El Salvador: Swarm of More Than 700 Earthquakes Rattles El Carmen, Damages Dozens of Homes

11/26/2011 Leave a comment

“SAN SALVADOR Nov 25 (Reuters) – More than 700 slight to moderate earthquakes hit an area in eastern El Salvador in a 24-hour period, damaging dozens of homes but hurting no one.

The brief quakes, which started Thursday and ranged from 1.8 to 4.6 in magnitude, have occurred in the municipality of El Carmen, some 163 km (101 miles) east of the capital of San Salvador, the country’s National Territory agency said.

Jorge Melendez, in charge of civil protection, said on Friday that 80 homes were damaged by the tremors, known as an earthquake swarm. A hospital in the area showed cracks on the walls but no structural damage so far, he said.

Army troops were sent in to monitor the damaged areas. While authorities have not ordered evacuations yet, many residents of El Carmen chose to sleep in the open and the army was handing out tents.

El Salvador suffered two powerful earthquakes 10 any ten years ago: one of 7.6 magnitude in January 2001 and another of 6.6 magnitude a month later. The quakes killed more than 1,150 people and left about one million others homeless.” Source – Reuters.

Categories: Earthquakes

Britain Now Planning On Belief That Euro Collapse is Now Just a Matter of Time, Foreign Office Warns to Prepare for Riots and Social Unrest

11/26/2011 22 comments

By James Kirkup – “As the Italian government struggled to borrow and Spain considered seeking an international bail-out, British ministers privately warned that the break-up of the euro, once almost unthinkable, is now increasingly plausible.

Diplomats are preparing to help Britons abroad through a banking collapse and even riots arising from the debt crisis.

The Treasury confirmed earlier this month that contingency planning for a collapse is now under way.

A senior minister has now revealed the extent of the Government’s concern, saying that Britain is now planning on the basis that a euro collapse is now just a matter of time.

‘It’s in our interests that they keep playing for time because that gives us more time to prepare,’ the minister told the Daily Telegraph.

Recent Foreign and Commonwealth Office instructions to embassies and consulates request contingency planning for extreme scenarios including rioting and social unrest.

Greece has seen several outbreaks of civil disorder as its government struggles with its huge debts. British officials think similar scenes cannot be ruled out in other nations if the euro collapses.

Diplomats have also been told to prepare to help tens of thousands of British citizens in eurozone countries with the consequences of a financial collapse that would leave them unable to access bank accounts or even withdraw cash.” Read more.

Wall Street Analysts Everywhere Are In Agreement: The World is Ending – “Blame the weighty issues of the day (Europe, mostly), and yesterday’s big selloff for the spasm of bearishness. It started off with Nomura’s Bob Janjuah. He said that any talk of the ECB saving Europe was a mere pipedream, and that if the ECB did go whole-hog buying up peripheral debt to suppress yields, then that would prompt a German departure from the the Eurozone… But then there was Deutsche Bank’s Jim Reid, who is always sober, but not usually wildly negative. He offered up one of the most bearish lines in history in regards to German opposition to ECB debt monetization: ‘If you don’t think Merkel’s tone will change then our investment advice is to dig a hole in the ground and hide.’ Oy. But it got even wilder with the latest from SocGen’s Dylan Grice…” Read more.

Categories: Man-Made Disasters

Egyptian Cleric Leads Pro-Al-Qaeda Demonstration in Tahrir Square, Threatens US and Jews with ‘Men Who Love Death’ and ‘Seek Death’

11/25/2011 Leave a comment

If they continue down the broad road they are on, their wish to be ‘united’ with Osama bin Laden will one day be granted. But it will be in a much darker place than the one they’ve envisioned …

Proverbs 21:6, “Getting treasures by a lying tongue Is the fleeting fantasy of those who seek death.”

Proverbs 8:35-36, “For whoever finds me finds life and receives favor from the LORD. But whoever fails to find me harms himself; all who hate me love death.”

