Tuesday, February 26, 2013

In The News: Truce Broken - Gaza Rocket Slams Southern Israel





After Months Of Calm, Rocket Slams Into Ashkelon





A rocket was fired from the Gaza Strip at Ashkelon early Tuesday morning, breaking months of quiet between Israel and the Palestinian enclave.
The al-Aqsa Martyrs Brigade claimed responsibility for firing the rocket later Tuesday, saying it was retaliation for Palestinian prisoner Arafat Jaradat’s death in an Israeli prison on Saturday. The terrorist group, associated with Fatah, had published a leaflet on Monday urging a harsh response against Israel for Jaradat’s death.
The rocket hit a road in an industrial area in the south of the city around 7 a.m., according to Channel 10 news. There were no injuries, although the road was damaged.
Residents of the southern city reported hearing two blasts and authorities are checking to see if two missiles were in fact fired at the city. There were no warning sirens sounded to alert people in the area.



The rocket was reportedly fired from Rafah in the southern strip, and was the same type used by Hamas in November in attempts to hit Jerusalem, according to Army Radio.
According to the report, Hamas tightly controls the border city of Rafah, which is home to several smugglign tunnels into Egypt, indicating the rocket fire was done with the Strip’s rulers knowledge.
The UN’s Special Coordinator for the Middle East Peace Process, Robert Serry, said on Tuesday that he was “deeply troubled” by “resumed indiscriminate rocket fire from Gaza.”
The resuming fire from the strip is “totally unacceptable,” he said in a press release.







A strong earth quake with a magnitude of 6.2 in the Richter scale hit the Japanese capital Tokyo, Monday, causing the buildings to sway for more than 30 seconds, national broadcaster NHK reported. The broadcaster said there was no alert issued for tsunami.


"An earthquake occurred at about 4:23 p.m. today," an AFP report quoting the Japan Meteorological Agency reported. "Its focus was in the north of Tochigi prefecture. Its depth is about 10 kilometers and its magnitude is estimated at 6.2," it added.
A few minutes later, a 4.7-magnitude aftershock was recorded, The Daily Yomiuri reported. There were no immediate reports of casualties and injuries.




Why are some of the biggest names in the corporate world unloading stock like there is no tomorrow, and why are some of the most prominent investors on Wall Street loudly warning about the possibility of a market crash?  Should we be alarmed that the big dogs on Wall Street are starting to get very nervous?  In aprevious article, I got very excited about a report that indicated that corporate insiders were selling nine times more of their own shares than they were buying.  Well, according to a brand new Bloomberg article, insider sales of stock have outnumbered insider purchases of stock by a ratio of twelve to one over the past three months.  That is highly unusual.  And right now some of the most respected investors in the financial world are ringing the alarm bells.  Dennis Gartman says that it is time to "rush to the sidelines", Seth Klarman is warning about "the un-abating risks of collapse", and Doug Kass is proclaiming that "we're headed for a sharp fall".  So does all of this mean that a market crash is definitely on the way?  No, but when you combine all of this with the weak economic data constantly coming out of the U.S. and Europe, it certainly does not paint a pretty picture.



So why are all of these very prominent executives cashing out all of a sudden?
That is a very good question.
Meanwhile, some of the most respected names on Wall Street are warning that it is time to get out of the market.
For example, investor Dennis Gartman recently wrote that the game is "changing" and that it is time to "rush to the sidelines"...









Europe’s brief respite from political and financial turmoil has come to an abrupt halt in the wake of a nerve-rattling Italian election, Britain’s loss of its cherished triple-A credit rating and troubling developments on other fronts.
The upshot is renewed unease about Europe’s still unresolved debt crisis that is once again casting dark shadows over stock, bond and currency markets.

