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Barack Obama & Africa
The following link is to an article concerning violence in Nigeria and the Obama administration's claim it is a land dispute. Seriously??? Disappointing conclusion from the US on this.
For more visit:
The following article reports on US president Barack Obama and his thoughts on Jesus and Easter. (At least what he said in a speech, which doesn't mean a great deal – my thoughts on the article).
The following article reports on the personal religion of Barack Obama. What is clear from the interview is that the answers given to questions that were asked of President Obama, is that Barack Obama is not a Christian as far as the Bible definition of a Christian goes. He may be regarded as a 'Christian' in some sort of typical western religious manner, but as far as true Christianity goes, he is not.
Christian human rights advocate Gao Zhisheng reveals further abuse.
DUBLIN, January 19 (CDN) — Geng He, wife of missing Christian lawyer Gao Zhisheng, is demanding answers from the Chinese government following new revelations of torture of her husband.
"This is the first time that I heard about the details," Geng, now living in the United States, told Radio Free Asia last week. "My husband did not tell me – would not tell me – how he was tortured."
After consulting with Geng, The Associated Press (AP) on Jan. 10 published an interview with Gao, an outspoken human rights campaigner, during his brief release from captivity last April, in which he revealed details of the torture he had suffered during the previous 14 months.
Speaking with the AP in a Beijing teahouse on April 7, closely watched by police, Gao described many forms of torture, including a period of 48 hours when he was stripped bare, beaten continually with handguns and subjected to other excruciating abuse.
The AP released the interview in advance of an official visit this week (Jan. 18-21) by Chinese President Hu Jintao to the United States, stating its hope that "publicizing his account will place renewed pressure on the government to disclose Gao's whereabouts."
Geng planned to travel to Washington this week to further highlight her husband's case. At a U.S. State Department dinner at the White House tonight for Hu, she planned to wait outside to draw attention to Gao's disappearance.
Gao had asked that his account not be made public unless he disappeared again or "made it to someplace safe like the U.S. or Europe," according to the AP.
Initially seized by public security officials on Feb. 4, 2009, shortly after his wife and two children fled China to seek asylum in the United States, Gao was held virtually incommunicado for more than a year before police staged his brief reappearance in Beijing last April 6. (See http://www.compassdirect.org, "Christian Rights Activist Gao Zhisheng Released," April 9, 2010.)
After speaking with the AP and other journalists, Gao made a supervised visit to his in-laws in northwestern Xinjiang Province. During that visit, he again vanished on April 20 while in the company of Chinese police, according to a report by The New York Times on April 30, 2009. He has not been seen or heard from since, but China watchers such as Bob Fu of the China Aid Association (CAA) believe he is "definitely in the hands of Chinese security forces." (See http://www.compassdirect.org, "Human Rights
Lawyer Gao Zhisheng Missing Again," May 7, 2010.)
New Account
In his interview with the AP, Gao explained that police had moved him from his birthplace of Yulin to Beijing, then back to Yulin, and from there to Urumqi, where the most excruciating moments of torture occurred.
Allowed out on an evening walk on Sept. 25, Gao was approached by several Uyghur men, members of a minority ethnic group who claimed to be part of a counterterrorism unit. They punched him in the stomach, handcuffed him and took him to the upstairs room of a building. There they tortured him for a full week, culminating in a period of 48 hours when they stripped him bare and "took turns beating him [with pistols] and did things he refused to describe," the AP reported.
Gao said this was the darkest point in the 14 months since authorities had seized him in February 2009, and far worse than the torture during a previous disappearance in 2007. At that time, he said in a previous report, security officials gave electric shocks to his genitals and held burning cigarettes close to his eyes to cause temporary blindness.
When Gao in 2007 asked Beijing police why they didn't put him in prison, they replied, "You're not good enough for that. Whenever we want you to disappear, you'll disappear," according to the AP.
'Words from the Heart'
Fu of CAA on Friday (Jan. 14) also called on the Chinese government to give an account of Gao's whereabouts, besides imploring President Obama to address the fate of Gao and other prominent Chinese rights defenders during his meetings with Hu.
Fu also released a previously unpublished statement written by Gao on Jan. 1, 2009, shortly before his family's escape from China, entitled "Words from the Heart."
Carried out of China by Gao's wife, the document claimed that authorities had invested a huge amount of manpower, physical resources and funds to silence him.
"Not only is it now extremely difficult for me to make my voice heard, but it is also extremely dangerous," Gao wrote.
His faith, however, had enabled him to endure under pressure, he stated.
"I am optimistic by nature, and I am a Christian," he wrote. "Even when I was tortured to near death, the pain was only in the physical body. A heart that is filled with God has no room to entertain pain and suffering.
Gao expressed concern for his wife and children, who had suffered greatly from police harassment. He said authorities even banned his daughter from attending school, another factor prompting the family's flight to the United States.
Gao urged friends both inside and outside China to defend other human rights advocates imprisoned or harassed by the government, adding that "Heroes like Guo Feixiong … who sacrifice and risk their lives to defend religious freedom, are the true hope of China."
He also urged that a network be established within China to report on "countless" abuses of human rights.
"The publication of this article will cause me to be kidnapped again," Gao concluded. "Kidnappings are a normal part of my life now. If it comes again, then let it come!"
A Brief Biography of Gao Zhisheng
Gao was born in a hillside cave in Yulin, northern China, according to a brief biography written by David Kilgour of Media With Conscience (MWC). Since his parents were too poor to send him to school, he gained a basic education by listening outside the windows of the village classroom.
He then worked briefly as a coal miner before joining the People's Liberation Army, where he met his future wife, Geng He, obtained a secondary education and became a member of the Communist Party.
Following his discharge from the army, Gao became a street vendor and self-studied to become a lawyer, passing the bar exam in 1994. China's Ministry of Justice in 2001 named him one of the country's 10 most remarkable lawyers, according to the MWC biography.
But as Gao began to represent farmers in land compensation cases, practitioners of the banned Falun Gong group and house church members, he quickly lost favor with authorities.
In 2005, after Gao wrote open letters to President Hu Jintao and Premier Wen Jiabao calling for an end to the torture and execution of Falun Gong members, authorities closed down Gao's law firm, revoked his license to practice law, and placed Gao, his wife and two children under 24-hour police surveillance, according to reports by the China Aid Association (CAA). Police even beat his then 13-year-old daughter, according to the CAA.
In response, Gao in December 2005 publicly resigned from the Communist Party and later declared that he was a Christian.
Weeks later, on Feb. 4, 2006, Gao and several other high profile Chinese activists launched a "Relay Hunger Strike for Human Rights," in which ordinary Chinese citizens fasted for 24 hours in rotation across 29 provinces in China. The hunger strikes led to a wave of arrests.
Authorities then seized Gao on Aug. 15, 2006, and on Dec. 22, 2006 they gave him a three-year suspended sentence for subversion. Officials then placed Gao on probation for five years and allowed him to remain at home under strict surveillance.
Authorities again seized Gao in September 2007 after he wrote to the U.S. Congress expressing concern about human rights violations prior to the 2008 Olympic Games in Beijing. On his release in November 2007 Gao issued a statement via the CAA claiming that his captors had tortured him by applying electric shocks to his genitals and holding burning cigarettes close to his eyes. He added that he'd been threatened with death if he spoke about the torture.
Gao was nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize in 2007, 2008 and 2010 in recognition of his ongoing commitment to the advance of human rights in China, according to Kilgour's report.
State agents abducted Gao on Feb. 4, 2009, shortly after his wife and children fled China to obtain asylum in the United States, and they held him virtually incommunicado for over a year. (See http://www.compassdirect.org, "Action Urged for Missing Rights Activist in China," March 24, 2009.)
Perhaps as a response to international pressure, police staged a brief reappearance for Gao on April 6, 2010, CAA reported. But on April 20, during a closely-supervised visit to his in-laws in Urumqi, Xinjiang province, Gao again vanished and has not been seen or heard from since.
Chinese officials at every level have consistently denied knowledge of his current location.
Report from Compass Direct News
Imprisoned since May, father of six has yet to learn charges against him.
ISTANBUL, November 16 (CDN) — An Afghani amputee in prison for his Christian faith since May will face a judge this Sunday (Nov. 21) without legal representation or knowledge of the charges against him, according to local sources.
Authorities arrested Said Musa, 45, on May 31, days after the local Noorin TV station broadcast images of Afghan Christians being baptized and worshiping. Though there were other arrests in May and June during the ensuing man-hunt against Christians, Musa is the only known Christian facing a court case.
Turning from Islam is a capital offence under strict Islamic laws still in place in Afghanistan, which was wrested from the Taliban regime's hard-line Islamist control in 2001.