Revelation 9:6, “In those days men will seek death and will not find it; they will desire to die, and death will flee from them.”

Egyptian Cleric Sheik Tawfiq Al-Afni at Tahrir Square in Cairo: “First of all, Islamic Law is the only source for legislation… the Prophet Muhammad prophesied that the return of Islam was inevitable… Sheik Osama bin Laden is a man who waged Jihad for the sake of Allah and we pray that Allah will unite us with him and the martyrs in Paradise. My brothers in Islam, we say with great pride that we adhere to the Jihad for the sake of Allah… We respond to Your call. Please turn our skulls into a ladder for your glory. We say to infidel America: By Allah, if you contemplate coming to Egypt, you will encounter men who love death more than you love life… I say to the Jews: if you contemplate harming Egypt or its Muslim people, you will encounter men who seek death more than you seek life … ‘Oh Allah, grant us martyrdom for Your sake. – Amen …” Watch video below:

Categories: Radical Islam, Wars and Rumors of War Tags:

Egypt: Muslim Brotherhood Holds Venomous Anti-Israel Rally, Vows to ‘One Day Kill All Jews’

11/25/2011 2 comments

So much for ‘moderate and non-violent‘. Is this why you were satisfied, Obama? …

By Eldad Beck – “Arab hate: A Muslim Brotherhood rally in Cairo’s most prominent mosque Friday turned into a venomous anti-Israel protest, with attendants vowing to ‘one day kill all Jews.’

Some 5,000 people joined the rally, called to promote the ‘battle against Jerusalem’s Judaization.’ The event coincided with the anniversary of the United Nations’ partition plan in 1947, which called for the establishment of a Jewish state.

However, most worshippers who prayed at the mosque Friday quickly left it before the Muslim Brotherhood’s rally got underway. A group spokesman urged attendants to remain for the protest, asking them not to create a bad impression for the media by leaving.

‘Treacherous Jews’

Speakers at the event delivered impassioned, hateful speeches against Israel, slamming the ‘Zionist occupiers’ and the ‘treacherous Jews.’ Upon leaving the rally, worshippers were given small flags, with Egypt’s flag on one side and the Palestinian flag on the other, as well as maps of Jerusalem’s Old City detailing where “Zionists are aiming to change Jerusalem’s Muslim character.”

Propaganda material ahead of Egypt’s parliamentary elections was also handed out at the site.

Spiritual leader Dr. Ahmed al-Tayeb charged in his speech that to this day Jews everywhere in the world are seeking to prevent Islamic and Egyptian unity.

‘In order to build Egypt, we must be one. Politics is insufficient. Faith in Allah is the basis for everything,’ he said. ‘The al-Aqsa Mosque is currently under an offensive by the Jews…we shall not allow the Zionists to Judaize al-Quds (Jerusalem.) We are telling Israel and Europe that we shall not allow even one stone to be moved there.’

‘We have different mentality’

Muslim Brotherhood spokesmen, as well as Palestinian guest speakers, made explicit calls for Jihad and for liberating the whole of Palestine. Time and again, a Koran quote vowing that ‘one day we shall kill all the Jews’ was uttered at the site. Meanwhile, businessmen in the crowd were urged to invest funds in Jerusalem in order to prevent the acquisition of land and homes by Jews.” Read more.

Flashback: Muslim Brotherhood Elder: ‘Jerusalem Belongs to Us, and the Whole World Belongs to Us … the Caliphate Will Return’ – “We are the children of Islam, the children of prophecy, the children of ‘there is no god but Allah and Muhammad is the prophet of Allah.’ I say unto you Gouraud, we will return and we will kill anyone who has polluted the al-Aqsa Mosque. I say unto you that we will return, as the day of Qurayza from long ago. I say unto you that we will return, as the day of Khaybar from long ago. I say unto you that we will return. Jerusalem belongs to us. Al-Aqsa belongs to us. Jerusalem belongs to us, and the whole world belongs to us. Every land upon which Islam has set foot will return to us. The caliphate will return to us, on the platform of prophecy.” Read more.

