cultists hate. The Roman Catholic Cult depends on folks being kept in the dark to what the Word says, since its light exposes your evil, as C.H. Spurgeon wrote:

C.H. Spurgeon on Roman Catholicism

"Cursed be the man before the Lord, that riseth up and buildeth this city Jericho." Joshua 6:26
"Since he was cursed who rebuilt Jericho, much more the man who labours to restore Popery among us. In our fathers' days the gigantic walls of Popery fell by the power of their faith, the perseverance of their efforts, and the blast of their gospel trumpets; and now there are some who would rebuild that accursed system upon its old foundations. O Lord, be please to thwart their unrighteous endeavours, and pull down every stone which they build. It should be a serious business with us to be thoroughly purged of every error which may have a tendency to foster the spirit of Popery, and when we have made a clean sweep at home we should seek in every way to oppose its all too rapid spread abroad in the church and in the world. This last can be done in secret by fervent prayer, and in public by decided testimony. We must warn with judicious boldness those who are inclined towards the errors of Rome; we must instruct the young in gospel truth, and tell them of the black doings of Popery in the olden times. We must aid in spreading the light more thoroughly through the land, for priests, like owls, hate daylight. Are we doing all we can for Jesus and the gospel? If not, our negligence plays into the hands of priestcraft. What are we doing to spread the Bible, which is the Pope's bane and poison? Are we casting abroad good, sound gospel writings? Luther once said, 'The devil hates goose quills,' and doubtless, he has good reason, for ready writers, by the Holy Spirit's blessing, have done his kingdom much damage. If the thousands who will read this short word this night will do all they can to hinder the rebuilding of his accursed Jericho, the Lord's glory shall speed among the sons of men. Reader, what can you do? What will you do?"

From "Evening By Evening" by Charles Spurgeon
Uhrichsville, Barbour and Company, 1991.

Quote:

Jesus continually did work on the Sabbath day.
from harvesting grain to healing the sick.

Yes, Yahshua cut through all the entangling human traditions to keep God's holy commandment. If Yahshua transgressed the holy commandment rather than merely BREAK WITH TRADITION, he would have been a sinner. Why are you accusing Yahshua of being a sinner? You're stuck in the muck of Babylon and condemn yourself with its religious bull that the Word of God slaughters.

Remember the Sabbath

Which day is the Christian Sabbath?

"And on the seventh day God ended His work which He had done, and He rested on the seventh day....Then God blessed the seventh day and sanctified it, because in it He rested from all the work He had created and made" (Gen. 2:2- 3).

Yahshua kept the seventh day Sabbath, just like Peter, James and John and every other true follower - unlike the accursed Roman Catholics who prefer their idolatrous traditions like SUNday and other pagan holidays.

Do You Prefer TRADITION Over Truth?
If anybody is honestly interested in knowing whether or not this or that doctrine is actually biblical or merely traditional, all they have to do is objectively search the Scriptures like the noble Bereans did in Acts 17:11, after hearing Paul out, to see whether what he taught was true...

__________________
www.DavidBenAriel.org

Maccabees versus Hellenists

2009-12-12T12:57:00.001-08:00

Even though it's not politically correct, and goes against our democratic grain, and could result in a backlash - Hanukkah represents those who are willing, if and when necessary, to risk the wrath of others to insure the triumph of good over evil, of light over darkness, and right over wrong.

In this particular case, the light of what's good and right was the brilliant example of those faithful few Jews who held their head high (sick and tired of being beaten down) and publicly chose to reject alien ideas and destroy imposed idols.

The Maccabees weren't overly concerned with a suicidal fear of world opinion, but mightily expressed their faith in God. They didn't flirt with "foreign affairs," or engage in self-destructive interfaith orgies. They kept the faith and cleansed the Temple Mount of its spiritual filth.

World Jewry continues to celebrate Hanukkah to this day, but in the spirit of hypocrisy! We're more like the cowering Hellenists who assimilated, rather than the courageous Maccabees who fought to remain true to themselves!

Thank Heavens, there are a growing number in Israel who want to see Jerusalem restored as our spiritual center, and our lives rededicated to biblical ideals, not humanist ideas.

Pray for Jerusalem's peace and the rekindling of Israel's light!

Where's the Temple on the Temple Mount?