Headlines for the day

Today looks more 'normal' in terms of prophecy watching, unlike yesterday, when there was an avalanche of prophecy related news. There are still some interesting and germane headlines, however:

Hillary for World Bank Position?

Secretary of State Hillary Clinton has been in discussions with the White House about leaving her job next year to become head of the World Bank, sources familiar with the discussions said Thursday.

A second source also said Ms. Clinton wants the position.

A third source said Mr. Obama has already expressed support for the change in her role. It is unclear whether Mr. Obama has formally agreed to nominate her for the post, which would require approval by the 187 member countries of the World Bank.

America at tipping point

Recent housing and employment data suggests the U.S. economy is at a tipping point where a double-dip recession is possible and home prices could have much further to fall, a veteran economist said Thursday.

That report, along with other data, including grim jobs figures and a slowdown in manufacturing, suggested that the economic soft patch seen in the first quarter of the year could be more protracted.

“My gut feeling is we might see a continuation of the decline” in home prices, Shiller said earlier Thursday at a Standard & Poor’s housing summit.

He added that a 10% to 25% slump in real home prices “wouldn’t surprise me at all,” though he cautioned that was not a forecast.

Hizbullah Provocateurs Incited Syrian Border Riots

Members of the Hizbullah terror organization were planted among the hundreds of Syrian rioters who tried to breach Israel's northern border on "Naksa day," according to documents released by the IDF spokesperson's office this week.

The IDF report that Hizbullah terrorists were among the rioters follows Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu's pointed criticism of Assad's regime saying Syria intentionally allowed the rioters to reach the border.

UN report: Iran accelerating development of long-range missiles

A report by a panel of experts convened by the United Nations reveals that over the past year Iran has stepped up the pace of its efforts to develop long-range missiles.

The report, which has apparently also been obtained by intelligence agencies in the West, was compiled several months ago. It appears that pressure from China resulted in the delay in officially releasing it.

The report cites apparently reliable information indicating that the North Koreans transferred prohibited missile technology to Iran via China.

America's Looming Quagmire in Yemen

The Obama administration is risking a fourth war in the Muslim world, escalating covert air attacks in Yemen. The danger of being trapped in an endless, costly, bloody quagmire should worry every American. The political dynamics of Yemen are poorly understood, and the administration risks being manipulated and exploited by forces it at best dimly comprehends.

U.S. Senators oppose Israel Return to 1967 lines

US senators proposed a resolution on Thursday opposing any Israeli withdrawal to 1967 lines, dealing a symbolic blow to President Barack Obama's efforts to renew peace talks.

"It is contrary to United States policy and national security to have the borders of Israel return to the armistice lines that existed on June 4, 1967," read the text introduced by Senators Orrin Hatch, a Utah Republican, and Joe Lieberman, a Connecticut Independent.

Hamas Summer Camps Train Next Generation Terrorists

Hamas is reporting record turnouts for its summer camps for children in 2011.

The 'summer camps,' combining Islamic indoctrination, paramilitary training, and social activities are set to begin again this year as United Nation’s summer camps, considered competition by Hamas, are being openly denigrated by jihadists.

Children and adolescents are an important target demographic for Hamas, from which its future army of terrorists will be recruited. Summer camps are an important means for indoctrinating Gaza's youth with Hamas' jihadist ideology.

The Show Trial of Geert Wilders

Definition - show trial - a trial held for show; the guilt of the accused person has been decided in advance.

Geert Wilders is a Dutch politician who is outspoken about the influence of Islam in Dutch society, a point of view which has attracted much support there as well as opprobrium.

Dutch prosecutors, as far back as June 2008, had initially refused to bring charges against Wilders, arguing that he was protected by the right to freedom of speech and that he had spoken out not against Muslims per se, but against the threat to Dutch society posed by the growing assertiveness of Islam in Dutch political and social life.

Nevertheless on 4th October 2010, Wilders went on trial in Amsterdam charged with "sowing hatred" after an Appeals Court ruling. The nonsensical nature of such a trial on such a charge was pointed up by Soern Kern.

The court's verdict is awaited shortly. Given the three ring circus aspect of the trial, Wilders may well be found guilty and if so could face prison and a large fine.

The implications of a guilty verdict for freedom of speech and thought in Holland and elsewhere in Europe and the West are almost too dire to contemplate.

The conduct of this case from beginning to end offers yet more evidence, if evidence is needed, of the double standards which obtain in the West about Islam, where a supremacist ideology is allowed to engage in hate speech and violence almost without let or hindrance just because it feels that it is not sufficiently respected, and yet is allowed to stifle disagreement by using the protection of Western democratic process, which it openly rejects, to defend itself against the consequences of what it has said and how it behaves.