Categories: Radical Islam, Wars and Rumors of War

Syria: Unfazed by Ultimatum, Assad Continues Killing

11/25/2011 Leave a comment

By Elad Benari – “It was another bloody day in Syria on Friday, as the violence continued and the Assad regime faced the possibility of sweeping economic sanctions from the Arab League.

Local activists told The Associated Press that at least 11 people were killed by security forces on Friday, while the military announced that six elite pilots and four technical officers were killed in an ambush on Thursday in Homs, in an unusually high-level strike.

‘Our armed forces (will) continue to carry out our mission to defend the country’s security, and we will hit back against anything that threatens us,’ read the military’s statement as quoted by AP.

The British-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights told the news agency that security forces carried out raids Friday in the village of Furoqlos, near where the pilots were ambushed, and detained 37 people.

The latest violence comes after on Thursday, the Arab League gave Syria 24 hours to agree to an observer mission or face sanctions. However, the Friday afternoon deadline passed with no agreement. Instead, Arab League Secretary-General Nabil Elaraby received a letter from Syria seeking more details about the proposed observer mission and its legal status.” Read more.

Arab League calls for UN help over Syria – “A meeting of Arab League foreign ministers in Cairo threated economic sanctions and took the unusual step of asking for the backing of Ban Ki-Moon, the United Nations secretary general. These decisions brought more pressure to bear on President Bashar al-Assad after the deaths of at least 3,500 people during a nine-month uprising against his rule. At least 50 people were killed on Thursday, mainly in the flashpoint province of Homs – including 23 members of Syria’s security forces, 15 deserters and 13 civilians, according to activists.” Read more.

Israel elevates state of readiness on northern front for any Syrian repercussions – “Israel is elevating its state of readiness on its northern front in light of reports that events in Syria will have major repercussions on the Jewish State, Thursday’s Al-Hayat reported. ‘The inactivity of Hezbollah at the military level at this time does not mean the situation will remain like this. From our side, we will always be at the utmost state of readiness as if war might break out next week,’ Israel’s Home Front Defense Minister Matan Vilnai was quoted as saying while inspecting the northern Israeli district of Kiryat Shmona for its level of preparedness.” Read more.

Report: Russia Sent Syria Super-Advanced S-300 Missiles – “Russian warships that have reached waters off Syria in recent days were carrying, among other things, Russian technical advisors who will help the Syrians set up an array of S-300 missiles Damascus has received in recent weeks, a report in the London-based Arabic language Al Quds-Al Arabi said Thursday. Citing sources in Syria and Russia, the paper said that Moscow sees a Western attack on Syria as a ‘red line’ that it will not tolerate. Despite the mounting opposition in the West and even in the Arab world against Syrian dictator Bashar al-Assad for his assaults on protesters seeking to unseat him as leader of the country, Russia maintains its support for Assad, the report said.” Read more.

Categories: Wars and Rumors of War

Solar Eclipse Darkens Sun Over Southern Hemisphere

11/25/2011 3 comments

By Denise Chow – “A partial solar eclipse was visible over parts of the southern hemisphere today (Nov. 25), as the moon passed between Earth and the sun for the fourth and final time this year.

The eclipse was visible in southern South Africa, Antarctica, Tasmania, and most of New Zealand, according to NASA scientists. At greatest eclipse, as the moon orbited between the sun and Earth, 90.5 percent of the sun’s diameter was covered from the location closest to the axis of Earth’s shadow, which is a point in the Bellingshausen Sea on the west side of the Antarctic Peninsula.

While majority of the Earth was not able to view today’s partial solar eclipse, the event was visible in pockets of southern South Africa, across the Antarctic continent, Tasmania and portions of New Zealand’s South Island.