The subject of Afghans leaving Islam for Christianity became national news following the Noorin TV broadcast and ignited a heated debate in the country's parliament and senate. In early June, the deputy secretary of the Afghan parliament, Abdul Sattar Khawasi, called for the execution of converts.
"Those Afghans that appeared on this video film should be executed in public," he said, according to news sources. "The house should order the attorney general and the NDS [National Directorate of Security] to arrest these Afghans and execute them."
In June authorities forced Musa to renounce Christianity publicly on television but have continued to hold him in prison without revealing accusations against him. In prison, Musa has openly said he is a follower of Jesus.
In a hand-delivered letter penned last month to the church worldwide, U.S. President Barack Obama and the heads of NATO's International Security Assistance Forces, Musa wrote that he was physically and verbally abused by his captors and other prisoners at Ouliat Prison in Kabul.
In broken English, he wrote: "I am very and very in a bad condition in the jail," and elsewhere in the letter, "I am alone between 400 of terrible wolves in the jail, like a sheep."
In the two-page letter, a copy of which Compass received in late October, Musa addressed Obama as "brother" and pleaded with the international community: "For [the] sake [of the] Lord Jesus Christ please pray for me and rescue me from this jail otherwise they will kill me because I know they [have] very very very cruel and hard hearts."
Musa wrote of being sexually abused, beaten, mocked, spat on and deprived of sleep because of his faith in Jesus. He wrote that he would be willing to suffer for his faith in order to encourage and strengthen other Christians in their faith.
Musa also described how he had repented for denying his faith publicly: "I acknowledge my sin before [the] Lord Jesus Christ: 'Don't refuse me before your holy angels and before your father because I am a very very weak and [sinful] man.'"
In his letter, Musa alluded to the lack of justice he faced in prison, saying that the prosecutor had given the judge a false report about him and demanded a bribe from the Christian.
Integrity Watch Afghanistan, an anti-corruption monitor, recently reported that corruption in Afghanistan is rampant and has doubled since 2007. Most Afghans polled in its 2010 report said that state corruption was fueling the Taliban's growth. Bribes are frequently required for everything from health care to dealing with state bureaucracy.
Prison Transfer
Days after the letter was circulated, quiet diplomacy resulted in authorities transferring Musa to a different prison, to keep him separate from prisoners who would likely abuse him for his faith. He is now held at the Kabul Detention Center in the Governor's Compound.
A state-assigned lawyer has refused to represent him because of his faith. No other lawyer has been willing to represent him, though he has sought legal help.
Musa, known as Dr. Musa, has worked for the International Committee of the Red Cross in Kabul for 15 years fitting people for prosthetic limbs. He also has a prosthetic leg. Married and the father of six young children, he has been a Christian for eight years. His name is also phonetically spelled Sayed Mossa.
For the first two months of his detainment, sources said, Musa's employer and family could not find out where authorities were holding him. During that time his wife received threats that she must leave Musa. Authorities have so far denied his family access to his file, which includes the charges against him. It is believed that the charges could include apostasy and possibly espionage.
Local Christians and religious freedom monitors have expressed concern that Musa may be made an example.
"The court case against Said Musa is unique," said one religious freedom advocate, a Christian, under condition of anonymity. "Authorities usually don't want court cases against Christians. This is high profile, as Musa has been on TV and was put under pressure to deny his faith publicly. This is a kind of a test case to see which law prevails in the country: sharia [Islamic law] or international agreements."
Afghanistan's population is estimated at 29 million, with very few Christians among them. Afghan converts from Islam are not accepted or recognized by the predominantly Muslim society. In recent months experts have expressed concern over political threats against local Christians, and many, including those exposed by Noorin TV's broadcast, have fled the country. Christians who remain are afraid, according to sources.
"Dozens of Afghan Christians left their homes, as the authorities were actively looking for Christians after the television programs," said the religious freedom monitor.
In the face of societal stigmatization, Christians who dare to meet do so in small groups at homes. Sources report that since the hostilities in May and June, Afghan Christians are very intimidated.
Afghanistan ranks sixth on Christian support oganization Open Doors' World Watch List of countries where Christians are persecuted.
The country has signed the UN Universal Declaration of Human Rights stipulating religious freedom, and the nation's constitution also provides a measure of religious liberties under Article 2. Article 3 limits the application of all laws if they are contrary to the "beliefs and provisions of the sacred religion of Islam."
"It seems that this measure of religious freedom does not apply to those who have turned away from Islam," said the religious freedoms monitor. "They are seen as apostates, traitors of their faith and country."
Report from Compass Direct News
A Chinese human rights dissident and democracy advocate was awarded this year's Nobel Peace Prize on Friday, reports Peter J. Smith, LifeSiteNews.com.
Liu Xiaobo is the architect of a pro-democracy and human rights manifesto called Charter 08, which called for basic freedoms such as freedom of religion, assembly, protection of private property, and the guarantee of rights outlined under the U.N.'s Declaration of Universal Human Rights.
Authorities arrested Liu two days before the Charter's December 8, 2008 release and charged him with "inciting the subversion of state power." After declaring him guilty, a Chinese court sentenced Liu on Christmas Day 2009 to 11 years in prison.
The Nobel committee in particular cited Liu's pacifism in challenging communist China's human rights abuses and calling for democratic reforms.
Liu was nominated in part by eight U.S. lawmakers who praised his work and suffering for human rights in China.
On behalf of himself and seven other U.S. Congressman, Rep. Chris Smith (R-N.J.) recommended that the Nobel Peace Prize Committee recognize not only Liu, but jointly award the prize to two other human rights activists, Chen Guangcheng and Gao Zhisheng, who have been persecuted specifically for fighting China's brutal policy of forced abortion and sterilizations under the "one-child" policy.
Chen is a blind self-taught lawyer, who took the burden upon himself to defend local Chinese peasant women from forced sterilization and their children from forced abortion by local government authorities.
Gao, a Beijing attorney committed to defending human rights in China, was one of Chen's lawyers. On February 4, 2009, Gao went missing under suspicious circumstances.
Geng He, Gao's wife, told the Associated Press that she has not spoken to her husband since April and fears for his safety.
The Chinese Foreign Ministry has blasted the Nobel committee's selection of Liu, calling the award a "blasphemy" and Liu a "criminal."
"The Nobel Peace Prize is meant to award individuals who promote international harmony and friendship, peace and disarmament. Liu Xiaobo is a criminal who has been sentenced by Chinese judicial departments for violating Chinese law," the ministry said on its website. "Awarding the peace to Liu runs completely counter to the principle of the award and is also a blasphemy to the Peace Prize."
The AP reports that news of Liu's Nobel award has been blacked out in China. It added that Liu Xia, his wife, is guarded in her Beijing apartment by police, who have forbidden her from meeting with reporters.
Liu's wife, who is able to communicate by telephone and electronic media, told CNN that she intends to visit him in prison soon to inform him of the prize, and encourage him. She hopes to be able to visit Norway to collect the award on his behalf.
Last year's Nobel Peace Prize recipient was President Barack Obama, who was nominated shortly after his presidential inauguration. Obama praised Liu for his sacrifice in a statement and called upon Chinese authorities to release him from prison.
"By granting the prize to Mr. Liu, the Nobel Committee has chosen someone who has been an eloquent and courageous spokesman for the advance of universal values through peaceful and non-violent means, including his support for democracy, human rights, and the rule of law," said Obama.
Report from the Christian Telegraph
Daughter unable to attend school, church; acid thrown on her jacket.
CAIRO, Egypt, May 25 (CDN) — From the mosque across the street, words blasting from minaret megaphones reverberate throughout the tiny apartment where Maher Ahmad El-Mo'otahssem Bellah El-Gohary is forced to hide. Immediately following afternoon prayers, the Friday sermon is, in part, on how to deal with Christians.
"Do not shake their hands. Do not go into their homes. Do not eat their food," an imam shouts as El-Gohary, a convert to Christianity from Islam, looks through his window toward the mosque, shakes his head and grimaces.
"I hope one day to live in a place where there are no mosques," he says. "How many megaphones do they need?"
For nearly two years, El-Gohary and his teenage daughter have been living in hiding because he abandoned Islam and embraced Christianity. During this time he has been beaten and forcibly detained, and his daughter has been attacked. He has had to endure death threats, poverty and crushing boredom.
Asked what gets him through the constant pressure of living on the run, El-Gohary said he wants to show the world how Christians are treated in Egypt.
"My main driving force is I want to prove to people the amount of persecution that Muslim converts and Christians face here, and that the persecution has been going on for 1,400 years," he said.