EU officials have to be dismayed by the electoral muscle displayed by anti-austerity parties in Italy on the right and left, reflecting continuing public outrage over deficit-reducing measures imposed by the emergency caretaker government of economist and political neophyte Mario Monti. The moves, including higher taxes and public service cuts, appeased Italy’s euro zone partners and global bond investors, reducing government borrowing costs and helping to stabilize the common currency. But the economy fell into a deepening hole, incomes plunged, unemployment worsened and voters took out their anger at the polls. Mr. Monti’s centrist civic movement won only about 10 per cent of the vote.


Life is no better in a large swath of the broader EU. In Britain, Moody’s cited the continuing economic weakness and the resulting risks to the government’s tight fiscal policy for its rating cut. In Bulgaria, where the government fell last week and the economy is in a shambles, rightists who joined mass demonstrations across the country burned a European Union flag and waved anti-EU banners. Other austerity-minded governments in the EU face similar murky political futures.












While presenting an oral argument in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia last fall, a lawyer for the U.S. Justice Department told a federal judge that the Obama administration believed it could force the judge’s own wife—a physician—to act against her religious faith in the conduct of her medical practice.
The assertion came in the case of Tyndale House Publishers v. Sebelius, a challenge to the Obama administration’s regulation requiring health-care plans to cover sterilizations, contraceptives and abortion-inducing drugs.
Tyndale is a for-profit corporation that publishes Bibles, biblical commentaries and other religious works. Tyndale House Foundation, a religious non-profit organization, owns 96.5 percent of the corporation’s stock and receives 96.5 percent of its profits. The foundation’s mission is “to minister to the spiritual needs of people, primarily through grants to other religious charities.”
As a matter of religious principle, the foundation believes that human life begins at conception and that abortion is wrong.
The corporation self-insures, providing its employees with a generous health-care plan. But, in keeping with its religious faith, it does not in any way provide abortions. For this reason, Tyndale sued the Obama administration, arguing that the Obamacare regulation that would force it to provide abortion-inducing drugs and IUDs in its health-care plan violated its right to the free-exercise of religion.
“Consistent with the religious beliefs of Tyndale and its owners, Tyndale’s self-insured plan does not and has never covered abortions or abortifacient drugs or devices such as emergency contraception and intrauterine devices,” Tyndale said in its legal complaint, prepared by the Alliance Defending Freedom.
When Tyndale sought a preliminary injunction to prevent the administration from enforcing the regulation on the company before the federal courts could determine the issue on its merits, Benjamin Berwick, a lawyer for the Civil Division of the Justice Department presented the administration's argument for why Tyndale should be forced to act against the religious faith of its owners. The oral argument over the preliminary injunction occurred Nov. 9 in Judge Walton’s court.
Berwick argued here--as the administration has argued in other cases where private businesses are challenging the sterilization-contraception-abortifacient mandate--that once people form a corporation to conduct business they lose their First Amendment right to the free exercise of religion insofar as their business is concerned.
In the face of this argument, Judge Walton asked an interesting question. His wife, a graduate of Georgetown Medical School, is a physician. She has incorporated her medical practice. Does that mean, according to the Obama administration’s argument, that the federal government can force her to act against her religious faith in the conduct of her medical practice?
Berwick effectively answered: Yes.
Here, from the official court transcript, is the verbatim exchange between this Obama administration lawyer and Judge Walton:









11 comments:

Robin said...

I love how Nanny Bloomberg blames insider sell offs on aging executives needing to liquefy assets for retirement.

David said...

Hey Stephen,

What do you make of the insiders selling their own stocks 12 to 1?
What reason would they have as an alarm that something is up. I sold all of my energy stocks that I inherited over 5 years ago. However my parents took a substantial hit over the last market crash. I finally talked them into putting it in a CD so hopefully it won't effect them this time. Of course they could just be selling to cause panick and be able to buy low....who knows...one things for sure the price of gold and silver are up....not to mention lead....ammo is outrageous.

WVBORN56 said...

"State department is going to force a federal Judge's wife to violate her religion"

Wow that gets the hairs on the back of my neck to stand on end! I hate evil and injustice. This ranks up there with bearing false witness in my personal ranking of sins.