The shadow with Earth last touched a point on the planet west of the South Island, in the Tasman Sea, before it swept back out into space.

Solar eclipses are some of nature’s most dramatic celestial events, and occur when the Earth, moon and sun are aligned on the same plane. Partial solar eclipses happen when the moon partly covers the sun as it travels between our planet and its closest star.

Today’s eclipse was the fourth and final solar eclipse of the year. Partial solar eclipses previously occurred on Jan. 4, June 1 and July 1.

The next solar eclipse, on May 20, 2012, is expected to be a stunning event, and will be visible from China, Japan and parts of the United States.” Read more.

Categories: Cosmic Craziness

Mexico Experiencing Its Worst Drought in 70 Years, Government Says

11/25/2011 Leave a comment

“Mexico City – Mexico is suffering its worst drought in the past 70 years, a dearth of rainfall that has forced the government to supply water to nearly 2.5 million people, the Social Development Secretariat said.

The natural disaster is mainly affecting the northern states of Sonora, Chihuahua, Coahuila, Durango, Coahuila, Nuevo Leon, Guanajuato and Zacatecas.

Social Development Secretary Heriberto Felix Guerra, whose department is coordinating efforts to mitigate the drought, the most severe to hit Mexico since 1941, said it was ’caused in large part by the climate change affecting the entire planet.’

The secretariat has implemented an emergency water plan, bringing 700 tanks with 10,000 liters of water to ‘the most remote and vulnerable communities,’ Felix Guerra said.

All told, water has been distributed via 4,000 tankers to 1,500 communities across 12 Mexican states, benefiting 2.5 million people, the secretariat said.

‘Human beings come first. We must deliver all the assistance we can to people, who are the focus of our social policy,’ Felix Guerra said.” Source – Fox News Latino.

Categories: Famines and Crop Destruction, Natural Disasters

Japan: Authorities Report New and Unusual Strain of ‘Mad Cow’ Disease, Desperately Trying to Determine How it Got Into Food Chain

11/25/2011 Leave a comment

Radioactive crops, contaminated sea food, ‘mad cow’ disease, what’s next? …

“Japan has confirmed its eighth case of mad cow disease, and there is concern it could be a new strain of the disease.

The mad cow disease – or Bovine Spongiform Encephalopathy (BSE)- was found in a cow that was just 23 months old.

That makes it the youngest animal in the world to be confirmed as having BSE.

Japan’s health ministry says it represents a new, unusual strain of the disease.

There is concern the new strain might not always be picked up by Japan’s screening procedures, and the authorities are desperately trying to work out how it got into the food chain.

Japan is a major market for Australian beef, and at this stage it is not clear how the country’s eighth case of BSE will affect Australian exports.” Source – Yahoo! 7 News.

Categories: Pestilence

Heatwave Kills 200 Elephants and Other Wildlife in Zimbabwe, Situation Worsening

11/25/2011 Leave a comment

“Approximately 200 elephants have died of thirst in Zimbabwe’s Hwange National Park due to searing heat and chronic water shortages, a local conservationist says.

Zimbabwe, which, as a southern hemisphere nation, is currently in summer, has been experiencing record-high temperatures since October.

‘There have been 200 elephants that have died so far, and they are dying every day,’ Johnny Rodrigues of the Zimbabwe Conservation Task Force said on Thursday.

He said other game in the park, the largest reserve in the country, were also dying for lack of water. Adding to the troubles caused by the heatwave, pumps used to fill artificial watering holes have also broken down.

To protect the few remaining watering holes, some of the elephants are now aggressively driving away other game, who are stranded with no means to quench their thirst, Rodrigues said in a telephone interview.

The park is located in western Zimbabwe, close to the Kalahari desert, a very dry region with little water or vegetation.

The death toll of 200 elephants marks a rapid increase from the official figure released last week, which said 100 of the giant land mammals had died from the heat.