When asked the same question, his 16-year-old daughter, Dina Maher Ahmad Mo'otahssem, pushed back tears and said one word.
El-Gohary, 57, and his daughter were forced into hiding shortly after August 2008, when he sued the national government to allow him to change the religion listed on his state-issued ID from Islam to Christianity.
El-Gohary followed in the footsteps of Mohammed Ahmed Hegazy, 27, also a convert from Islam, in filing an ID case because he didn't want his daughter to be forced to take Islamic education classes or have her declared an "apostate" by Egyptian Islamic authorities if she decided to stay a Christian into adulthood. Dina is required by law to possess an ID card. The ID card is used for everything from opening a bank account to receiving medical care. The identification also determines whether Egyptians are subject to Islamic civil courts.
Dina is the daughter of El-Gohary and his first wife, who is a Muslim. El-Gohary said that before he got married, he told his future wife that one day he would be baptized as a Christian. He said he now thinks she was convinced that he would eventually turn back to Islam. Over time, she grew tired of his refusal go back on his faith and complained to El-Gohary's family, demanding a divorce.
"She started crying. She went to my parents and my brother and said, 'This is not going to work out, I thought that he was going to change his mind. I didn't think he was that serious about it,'" El-Gohary said. "She started talking about it to other people to the point where they started calling me from the loudspeakers of the local mosque, asking me what I was doing and ordering me to come back and pray."
Eventually El-Gohary married another Muslim, and over the years she became a Christian. She has fled Egypt and lives in the United States; El-Gohary hasn't seen her since March 2009.
On April 11, 2009, El-Gohary's lawyers presented a conversion certificate from the Coptic Church in court. He obtained the certificate under court directions after going to Cyprus, at great expense, to obtain a baptismal certificate. The next month, the State Council, a consultative body of Egypt's Administrative Court, provided the court with a report stating that El-Gohary's change of faith violated Islamic law. They instructed that he should be subject to the death penalty.
In February 2009, lawyers opposing El-Gohary's case advocated that he be sentenced to death for apostasy. On June 13, 2009, a Cairo judge rejected El-Gohary's suit.
On Sept. 17, 2009, authorities at Cairo International Airport seized his passport. He was trying to travel to China with the eventual hope of going to the United States. On March 9, 2010, the Egyptian State Council Court in Giza, an administrative court, refused to return his passport. He has another hearing about the passport on June 29.
"I think it's a kind of punishment, to set an example to other Muslims who want to convert," El-Gohary said. "They want me to stay here and suffer to show other converts to be afraid. They are also afraid that if they let me go, then I will get out and start talking about what is happening in Egypt about the persecution and the injustice. We are trapped in our own country without even the rights that animals have."
As recently as last week, El-Gohary and his daughter were living in a small, two-bedroom apartment across the street from a mosque on the outskirts of an undisclosed city in Egypt. The floor was littered with grime and bits of trash. Clumps of dust and used water bottles were everywhere.
El-Gohary had taped over the locks, as well as taped shut the inside of windows and doors, to guard against eavesdroppers and intruders. He had taped over all the drain holes of the sinks to keep anyone from pumping in natural gas at night.
Even the shower drain was taped over.
The yellow walls were faded, scuffed and barren, save for a single picture, a holographic portrait of Jesus, taped up in what qualified as a living room. El-Gohary motioned through a door to a porch outside. Rocks and pebbles thrown by area residents who recently learned that he lived there covered the porch.
"I would open the window, but I don't want the rocks to start coming in," he said.
El-Gohary has an old television set and a laptop with limited access to the Internet. Dina said she spends her time reading the Bible, talking to her father or drawing the occasional dress in preparation for obtaining her dream job, designing clothes.
Even the simple task of leaving El-Gohary's apartment is fraught with risk. Every time he leaves, he places a padlock on the door, wraps it with a small plastic bag and melts the bag to the lock with a match.
El-Gohary cannot work and has to rely on the kindness of other Christians. People bring him food and water and the occasional donation. When the food runs out, he has to brave going outside.
"Our life is extremely, extremely hard. It's hard for us to attend a church more than once because people will know it is us," he said. "We can't go to a supermarket more than once because we are going to be killed."
Girl, Interrupted
Possibly the worst part for El-Gohary is watching his daughter suffer. A reflective youth with a gentle demeanor, Dina is quick to smile. But at a time when her life should be filled with friends, freedom and self-discovery, she is instead confined between four walls.
Even going to school, normally a simple thing, is fraught with dangerous possibilities. Dina hasn't gone to school in about a year. She said that the last time she did, other students ridiculed her mercilessly, and a teacher hit her when she tried to attend religious classes for Christians instead of Muslims.
Now she and her father fear she could be beaten, kidnapped and forcibly converted, or simply killed. She can't even go to church, she said.
"I don't understand why I am being treated this way," she said. "I believe in something, Christianity – I chose the religion because I love it. So why should I be treated this way?"
Dina was a little girl when she starting hearing about Jesus. Her father used to sit with her and tell her stories from the Bible, and he also told her about his conversion experience. Like her father, she cites a supernatural experience as a defining event in her faith.
One night, she said, she had a dream in which an enormous image of Jesus smiling appeared in a garden. She said the image became bigger and bigger until it touched the ground and became a golden church. She told her father about the dream, and since then she has believed in Christ.
Under Islamic law, Dina is considered a Muslim because her father was born as one. Because, like her father, Dina has decided to follow Christ, she is considered an "apostate" under most interpretations of Islamic law.
She gained national prominence in November 2009, when she wrote a letter, through a Coptic website, to U.S. President Barack Obama. She told the president that Muslims in the United States are treated much better than Copts in Egypt and asked why this was the case. She hopes the president will pressure the Egyptian government to ensure religious rights or let her and her father immigrate to the United States.
One afternoon last month, Dina was walking to a market with her father. As the two walked, El-Gohary noticed smoke and vapors coming off Dina's jacket. The canvas was sizzling and dissolving. Someone had poured acid over the jacket. El-Gohary ripped it off her and threw it away.
"I asked people if they saw what happened and everyone said, 'No, we didn't see anything,'" El-Gohary said.
Luckily, Dina was not physically injured in the attack, but since then she has been terrified to go outside.
"I am very, very scared," she said. "I haven't gone outside since the attack happened."
Change of Faith
El-Gohary, also known as Peter Athanasius, became a Christian 36 years ago while attending an academy for police trainees. During his second year of school, he became good friends with his roommate, a Copt and the only Christian in the academy. After watching cadets harass his roommate for praying, El-Gohary asked him why the others had ridiculed him.
"For me, it was the first time I had heard something like that," El-Gohary said. "I didn't have any Christian friends before, and I didn't know about the level of persecution that takes place against Christians."
Eventually, El-Gohary asked his friend for a Bible and took it home. His family tried to dissuade him from reading it.
"No, you can't read the Bible," his father told him. "It's a really bad book."
Undeterred, El-Gohary began reading the Bible in the privacy of his room. In the beginning, he said, the Bible was difficult to understand. But El-Gohary concentrated his efforts on the New Testament, and for the first time in his life, he said, he felt like God was speaking to him.
El-Gohary read the account of Jesus meeting the woman caught committing adultery, and the level of mercy that Jesus showed her transformed him, he said.
"Jesus said, 'If anyone among you is without sin, then let him throw the first stone.' The amount of forgiveness and love in this story really opened my eyes to the nature of Christianity," El-Gohary said. "The main law that Jesus talked about was loving God 'with all your heart, soul and mind.' The basis of Christianity is love and forgiveness, unlike Islam, where it is based on revenge, fighting and war."
Also, El-Gohary said, when he compared the two religions' versions of heaven, he found that the Islamic version was about physical pleasure, whereas for Christians it was about being released from the physical world to be with God.
El-Gohary said his decision to follow Christ was final after he had a brilliant vision of light in his bedroom at his parents' home, accompanied by the presence of "the peace of God." El-Gohary said at first he thought he was seeing things, but then his father knocked on the door and demanded to know why the light was on. He told his father he was looking for something.
Persecution Begins
As a budding Christian convert, El-Gohary went back to the police academy and learned as much as he could about Christ and the Bible from his roommate. Persecution wasn't long in coming.
One day an upperclassman spotted El-Gohary absent-mindedly drawing a cross on a notebook. The cadet sent El-Gohary to a superior for questioning.
El-Gohary avoided telling academy officials that his roommate had taught him about Christianity, but a captain at the school was able to piece together the evidence. The captain called El-Gohary's father, a high-ranking officer at the academy, who in turn told the captain to make the young convert's life "hell."