I wonder if the rockets are going to start flying again? Bibi took some heat last time for not going into Gaza and finishing the job.

I really think we are still very close to going home. March should be very very interesting. So many things are just on the very edge of going over the cliff.

Robin said...

I particularly like how Bloomberg blames the 12 to 1 sell off on aging corporate execs who are ready to retire . . .as though suddenly, corporate execs, by a 12 to 1 margin are suddenly retirement age.

You have a lot more confidence in banks than I do, David. In an EMP, solar flare or contrived calamity to bring about this global currency they're peddling, the banks will be "on holiday" and will likely open back up to a devalued currency similar to the one Roosevelt pulled in 1934.

Robin said...

Anyone here ever hear of the book "Israel Omen"? I saw an interview with him on YouTube the other day . . .he was on JR Church's show about a year or two ago.

Anyway . . .he drew parallels between huge weather and other natural disasters and when England or the US plotted to divide up Israel. It was uncanny . . .and I was reminded of next month's "peace negotiations" in Jerusalem, Obama is making. If there IS such a correlation, than indeed, March should prove to be a very interesting month to be watching . . .

Scott said...

I agree WV - completely

Robin - I haven't read that book specifically, but have read similar books by McTernan ("As America Has Done To Israel") and he cites many many such occasions, involving nations through history. It's a very interesting read, probably much of the same information

Stephen said...

All I am really focusing on right now is the IMMINENT ARRIVAL of the
false prophet. NO ONE should be bullish on stocks now IF they were
ever given a brain to think straight.

THIS false prophet prophecy being
fufilled is VERY SERIOUS and VERY
CLOSE. Wall Street pig bulls will
put their heads in the sand and ASSUME
a dow going up for eternity...!!

really ??

and yet a 7 year TRIB period is
close to starting....

OH, but I forgot, BULLS do not
believe in that, calling prophecies in scripture a
fairy tale....!!!!

THAT is what will trap them
their IGNORANT SCOFFING ways....

VERY SOON.

Stephen >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

Stephen said...

more news on the False P >>>>

and the STATUS of the RCC now.

very sad >>>>>>>>>>>

http://worldnews.nbcnews.com/_news/2013/02/26/17088868-amateur-hour-vatican-conclave-drama-is-one-for-the-history-books-experts-say?lite

Stephen >>>>>>>>>>>>>>

Waterer said...

Dear Stephen,

The false prophet doesn't come till later. After the little horn uproots 3 and the seven give him their pwoer for an "hour' He will not be the next thig to watch for.He comes later in Revelation after the midpoint and makes everyonr worship the beast.

Scott said...

Waterer - where are you getting that? Is this what is stated in 'footsteps'? If so, I don't think I necessarily agree with that.

The ten kings are the 'body' that gives him his power; he uproots the three either early on in this process. Rev 17:12 reference that the 10 kings give him his power for an "hour", not the 7 (not to nitpick - I'm thinking and talking at the same time here :)


In Rev 13 - we see the FP discussed after the AC is discussed, and the beginning of this (17:11) starts with "Then I saw another beast, coming out of the earth.". That interval between the rise of the AC and the FP seems unclear to me as far as timing. There is an association between the FP's "job description" as given in Rev 13, and the persecution of the Saints (which significantly worsens after the AOD, but we don't know how long he (FP) is on the scene prior to this.

Just my 2 cents :)

Stephen said...

I will go with the evidence at hand. The dual lightning strikes
a few hours AFTER Benedict resigns.

It might be best if some people go
ahead and look over Tom Horn's books
that he put out. he probably knows
ALOT MORE about the FP then I could
imagine. He is very good Christian
writer.

This will be the last pope...

This WILL be the false prophet.

The papal crown (has two horns)
and speaks like a dragon ( to be
revealed soon)....

I am CONVINCED that the UFM has
already been established as the beast, with the 5 plus 5 group
backing the Secretariat up.

got established in JUL 2008.

all we needed is the FP on stage.
like in a FEW WEEKS.

Stephen >>>>>>>>>>>