National Parks Director General Vitalis Chadenga announced that rangers were trying to ‘actively manage’ the situation by pumping water from underground boreholes into surface-level watering holes.

Chadenga said there were too many elephants in the park, claiming there were an estimated 40,000 animals in a reserve that can only sustain around 25,000.

But Rodrigues insisted the crisis in not being caused by overpopulation. He places the blame instead on a lack of maintenance and mismanagement of the facilities.” Source – Sky News.

Categories: Famines and Crop Destruction, Mass Animal Deaths, Natural Disasters

Report: US Aircraft Carrier Sent to Syrian Coast as Tensions Flare, US Embassy Urges Americans to Leave Syria ‘Immediately’

11/24/2011 Leave a comment

Sounds like something’s afoot …

By Will Rahn – “The USS George H.W. Bush, the Navy’s newest aircraft carrier, has reportedly parked off the Syrian coast. The move comes as the U.S. embassy in Damascus urged Americans to ‘immediately’ leave the country.

‘The U.S. embassy continues to urge U.S. citizens in Syria to depart immediately while commercial transportation is available,’ began a statement released Wednesday on the embassy website. ‘The number of airlines serving Syria has decreased significantly since the summer, while many of those airlines remaining have reduced their number of flights.’

In addition to urging citizens to leave the country, CBS News reports that Ambassador Robert Ford, who was recalled from Syria last month due to what the Obama administration called credible threats to his safety, will not return to the country later this month as planned.

Syria’s government has been strongly condemned by the international community following months of state-sponsored violence against political activists protesting the regime of President Bashar al-Assad. The violence is said to have left thousands dead in the country, which is a close ally of Iran and a sponsor of the Islamic terrorist group Hezbollah.

Adding to the sense of danger, Turkey, a NATO member and fierce critic of Assad’s government, recently warned its citizens to avoid traveling through the country after Syrian troops fired on at least two buses carrying Turkish Muslims returning from the annual pilgrimage to Mecca.

Some Arab publications have reported this week that a no-fly zone will soon be put in place over Syria — similar to the one implemented over Libya last spring. And while such reports in the Arab press are often met with skepticism by western observers, the financial news service ZeroHedge flagged down a report from the respected private intelligence company Stratfor stating that CVN 77, better known as the George H.W. Bush, had left the strategically vital Straits of Hormuz for the Syrian coast.

The idea of imposing a no-fly zone over Syria — an increasingly hot topic in Washington, D.C. — was discussed at Tuesday’s CNN Republican debate. Texas Gov. Rick Perry has said he would ‘absolutely’ propose a no-fly zone for the country, but when asked if they would do the same, other Republican presidential candidates remained hesitant.” Source – The Daily Caller.

Canada orders warships to stay in Mediterranean – “Canada will maintain warships in the Mediterranean Sea until the end of 2012, Defense Minister Peter MacKay announced Sunday. The HMCS Vancouver frigate was originally deployed as part of NATO’s mission in Libya. It will remain in the Mediterranean Sea until early 2012, when it will be relieved by the HMCS Charlottetown, MacKay said. Officially, the ships will be tasked with ‘locating, tracking, reporting (and) boarding vessels suspected of international terrorism’ alongside other NATO frigates. But MacKay also said ‘there’s no question having a ship in the region… gives us the capability to respond should certain things transpire’ in Syria or other hotspots.” Read more.

Categories: Wars and Rumors of War

Massive Solar Storm Due to Hit Earth Tonight, ‘One of the Most Violent Geomagnetic Storms Ever Recorded’

11/24/2011 Leave a comment

“A huge mass of electrically-charged particles thrown out by a gigantic eruption on the Sun is due to strike the Earth tonight.

Scientists expect it to trigger one of the most violent geomagnetic storms ever recorded.

The result could be widespread power surges and even blackouts, disrupted TV and mobile phone signals, and broken down communication satellites.