Officials were imaginative in their attempts to break El-Gohary. He had to wake up before all the other students. He was ordered to carry his mattress around buildings and up and down flights of stairs. They exercised El-Gohary until he was about to pass out. Then they forced him to clean bathroom facilities with a toothbrush.
El-Gohary was not swayed from Christ, but he decided he couldn't stay in what he said is the agency that "is the center of persecution against Christians" in Egypt. He tried numerous times to resign, but officials wouldn't let him. Then he tried to get kicked out. Eventually, officials suspended the police cadet and sent him home for two weeks. At home, his family had a surprise waiting; they had hired an Islamic scholar to bring him back to Islam.
The scholar started by yelling Islamic teachings into El-Gohary's ears, then moved on to write Quranic verses on his arms. El-Gohary remained seated and bore the humiliation in silence. Suddenly El-Gohary stood up, pinned the man against a wall and started yelling at him; the convert had caught the distinct smell of burning flesh – when he looked down at his arms, El-Gohary saw the scholar burning his hands with thin, smoldering iron rods.
"I said, 'Enough! I have tolerated all of your talk. I have listened to all you have said, but this has gone too far,'" El-Gohary recalled. "The man said I had a 'Christian demon' inside me."
As bad as things have been for El-Gohary and his daughter, their dedication seems rock-solid. They said they have never regretted their decisions to become Christians.
El-Gohary said that eventually, he will triumph.
"By law, my circumstance will have to change," he said. "I have done nothing illegal."
Dina is not so sure; she said she doesn't feel like she has a future in Egypt, and she hopes to move to a place where she can get an education.
Whatever happens, both El-Gohary and his daughter said they are prepared to live in hiding indefinitely.
"There are days that I break down and cry, but I am not giving up," Dina said. "I am still not going back to Islam."
Report from Compass Direct News
Convert from Islam tried to leave country to save his life.
ISTANBUL, March 15 (CDN) — An Egyptian court last week refused to return the passport of a convert from Islam who tried to leave Egypt to save his life, the Christian said on Friday (March 12).
On Tuesday (March 9) the Egyptian State Council Court in Giza, an administrative court, refused to return the passport of Maher Ahmad El-Mo'otahssem Bellah El-Gohary. El-Gohary said he was devastated by the decision, which essentially guarantees him several more months of living in fear.
"I am very, very disappointed and very unhappy about what happened," he said, "because I am being threatened – my life is being threatened, my daughter's life is being threatened very frequently, and I don't feel safe at all in Egypt."
Nabil Ghobreyal, El-Gohary's attorney, told Compass the government declined to give the court any reason for its actions.
"There was no response as to why his passport was taken," Ghobreyal said.
On Sept. 17, 2009, authorities at Cairo International Airport seized El-Gohary's passport. El-Gohary, 57, also known as Peter Athanasius, was trying to leave the country to visit China. Eventually he intended to travel to the United States. At the time, El-Gohary was told only that his travel had been barred by "higher authority."
El-Gohary, who converted to Christianity from Islam more than 30 years ago, gained notoriety in Egypt in February 2009, when he filed a court application to have the religion on his identification card changed from Muslim to Christian. El-Gohary's action caused widespread uproar among conservative Muslims in Egypt. He was branded an "apostate" and multiple fatwas, or religious edicts were issued against him. In accordance with some interpretations of the Quran, some Muslims believe El-Gohary should be killed for leaving Islam.
Since filing his application, El-Gohary has lived in fear and has been in hiding with his 15-year-old daughter. Every month, he said, they move from apartment to apartment. He is unable to work, and his daughter, also a Christian, is unable to attend school.
Their days are filled with anxiety, fear and boredom.
"We are very fearful," El-Gohary said. "We are hiding between four walls all day long."
El-Gohary went through extraordinary efforts to get the documentation the court demanded for him to officially change his religion, including getting a certificate of conversion from a Coptic Christian religious group. The certificate, which was the first time a Christian church in Egypt recognized a convert from Islam, also caused an uproar.
But ultimately, in June the court denied his application. He was the second person in Egypt to apply to have his religion officially changed from Islam to Christianity. The other applicant was denied as well. El-Gohary has not exhausted his appeals and may file legal proceedings with an international legal body. He has another hearing with the administrative court on June 29.
"I don't understand what I have done wrong," El-Gohary said. "I went though the normal legal channels. I thought I was an Egyptian citizen and I would be treated as such by the Egyptian law. I went through the front doors of the legal system, not the back doors, and for that I am being threatened, chased, and I live in continuous fear."
The National Constitution of Egypt guarantees freedom of religion unless it contradicts set practices in sharia, or Islamic law. While it is easy to change one's religious identity from Christian to Muslim, it is impossible to do the opposite.
El-Gohary's case was mentioned by name in a human rights report issued Thursday (March 11) by the U.S. Department of State. El-Gohary said he was pleased that his case was in the report. He said he believes it is his duty to open new doors for his fellow converts in Egypt.
"This is something I have to do," he said. "It is a duty. I have become a symbol for Christians in Egypt."
El-Gohary said he hopes U.S. President Barack Obama, other world leaders and international groups will pressure the Egyptian government to allow him to leave the country.
In spite of his ordeal, El-Gohary said faith is still strong and that he doesn't regret becoming a Christian.
"I don't regret it at all," he continued, excitedly. "This is the narrow road that Christians have to go through and suffer to reach eternal life. I have no regrets whatsoever. We are very grateful to know Christ, and we know He's the way."
Report from Compass Direct News
Justice Ministry receives international inquiry about progress of trial.
SILIVRI, Turkey, February 15 (CDN) — Barely five minutes into the latest hearing of a more than three-year-old case against two Christians accused of "insulting Turkishness and Islam," the session was over.
The prosecution had failed to produce their three final witnesses to testify against Hakan Tastan and Turan Topal for alleged crimes committed under Article 301 of the Turkish penal code. The same three witnesses had failed to heed a previous court summons to testify at the last hearing, held on Oct. 15, 2009.
This time, at the Jan. 28 hearing, one witness employed in Istanbul's security police headquarters sent word to inform the court that she was recovering from surgery and unable to attend. Of the other two witnesses, both identified as "armed forces" personnel, one was found to be registered at an address 675 miles away, in the city of Iskenderun, and the other's whereabouts had not yet been confirmed.
So the court issued instructions for the female witness to be summoned a third time, to testify at the next hearing, set for May 25. The court ordered the witness in Iskenderun to submit his "eyewitness" testimony in writing to the Iskenderun criminal court, to be forwarded to the Silivri court. No further action was taken to summon the third witness.
International Inquiry
Judge Hayrettin Sevim, who has presided over the last five hearings on the case, informed the plaintiff and defense lawyers that recently his court had been requested to supply the Justice Ministry with a copy of relevant documents and details from the case file.
An inquiry outside Turkey about the progress of the case, he said, prompted the request.
Seven different state prosecutors have been assigned to the case since Prosecutor Ahmet Demirhuyuk declared at the fourth hearing in July 2007 that "not a single concrete, credible piece of evidence" had been produced to support the accusations against the Protestant defendants. After Demihuyuk recommended that the charges be dropped and the two Christians acquitted, he was removed from the case.
Originally filed in October 2006, the controversial Article 301 case accused Tastan and Topal, both former Muslims who converted to Christianity, of slandering the Turkish nation and Muslim religion while involved in evangelistic activities in Silivri, an hour's drive west of Istanbul in northwestern Turkey.
After Turkey enacted cosmetic changes in the wording of Article 301 in May 2008, all cases filed under this law require formal permission from the justice minister himself to go on to trial.
According to the Turkish Justice Ministry, only eight of more than 900 Article 301 cases sent for review since the law's revision have been approved for prosecution. On Friday (Feb. 12) the Justice Ministry declined in writing a Compass request last month for a list of the eight cases in question.
Despite the lack of any legally credible evidence against Tastan and Topal, the Silivri case is one of those eight cases personally approved by the Justice Minister.
According to a CNNTURK report dated Dec. 8, 2009, U.S. President Barack Obama raised the Article 301 issue with Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan during their last face-to-face meeting in Washington, D.C.
"I think those asking about this don't know what Article 301 is," Erdogan reportedly said. "Until now it has only happened to eight persons."
This month the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe criticized Turkey's revision of Article 301, declaring that the government should simply abolish the law.
The Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE) in Strasbourg also warned earlier this month that Turkey is violating Article 10 of the European Convention on Human Rights to the extent that the European Court of Human Rights may impose sanctions on Turkey over Article 301.
Noting that the Assembly welcomed previous amendments to the law, the most recent PACE report declares it "deplores the fact that Turkey has not abolished Article 301."
Report from Compass Direct News


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After three years of raging at sea, Hard Events' Holy Ship cruise has proven itself to be the best nautical EDM adventure that money can buy. (Of course, we here at Crossfade enjoyed press accommodations, so we didn't actually pay.) It might still be a new-ish phenomenon, but this party boat has th ... More >>
The filmmaker talks 70mm, Joaquin Phoenix, and researching Scientology for his sixth and most anticipated movie.
Anthony Bourdain is moving on to greener pastures, and our hearts (and stomachs) will follow the writer, chef, and snarkmeister to CNN when he starts his gig at the cable news giant.For now, however, we have an entire new season of No Reservations to look forward to.Since it's Bourdain's last hurrah ... More >>
America celebrates its 236th birthday this year, and the parallels between our relatively young nation and the popularity spike of electronic dance music are becoming increasingly clear. From our ties to England to first-generation embodiments of the American Dream, this year's Fourth of July part ... More >>
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Al-P loves South Beach. Last night, MSTRKRFT performed for an enthusiastic group of dancing fans at Ultra Music Festival. It was after ten o'clock and the crowd was in full effect. They played a range of deeply textured electronica and ended with a mix of "It Takes Two" that an older ... More >>
Watch out yellowtail! Here comes Huff.If you missed the first part of our interview with Azul's new chef, Joel Huff, please click here.So how will you be changing Azul's menu?It will evolve very organically. Cooking the way it feels right is my motto. It's not about the style of cuisine -- it's more ... More >>
Here's video of The Sick Puppies playing their "Number one in the country right now!" song "You're Going Down" live from Cruzan Amphitheater in West Palm Beach with clean audio and a raucous crowd of fans showing their suppoort.The Sick Puppies are originally from Sydney, but are now based in Los ... More >>
Sneaky Sound SystemSneaky Sound SystemWednesday, June 17, 2009LIV at the Fontainebleau, Miami BeachBetter Than: Most vocal-accompanied house music.I've got to admit I don't know much about Sneaky Sound System apart from what I've heard played at the clubs. So when the Sydney trio were scheduled to m ... More >>
Must-see acts on the two-day fest's lineup.
A veteran Olympic swimmer Aims to beat the skeptics.
Melissa Rodwell's fetishizing of young men is nothing new in our exhibitionist age.
Minerva Vasquez speaks for the first time about the terrorism charges against husband Narseal Batiste
Miami City Ballet's shoemaster is its sole provider
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Could it be that this year's crop of summer movies actually requires a brain cell or two?
Jeffrey Sanker hosts another Miami New Year's blowout
From the issue of September 6, 2001
When Miami's tourist season heats up, the flesh trade flocks to town to satisfy those unbridled urges
And boy is he easy to find. Here�s how to track Miami�s newest celebrity resident, the world�s most famous double murderer. Er, make that alleged double murderer.
He's Miami's premier citizen advocate. He attends scads of boring meetings so you don't have to. He's on a mission. And he's going broke in the process.
Holy Smoke
To keep X-craved Miami Beach raving, Hasidic teenagers smuggled in pills by the hundreds of thousands
From deep within the Miami Police Department comes a convoluted tale of sketchy videotape, allegations of official misconduct, and two tickets to the Stanley Cup finals
O.J. performs before fawning Floridians who forgive him past indiscretions as he reinvents his future
American Airlines officials want to know why the Miami Herald is covering old news as if it were a breaking story

subset: commoncrawl


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The more the weight you lose the more you become attractively slim and skinny. Yet the cache in this product is that it will not leave your body undernourished unlike many a slimming supplements flocking the market. It will instead provide your body proper nourishment and deliver you a healthy weight loss. It will provide you a terrific reduction in weight and chop off all the bulky patches leaving you bubble with a reshaped figure and tantalizing body both well-toned and trim.
"What is Skinny Fiber?"
Skinny Fiber is an all natural weight loss supplement that is comes in the form of a capsule. The capsules are taken daily at least 30 minutes before your two largest meals. Once taken with at least 8oz of water the capsules expand up to 50x it's original size in your stomach, triggering your brain to make you feel full and eat less. This also helps to reduce your cravings and take in fewer calories. Skinny Fiber helps you burn fat and boost your metabolism.
Skinny Fiber is manufactured by Skinny Body Care. It is a made up of a 100% natural combination of fibers produced from fruits, vegetables, roots, seeds, and tree extracts with added friendly bacteria and prebiotics. The main natural ingredients in Skinny Fiber are :Glucomannan, Caralluma fimbriata and Chá de Bugre.
Skinny Fiber is scientifically formulated with the world's healthiest and most effective fat melting ingredients.Not only can Skinny Fiber help you feel full and eat less, but Skinny Body Care proprietary fat burning blend also helps reduce fat absorption, flush ugly toxins, gently boost your metabolism, and a host of other benefits to turn your body into a fat burning machine!
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- It comes in capsules and it cannot be taken by anyone who has problems with their esophagus
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Skinny Fiber Ingredients
Glucomannan is a very unique all natural dietary fiber that expands 50 times its size and the result is you feel full and the pounds drop off quickly. Glucomannan also collects and removes fat from the colon wall and that promotes bowel elimination while absorbing intestinal toxins and helping to normalize blood sugar.
Caralluma Fimbriata is a new arrival in the family of cactii and succulent plants that are becoming increasingly popular for their appetite suppressant, and weight loss properties, as well as their ability to lower blood sugar. It is a natural appetite suppressant used in India for centuries particularly in times of famine.Caralluma Fimbriata is also believed to block the formation of fat and forces fat reserves to be burned and results in lower blood sugar.
Chá de Bugre is the Brazilian secret to weight loss because of it's ability to stimulate fat burning and also gently energizes your metabolism while at the same time it lowers your cravings for food.There are also studies showing how Chá de Bugre can reduce fatty deposits and reduces the amount and appearance of cellulite.
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There are thousand of persons worldwide who are having great success with skinny fiber .. I have lost over 30 lbs using skinny fiber and it has even helped me with my ulcers.. I always believe that documentation beat conversation and there are pictures and testimonies to prove the effectiveness of skinny fiber..


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By N. H. DARTON and others.
In going from Kansas City to Los Angeles, a distance of nearly 1,800 miles, by the Atchison, Topeka & Santa Fe Railway the traveler sees a wide diversity of geographic and industrial conditions. First he crosses the Great Plains, which extend for 500 miles, to the foothills of the Rocky Mountains. In the eastern part of these plains the rainfall is ample for crops, so that nearly all the land is in farms and the population is moderately dense. Toward the west the climate becomes increasingly arid and farms give place to scattered cattle ranches, except along some of the watercourses where irrigation is practicable. Running streams and groves of trees are numerous in the eastern part, but the watercourses in the western part are much smaller and many of them are dry in summer, and the principal trees are cottonwoods, which grow along some of the valleys.
The Rocky Mountain province is skirted by the railway from Trinidad, Colo., to Las Vegas, N. Mex., and is finally passed between Las Vegas and Lamy. It consists of a succession of high rocky ridges rising abruptly 4,000 to 6,000 feet above the Great Plains. On account of their great altitude these mountains receive considerable precipitation and in large part are forested up to timber line, which is at an elevation of about 11,000 feet. The rocks are steeply tilted, and in most of the area the granites and schists of the old earth crust have been pushed far upward and constitute the high central ranges. Over the higher parts of the uplift the sandstones and limestones under which the granites and schists were originally buried have been largely removed by the elements. Between Las Vegas and Lamy the railway crosses the north end of the great Corona Plateau, a high table-land between the Pecos and the Rio Grande which lies south of the Rocky Mountains and is related to the plateau province west of the Rio Grande.
Beyond the Rocky Mountains the traveler crosses the Rio Grande and enters the great Colorado Plateau province, which extends westward across New Mexico and far into Arizona, and many miles to the north and south. In this province sedimentary rocks predominate, in large part lying nearly horizontal, so that the harder layers constitute extensive plateaus. It contains also many great lava flows, some of which form the surface of the plateaus. Most of this province is more arid than the western part of the Great Plains. Toward the west, however, about Flagstaff, Ariz., and the Grand Canyon, where the altitude increases to 7,000 feet or more, the precipitation is much greater and luxuriant pine forests cover a wide area.