At the same time the Northern Lights, normally confined to polar latitudes, may produce dazzling displays in the skies above southern Britain.

At least one satellite has already been knocked out of action by the storm. Japan’s space agency said its Kodama communications satellite had been temporarily shut down after malfunctioning.

The solar flare that caused the eruption burst out of a sunspot at 10.54am yesterday.

Experts said it was the strongest flare seen in the past 30 years. The explosion caused a coronal mass ejection (CME) which is now speeding towards Earth.

Disruption

Last week another CME only hit the Earth a glancing blow, yet was able to disrupt airline communications.

The solar flare was classified as an X18-category explosion, meaning it can trigger planet-wide radio blackouts and long-lasting radiation storms.

Although the charged particles present no direct danger to people on the ground, they could have a devastating effect on electrical equipment.

Geomagnetic storms are classified on a scale of one to five. Initial indications are that the looming storm could reach the highest G5 level and last for 24 hours.” Read more.

Categories: Cosmic Craziness Tags: , ,

Obama Leaves God Out of Thanksgiving Address

11/24/2011 1 comment

Obama makes no mention of giving thanks to, let alone acknowledge, the God of Jews and Christians during Thanksgiving, yet had no problem revering Muslim’s devotion to “God” during Ramadan, had no problem praising Islam’s so-called role in “advancing justice, progress, tolerance, and the dignity of all human beings” and had no problem rewriting history in stating how Islam “has always been a part of America”, ignoring the fact that the few who eventually came to America of their own free will came precisely because of the undeniable reality that predominantly Muslim countries were anything but just, progressive, tolerant or respectful of human life.  It must really get under his thin skin that the vast, overwhelming majority of America’s pilgrims were Christian …

By Todd Starnes – “President Obama did not include any reference to God during his weekly address titled, ‘On Thanksgiving, Grateful for the Men and Women Who Defend Our Country.’

His remarks were void of any religious references although Thanksgiving is a holiday traditionally steeped in giving thanks and praise to God.

The president said his family was ‘reflecting on how truly lucky we truly are.’

For many Americans, though, Thanksgiving is a time to reflect on how blessed and thankful they are.

The president said the ‘most American of blessings’ is the ‘chance to determine our own destiny.’

He called the very first Thanksgiving a ‘celebration of community’.

‘We’re also grateful for the Americans who are taking time out of their holiday to serve in soup kitchens and shelters, making sure their neighbors have a hot meal and a place to stay,’ he said. ‘This sense of mutual responsibility – the idea that I am my brother’s keeper; that I am my sister’s keeper – has always been a part of what makes our country special.’

The president said that belief is ‘one of the reasons the Thanksgiving tradition has endured.’

But nowhere in the 11-paragraph address does he mention the Almighty.

Instead, he references the Civil War, two World Wars, and the Great Depression – noting that ‘Americans drew strength from each other.’

However, President Abraham Lincoln said the nation drew its strength from God. He declared as much in his 1863 Thanksgiving Day proclamation:

‘I do therefore invite my fellow citizens in every part of the United States, and also those who are at sea and those who are sojourning in foreign lands, to set apart and observe the last Thursday of November next, as a day of Thanksgiving and Praise to our beneficent Father who dwelleth in the Heavens. And I recommend to them that while offering up the ascriptions justly due to Him for such singular deliverances and blessings, they do also, with humble penitence for our national perverseness and disobedience, commend to his tender care all those who have become widows, orphans, mourners or sufferers in the lamentable civil strife in which we are unavoidably engaged, and fervently implore the interposition of the Almighty Hand to heal the wounds of the nation and to restore it as soon as may be consistent with the Divine purposes to the full enjoyment of peace, harmony, tranquility and Union.’

President Obama told the nation in his address that if they support each other and look out for each other, ‘and remember that we’re all in this together, then I know that we too will overcome the challenges of our time.'” Read more.

Categories: Anything Else