Still farther west this high plateau descends by a succession of great steps or westward-facing cliffs, and finally, near Colorado River, the traveler enters another, a very different provincethe desert province of eastern California. This province consists of wide desert valleys, out of which rise long, narrow mountain ranges, most of them that lie north of the Santa Fe line trending north and south and some of them continuous for many miles. These mountains are particularly rocky and jagged and their meager vegetation is so scattered that they appear to be bare. The broad desert plains of gravel and sand likewise have but little soil and scant vegetation, for this is the most arid province in the whole country. It extends halfway across southern California to the foot of the San Bernardino Mountains and includes the Mohave Desert, a part of the vast area known as the Great Basin, whose streams do not reach the ocean but are lost in the desert. The San Bernardino Mountains and associated ranges rise as a high barrier on the west side of this basin, intercepting the moist air currents from the Pacific and thus causing the arid climate of the region to the east. These mountains are uplifted blocks of tilted rocks, largely granitic and metamorphic (altered).
The coastal-plain part of southern California extends from the western foot of these ranges to the Pacific Ocean, a distance of about 100 miles. Much of its surface is made up of coast and valley plains; its climate is mild, and although the precipitation is only moderate in amount the conditions for plant growth are so favorable that, with the help of irrigation from the streams that cross it and from water in the underlying sands and gravels, it has become one of the most productive agricultural districts in the United States.
NOTE.For the convenience of the traveler the sheets of the route map in this bulletin are so arranged that he can unfold them one by one and keep each one in view while he is reading the text relating to it. The contour lines, in brown, represent lines of equal elevation above sea level. Each line indicates the path that would be taken by one who walked over the country by a course always at the same level, curving in and out with the irregularities of the land surface. The lines are drawn at the vertical distances apart ("contour interval") stated on each map. Where close together they indicate a steep slope; where far apart, a gentle slope or plain. A reference is made in the text to each map at the place where it should be unfolded. The areas covered by these sheets are indicated on Plate I, and a list of the sheets and the other illustrations is given on pages 187-190. A glossary of geologic terms is given on pages 182-185, and an index of stations on pages 191-194.
Last Updated: 28-Nov-2006


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All Items > Self Defense > Knuckle Weights
Master Cutlery Z-Hunter Belt Buckle Novelty Knuckles (Green) ZB-017G
- Width: 4.50"
- Height: 3.00"
- Thickness: 0.32"
- Hole Size: 1.00"
- Material: Metal
- Finish: Green
- Weight: 6.81 oz.
- Brand: Master Cutlery
- Model: ZB-017G
- Country of Origin: China
This Z-Hunter Belt Buckler Knuckle features thick metal construction with a black-coated finish and splashes of zombie green, four 1-inch finger holes, and skull cutout.For Novelty Only
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Suitor, S and Potts, BM and Brown, PH and Gracie, AJ and Rix, KD and Gore, PL (2010) The impact of flower density and irrigation on capsule and seed set in Eucalyptus globulus seed orchards. New Forests , 39 (1). pp. 117-127. ISSN 0169-4286
Official URL: http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s11056-009-9159-2
Low capsule set is a major factor limiting the productivity of Eucalyptus
globulus seed orchards. This study tested the effect of flower density, as well as two
common irrigation techniques on capsule and seed set. Ramets with high flower density
had significantly lower capsule set (69.7%) than those with low flower density (81.7%). In
a regulated deficit irrigation trial, the non-irrigated ramets set a higher proportion of
capsules (63.6%) than the ramets that received conventional irrigation (CI) (51.4%). In a
partial root zone drying (PRD) trial, capsule set was highest in the absence of irrigation
(74.7%) followed by the PRD treatment (67.8%) and then CI (53.7%). The CI treatment
tended to produce the highest number of seed per capsule. Increased water availability
resulted in increased vegetative growth, which was associated with higher levels of
abortion in developing capsules but those surviving tended to have higher seed set. It is
argued that the observed effects of irrigation and flower density can be explained by
resource competition between vegetative and reproductive growth as well as competition
among reproductive structures themselves.
Repository Staff Only: item control page


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McCall's 6355
Happy Monday, Everyone! What's better to spice up mundane activities than wearing a new dress? At last, an everyday dress…… perfect for filling up, dressing down and whatever falls in between :) Turning to a pattern I've owned for some time, I … Continue reading
Posted in McCall's Sewing Pattern, Sewing Dresses Tagged Marcy Tilton, McCalls 6355, sewing knit, Sewing Stripes 85 Comments
Just as hubby started taking pictures in the backyard the snake appeared scaring us to the front where the light wasn't as good. Ugh – it's the one drawback about summer in the South…. …but there is nothing better than frolicking … Continue reading
First Summer Dress
In my book, the best season of all started Monday – H a p p y S u m m e r E v e r y o n e ! It's time for warm weather, fresh produce, … Continue reading
Mother of the Bride – Part 2
Dear Readers, I can only hope my deepest appreciation and gratitude for your generous comments, support and vote of confidence is evident in this post. I feel the love and am passing it on! You kindness is making the world … Continue reading
Ain't Nothing Like the Real Thing Baby…
Greetings from NYC! Hubby invited me to accompany him on a short business trip, and as you might guess, I made a beeline to Mood Fabrics. Here I am with the charming owners of the store, Eric and Phil Sauma. … Continue reading
Julie Starr – Ribbon Skirt Sew-a-Long Part 1
Greetings! At last the time has come to make Julie Starr's 'Spoleto Skirt' inspired by the J McLaughlin ribbon skirt. Many have asked how to … Continue reading
Julie Starr Ribbon Skirt Sew-a-Long
We all have our own favorite clothing stores. You know, the store that offers cute clothes which fit well and work for your lifestyle. In my case it's These small retail stores selling their label of traditional silhouettes with a … Continue reading
The Oonaballoona Dress
In the first week of December, Oonaballoona, that sassy woman from Kalkatroona sent me a piece of fabric I had admired just a few weeks earlier. For readers post November 14th……….. During my one and only meetup with Oonaballoona, my … Continue reading
Anchors Away
"I don't really know how to do casual clothes." Oscar de la Renta I don't know how to sew casual clothes – the kind of knock around frocks you wear on the weekend – but I'm going to learn. I … Continue reading
Missoni My Way
I cannot begin to explain how much I have always wanted to own a Missoni dress. Those chevron stripes in wacky colors simply speak to me. Unfortunately, Missoni is w a y out of my price range. I was willing to … Continue reading


text:
EDGEWATER, Md. - Officials say a fast-moving storm produced a number of lightning strikes in southern Anne Arundel County that damaged properties.
Lt. Frank Fennell, a county fire department spokesman, says the most extensive damage Monday occurred at a waterfront property in Edgewater. Investigators determined that lightning hit a tree and nearby propane tank, causing a fire and more than $250,000 in damages. About 60 firefighters from five companies battled the blaze.
Fennell says lightning also struck a farmhouse in West River, causing about $25,000 in damages.
Lightning strikes were also reported in Riva and Davidsonville, but no property was damaged.
Fennell says no injuries were reported in any of the strikes.
(Copyright 2011 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.)


text:
India's "big bang Friday" reforms might just stick
NEW DELHI (Reuters) - There were quiet celebrations in the offices of Prime Minister Manmohan Singh late last week after he stunned the country with a slew of steps to revive the tanking economy.
In the space of 24 hours, Singh had dispelled the image of an elderly ditherer and demonstrated - two decades after he launched India's transformative drive for economic liberalisation - that he remains a champion of reform.
"People were very happy," one aide to the Oxford-educated economist told Reuters. "There were no high fives, but people in the office were very satisfied."
So is this another "nuclear moment" for Singh, an echo of 2008 when he put his job on the line to push through a controversial civilian nuclear deal with the United States? Or is he still the wavering leader who backtracked on key economic policies three times in the past year to fend off protests?
Singh's government, already weakened by a string of corruption scandals, will inevitably face a political backlash over the reforms, perhaps enough to make him stop short of the difficult steps still needed to tackle a gaping fiscal hole.
But the signs are that this time the prime minister will stick to his guns, if for no other reason than because he may well have run out of alternatives.
"It will take courage and some risks but it should be our endeavour to ensure that it succeeds," Singh told a group of government economists on Saturday. "The country deserves no less."
GRAPHIC-Inflation, rates, IIP link.reuters.com/deq95s
His Congress party, which heads an unruly coalition, also seems confident that it can survive the onslaught.
In conversations with Reuters, several party and government officials said Congress leader Sonia Gandhi assessed the risks of losing coalition allies over the reforms - which could force an early election - and concluded they were safe.
"The calculation will be that these people will make noise but will not pull the plug," said Neerja Chowdhury, a political analyst, after the first of last week's bold steps, a sharp increase in heavily subsidised diesel prices.
Once seen as India's answer to Deng Xiaoping, who set China on the road to a market economy, Singh - who will be 80 next week - had seen his reputation crumble in recent months. In July, Time magazine dubbed him an "underachiever" unwilling to grasp the nettle of reform as economic growth sagged.
But over 24 hours on Thursday and Friday last week his government unveiled more big-ticket reforms than it had in all the eight years since it came to power in 2004.
In addition to the diesel price increase, it announced that it was opening up the retail sector to foreign supermarket chains and removing the bar on foreign investment in both airlines and broadcasters. It also approved the sale of stakes in four state-run industries.
India's economy is growing at about 5.5 percent, its lowest in three years and far short of the near-double-digit clip of the mid-2000s.
Its fiscal deficit is heading for at least 6 percent of GDP, blowing past the official target, inflation remains stubbornly high despite a long interest rate squeeze, investment has dried up and it is in danger of becoming the first of the big "BRICS" emerging economies to see its credit rating downgraded to junk.
Efforts to tackle the malaise have faltered time and again.
This was partly because Singh came under pressure from coalition allies and party colleagues opposed to steps that could alienate voters, and almost certainly because he enjoyed little support for reforms from his powerful, welfare-minded boss, Sonia Gandhi.
Over the past year the government has rolled back increases in petrol prices and rail fares. Most dramatically, Singh ditched an attempt to push through retail reform after mayhem in parliament and street protests led by his party's largest coalition partner, West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee.
Banerjee told Reuters in May that she would never support the likes of Wal-Mart Stores Inc (WMT.N) opening supermarkets in India, and on Friday she gave the government a 72-hour deadline to backtrack. She led a large protest on Saturday and suggested her party was seriously considering leaving the coalition.
However, there are reasons to believe that Singh and Gandhi will ride out the storm this time.
The economic crisis is far deeper than last year and a U-turn now would seriously discredit their efforts to salvage it. As in 1991, when India was close to bankruptcy, reforms came - and stuck - only when a gun was put to its head.
With its popularity down due to corruption scandals and the economy, the Congress party may be hoping to win back middle-class voters by acting now and hoping to have the spending power to win over rural voters on time for an election due in 2014.
"There could be a period of turbulence but we are confident of a safe landing," commented a senior Congress Party source, who said neither Gandhi nor Singh were in a mood to reverse the decisions they had made. "We can live without Mamata."
In the two weeks leading up to "big bang Friday", Singh and Finance Minister P. Chidambaram met Gandhi several times to explain the gravity of the economic situation. Together, the two veterans - Singh the economist and Chidambaram the lawyer - built their case.
Gandhi was told that without high growth India simply could not afford subsidies or the food welfare scheme she is determined to roll out for the country's millions of poor.
"On Wednesday, in the last Core Committee Meeting, it was decided 'let's go ahead with everything'," a source close to Singh said, recalling the moment when the reform argument won.
"Finally the message has struck home that you have to grow the pie, rather than just talk about dividing the pie," said political analyst Subhash Agrawal of think-tank India Focus.
The political roller-coaster of the next few days will yet decide whether that party meeting becomes a defining moment in Indian history, or merely a footnote.
(Additional reporting by Rajesh Kumar; Editing by John Chalmers and Alex Richardson)
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If major reforms have to come about, there should be attempts to improve agricultural production and productivity. There should be attempts to increase substantially the manufacturing capacity with the later day technology and improvements in productivity. There should be less reliance on the service sector, especially the BPO, ITES, etc, which tend to distort wage structure acorss the board and vitiate social structures.
FDI has played a very small part in India's development even if we go back to study its role since the late 1980s. India never secured world class technology through foreign collaborations. The study by the Government's Manufacturing and Productivity Council brought out some time ago is a damaging record on FDI role in India. So, to think that FDI opening in sectors like "retail", "aviation", etc will lift the economy from its current malaise is an illusion. This is being done to placate lobbies, both Indian and foreign. Even if retail giant play a beneficial role, a great if considering their records elsewhere, it may many years for them to build the marketing support. Aviation is a sector which is fashionable and elitist but plays a very limited role in economic growth.In any case, it is a tertiary sector and effects are indirect. Aviation is being opened to FDI more to placate a known lobbyist of dubious standing. If Dr. Singh wiahses to create a "clean" image of himself and his reforms, he has not served this cause by opening aviation to FDI. Soon, banks will be bullied to provide new loans to KF which would come back with a dubious foreign party as a saviour.
These reforms may not be called "reforms" in any sense of the term. They are knee-jerk reactions which partly address foreign criticism about policy paralysis and which, more importantly, cater to domestic lobbies such as KF, Bharti, etc. Dr. Singh will live long enough to regret these reforms when he retires from public life.
- Govt considers ban on e-cigarettes, sale of single smokes
- Islamic State fighters kill 220 Iraqis from tribe that opposed them
- PM Modi boots officials out of the first class cabin
- PRECIOUS-Gold, silver tumble to four-year lows as dollar rallies
- FOREX-Dollar boosted by U.S. growth, more hawkish Fed tone
Shares Hit Record
Sensex surges 500 points on BOJ easing, L&T gains
The BSE Sensex and Nifty surged to record highs for a second consecutive session on Friday after Bank of Japan's surprise expansion of its massive stimulus programme raised hopes for additional foreign inflows, boosting blue-chips such as Larsen & Toubro. Full Article
Ban on E-Cigs?
Govt considers ban on e-cigarettes, sale of single smokes. Full Article
Silver futures in India hit four-year low on global cues. Full Article
BOJ Policy
BOJ shocks markets with surprise easing as inflation slows. Full Article
Cost Cutting
PM Narendra Modi boots officials out of the first class cabin Full Article
Leisure Riding
Harley-Davidson woos affluent young Indians with bike culture Full Article
Shadow Banking
China's shadow banking sector growing rapidly, third largest in world - FSB. Full Article
Moody's on India
Moody's welcomes India's policy steps, but wants to see more. Full Article
Reuters India Mobile
Get the latest news on the go. Visit Reuters India on your mobile device Full Coverage


text:
"The MOA program helped me get hands on experience and really showed me what my options were, employment-wise. I feel better about myself and my career options." - Sara D., Medical Office Assistant Graduate, CDI College
CDI College has a number of upcoming events in communities across Canada, including these dates at the following campuses:
Summer Blood Drive in Winnipeg
With blood donation at an all-time low, CDI College in Winnipeg is ready to help Canadian Blood Services save lives this summer. The campus hopes to draw at least 20 donors at its a campus blood drive on June 30, 2014. The campus will also host a BBQ lunch for all participants and chances to win prizes for those who book appointments before June 20, 2014. Appointments can be booked through the campus. The blood drive takes place from 11:00am-1:00pm. Request more information now!
Veterinary Assistant Program Now Available in Richmond
Do you have a love of animals? Want to work with people and their pets? Train for a career in animal care! We're now offering the Veterinary Assistant program at our campus in Richmond. In 49 weeks, you can acquire the skill set needed to work in veterinary hospitals, animal shelters, zoos, pet product stores and more. Apply today!
CDI College Introduces Practical Nursing Access Program in Richmond
CDI College has launched a new program for Health Care Assistants looking to further their education and training. The 63-week Practical Nursing Access program recognizes the previous education of Health Care Assistant graduates from accredited BC colleges, giving them an opportunity to earn a PN Access diploma. Applications are now being accepted at the Richmond campus. Find out how you can get started by filling out the form to your right.
New Physiotherapist Assistant – Occupational Therapist Assistant Program in Surrey
Become a valued healthcare professional with help from the new Physiotherapist Assistant – Occupational Therapist Assistant program at CDI College in Surrey. In just 73 weeks, you'll graduate with 500 hours of clinical time working with professional physiotherapists and occupational therapists to add to your resume. Apply today!
Computer Business Applications Specialist Now Available in Ajax
Whether you're looking to find work in business, healthcare, technology or any number of other fields, basic knowledge and skills with computers and the Microsoft Office Suite will take you a long way. The new Computer Business Applications Specialist program in Ajax is the perfect way to brush up on old skills or to add new competencies to your resume. Find out how you can get started by filling out the form to your right.
New Paralegal Program at CDI College in Toronto
A brand-new Paralegal program is being launched at CDI College in Toronto! Applications are being accepted now and classes will start soon. The program can be completed in less than a year and covers everything an aspiring paralegal needs to know. From legal research to small claims court, the Paralegal program will prepare grads to work in law offices, legal departments and even give the skills to become self-employed. Find out how you can get started today.
Law Clerk and Child and Youth Services Worker Programs Now Available in Mississauga
Students in Mississauga now have another opportunity to pursue a career in the legal field with the Law Clerk program at CDI College. In just 56 weeks, students will recieve the knowledge and skills needed to find work in local law firms, banks, non-profits, insurance companies and more. Classes are starting soon. The Mississauga campus is also offering the Child and Youth Services Worker program. Aimed at those looking to make a difference in the lives of children and youth facing poverty, addiction or abuse, the program prepares students for a rewarding career in less than a year. Fill out the form to your right to find out how you can get started!
Stay up-to-date with what's happening at CDI College by following us on Facebook and Twitter. Interested in taking a career training program at CDI College? Fill out the Request Info form on your right.


text:
The many funny faces of Steve Ballmer (photos)
Summary: In Steve Ballmer's 13 years as CEO of Microsoft, we've seen that he's not afraid to attract attention - and he's not afraid to clown around.
13 of 27Image
In 2007 Ballmer called out Red Hat, specifically, for allegedly infringing on Microsoft IP.
Ballmer made headlines and many enemies in 2001 when he described Linux as a cancer. But by 2006 he even made deals with Novell.
Shown here with Yahoo's Carol Bartz, Ballmer said that no one quite gets the software giant's search deal with Yahoo. In looking back, Ballmer said he was lucky when Microsoft's bid to buy Yahoo fell through.
Kick off your day with ZDNet's daily email newsletter. It's the freshest tech news and opinion, served hot. Get it.


text:
By The Posner Pretties
Sign the Online Birthday Card for Mike Posner!
If we get plenty of signatures (100 sigs is the max), The Posner Pretties (me and my crew) will purchase a photo flip book of the signed birthday card to be mailed to Mike Posner to have and keep for memories. Thanks in advance! :)
Direct link to a Facebook post explaining it more in detail & guidelines: https://www.facebook.com/MikePosnerHits/posts/10153670507320162
Post by Mike Posner Hits.
This year, we're doing an online birthday card for Mike Posner and getting everyone to sign it. We'll purchase the photo flip book for Mike Posner and mail it to him if we get enough signatures on the card. Sign it ASAP, please! Thank you! :)
Direct link to a Facebook post explaining it more in detail & guidelines: https://www.facebook.com/MikePosnerHits/posts/10153670507320162
xoxo Posner Pretties
Did you see Mike Posner live on tour or other event? Did you meet him? Share your fan encounter story with us! If you have any photos (pics with Mike, on tour, at an event, or Mike Posner related drawings and graphics made by you) or a video (video of you singing one of his songs or a personal message just for Mike - submit your video or provide us the video link to a video you posted on YouTube.com or Vimeo.com that you have made yourself), then submit them and we'll post them here for Mike and other fellow fans. There is no limit on submissions, so submit as much as you want! We will share your messages/submissions with Mike Posner via Twitter. He follows our Twitter page at @PosnerPretties, so he'll see and read every post.


text:
mailing list archives
Hi >Alfred,
The exploit has been sent to Sun and is currently under inspection. When
it is publicly available it will be posted to Bugtraq and to the
SecurityFocus.com Vuldb.
true, but not via the proper channels until recently :-(
If someone else posts this vulnerability to the
list, we will of course allow it.
:-) ;^}
Unless you require sadmin (if your using the Solstice AdminSuite you do)
we suggest you comment sadmind out from your /etc/inetd.conf entry.
By default, the line in /etc/inetd.conf that starts sadmind appears as
100232/10 tli rpc/udp wait root /usr/sbin/sadmind sadmind
If you do require this service we suggest you block all access to it from
external networks via filtering rulesets on your router(s) or Firewall(s).
You missed a couple other things that will help. Tcp_wrappers on the service,
Running 'sadmind -S2' and setting the stack to noexec_user_stack =1"
via /etc/system (from the titan module that does this)
* Don't allow executing code on the stack
*set noexec_user_stack = 1
* And log it when it happens.
*set noexec_user_stack_log = 1
set nfssrv:nfs_portmon = 1
Brad Powell : brad () fish com (WORK: brad.powell () Sun COM)
Sr. Network Security Architect Sun Microsystems Inc.
The views expressed are those of the author and may not reflect the views
of Sun Microsystems Inc.
By Date
By Thread


text:
- The business side revealed in articles from the game industry but also from our readers opinion. Also includes various developer/studio profiles.
Game Connection Call4SpeakersInto Business
We're highlighting Game Connection Europe's Call4Speakers! Have you always wanted to share your expertise...read moreposted on: 2013-06-16 by EFG crew | 0 comment(s)
Involving the community while in developmentInto Business
A few weeks ago Square Enix said they would start interacting with fans earlier. They said this because Square Enix had...read moreposted on: 2013-06-13 by Frank Openty | 0 comment(s)
How long and how much?Into Business
The question "How long does it take to make a video game and how much does it cost to make one?" is easily asked,...read moreposted on: 2013-06-04 by Tom Schoen | 0 comment(s)
Company profile, Pocket ChangeInto Business
Pocket Change was founded by Ari Mir and Amos Elliston in 2011. Both founders had known one another before...read moreposted on: 2013-06-03 by Jerry Kline | 0 comment(s)
Company profile, The Bohle CompanyInto Business
The Bohle Company was founded in 1979 by Sue Bohle, who had been a Vice President and head of the public relations...read moreposted on: 2013-05-15 by Jerry Kline | 0 comment(s)
Kickstarter: A.N.N.E. by GamesbymoInto Business
This project is a love letter to the game that shaped who I am today. It is also a game that I want to play, badly.read moreposted on: 2013-05-06 by Rai Sewgobind | 0 comment(s)
Company profile, Alternate WorldsInto Business
A team of video game designers founded developer Alternate Worlds in 2011. Their goal is to create unforgettable...read moreposted on: 2013-05-01 by Rai Sewgobind | 0 comment(s)
Related articles
- - Into Business: Indiegogo: Deadly Kawaii
posted on: 2013-04-29 by Rai Sewgobind | 0 comment(s)
- - Into Business: Kickstarter: Pixels And Polygons
posted on: 2013-03-22 by EFG crew | 0 comment(s)
- - Into Business: Technoir Productions from movies to video games
posted on: 2012-11-14 by Rai Sewgobind | 0 comment(s)
- - Into Business: GameCloud goes for most trusted game QA house
posted on: 2012-10-05 by Rai Sewgobind | 0 comment(s)
- - Into Business: EFG visit to Softlayer Amsterdam
posted on: 2012-08-29 by Peter van Groning | 0 comment(s)
- - Into Business: Cliché reminds the founders to keep it fun!
posted on: 2012-08-06 by Rai Sewgobind | 0 comment(s)
- - Into Business: SuperFunPlay's key to success 'focusing on high quality'
posted on: 2012-07-09 by Rai Sewgobind | 0 comment(s)
- - Into Business: Indiegogo: Deadly Kawaii
Daily facts
The Sony Playstation was originally intended as a CD add-on for the Super Nintendo. Due to licensing problems and other issues, Sony decided to develop the Playstation as a machine of its own
QPoll - share your opinion!
What should Replayability be in games?share your opinion! and read other opinions...
Just to keep everyone in the loop, the EFG website will still be pretty inactive for the next few months. The reason for this is that we're focusing on putting our efforts towards our upcoming publications and a brand new website.
Also, more good news-Eye for Games is now an officially registered business. This should open us some more opportunities for us in the future.
Remember to stay connected with us on Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn to hear the latest news about publications or the website. We'll post more updates as they come along.
Member's Eye
- Metal Gear medley Orchestrationread article
André ColaresComposer, Rio de Janeiro - BRGo to profile
Ricardo RoblesConcept artist, Birmingham - GBGo to profile
Fabien Cazenabe3D Artist, Montpellier - FR
I'm french CG Artist, Work on Video Game like 3D artist.Go to profile
EFG magazine 2013.2 | cover by: Dion Koster
In this issue: interview with James Primate (Bright Primate), Anomaly 2 story design, character design and development process, a sneak peek behind Skara: The Blade Remains, Eye For Platforming, and more...
send in news
- - Announcements: Community beta version
posted on: 2013-02-10 by EFG crew | 0 comment(s)
- - Announcements: Community beta version


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tigerlabs says
PatrikL said
I think it's pretty obvious what my name is. Mr T
I pity da foo.
everytuesday says
ShermanJackson says
everytuesday said
I was named after this chick, no joke:
Aaah! I loved he-man
chrisatlemon says
My full name is Christoph … in the english speaking world just: Chris .. saves me from people calling me Christopher which I really don't like. Don't ask me why, just bugs me, must be some kind of forgotten childhood trauma … lol
Amrhamza says
and am called ' V ' for vendetta
Satgur says
i am called Abu Hasan …ahmm!
canimalition says
Prince William