German Refugee Policy Under Fire after a Week of Bloodshed

The Associated Press wrote on July 25:

“Four attacks in a week, three of them carried out by asylum seekers, have left Germany on edge and Chancellor Angela Merkel’s policies of welcoming refugees under renewed criticism. The unprecedented bloodshed began July 18, when a 17-year-old from Afghanistan wielding an ax attacked people on a train near Wuerzburg, wounding five people before he was shot to death by police. The Islamic State group claimed responsibility.

“On Sunday, a 21-year-old Syrian [refugee] used a knife to kill a 45-year-old Polish woman in the southern city of Reutlingen. Authorities said assailant and victim knew each other from working in the same restaurant, and the incident was not related to terrorism.

“Also Sunday, a 27-year-old Syrian who was denied asylum detonated a backpack of explosives and shrapnel at the entrance to an outdoor music festival in Ansbach, killing himself and wounding 15 people. The Islamic State group claimed responsibility, and German security officials said a video on the attacker’s phone shows him pledging allegiance to the extremists.

“The deadliest attack came Friday night in Munich. The German-born, 18-year-old son of Iranian asylum seekers went on a shooting spree and killed nine people. The youth had obsessively researched mass shootings, and authorities said the attack does not appear to be linked to Islamic extremists. The violence followed an attack in the French Riviera by a Tunisian truck driver who plowed his vehicle into a Bastille Day crowd, killing 84 people in Nice.

“Experts say the attacks are likely to inflame anti-foreigner sentiment in Germany, creating a challenge for Merkel’s government. Merkel could now face increased calls for tighter border security and greater vetting of arrivals… Anxiety over Germany’s ability to cope with last year’s flood of more than 1 million registered asylum seekers first surged following a series of sexual assaults and robberies in Cologne during New Year celebrations. The crimes, which prosecutors said were committed largely by foreigners, fueled anti-immigrant sentiment and helped bolster support for the populist, anti-Islam AfD (Alternatives for Germany) party in three regional elections…

“On Monday, the AfD criticized Merkel’s administration, saying that under “the current ideology of a dangerous “multiculturalism,” the country’s domestic security and the order of Germany keeps getting destroyed.’ Social media criticism of Merkel was especially harsh, with some people condemning her for accepting hundreds of thousands of migrants last year.

“Merkel tried to calm the mood over the weekend by saying the security services will ‘do everything possible to protect the security and freedom of all people in Germany.’ Interior Minister Thomas de Maiziere said most asylum seekers had come to Germany to escape persecution, and it was important to remember that only a tiny minority had links to terrorism. It would be wrong, he told the Funke newspaper group, to put all of them under ‘general suspicion, even if there are investigations in individual cases.’…

“Nonetheless, ‘people in Germany are scared,’ said Rainer Wendt, the head of the police union DPolG. ‘Last year, we gave up control of our borders and instructed police not to check everything that should have been checked,’ Wendt said in an interview on German broadcaster N-TV. ‘There was also this welcome culture, which stopped us clearly seeing that some people have come here who are up to no good, or who are so psychologically unstable that they pose a considerable threat.’

“Armin Nassehi, a sociologist at Ludwig Maximilian University in Munich, said that among the one million asylum seekers who were registered in Germany last year, ‘there’s a big number of traumatized people who know nothing but violence — that’s a fact one cannot ignore.’ He pointed out that ‘most people who commit Islamist acts of terror are also psychologically unstable.’

“Asked why there were so many attacks in such a short time, Nassehi suggested some of the attackers may be copycats, saying that ‘images of violence produce further violence.’ Asked how similar attacks could best be prevented, de Maiziere said it was important to ensure that new arrivals be well-integrated quickly into German society.”

Deadly Terror Attack in France

JTA wrote on July 26:

“An attack on a Catholic church in northern France that saw an 84-year-old priest killed is an attack against all religions, the head of the European Jewish Congress said. Two assailants who had pledged allegiance to the Islamic State also critically wounded at least one other person during the Tuesday morning attack in Saint-Etienne-du-Rouvray, a suburb of Rouen about 65 miles northwest of Paris. They shouted ‘Allahu Akbar’…  before slitting the priest’s throat, according to reports.

“The terrorists were shot and killed after taking the priest, two nuns and two parishioners hostage during morning Mass. Following the siege, the Islamic State claimed the two men as its ‘soldiers.’ ‘An attack against a religious institution and a man of God is an attack against all religions and faith itself,’ Dr. Moshe Kantor, president of the European Jewish Congress, said in a statement following the attack. ‘This dastardly attack will only strengthen our resolve to defeat the enemy of Islamist terrorism. This attack targets us all decent Europeans, Christians, Jews and Muslims alike,’ he said.

“Israeli President Reuven Rivlin called on the free world to ‘fight to defend’ our values. ‘This attack shows the true face of the brutal nature and horror of terrorism,’ he said. ‘This is an attack by radical extremists, terrorists, who have struck at the very symbol of peace and murdered in cold blood in a house of God, while they pretend to speak in His name.’”

Donald Trump: “French and Germans to Face ‘Extreme Vetting’ Entering the US”

The Telegraph wrote on July 24:

“Donald Trump has suggested terrorist attacks in France and Germany were their ‘own fault’ and citizens of those ‘compromised’ countries could be subject to ‘extreme vetting’ before entering the United States.

“Mr Trump was giving more detail about a policy he announced in his Republican convention speech on Thursday. When asked in an interview with NBC News if that might lead to a point when not a lot of people from overseas are allowed in, the Republican presidential nominee said: ‘Maybe we get to that point.’ He said France and Germany had ‘totally’ been compromised by terrorism.

“Mr Trump said: ‘You know why? It’s their own fault because they allowed people to come into their territory. ‘We have to have tough, we’re going to have, tough standards. If a person can’t prove what they have to be able to prove they’re not coming into this country.’

“He added: ‘That’s why Brexit happened OK? Because the UK is saying “We’re tired of this stuff, what’s going on? We’re tired of it.” Here’s my plan, here is what I want, extreme vetting.’”

Newsmax added on July 24:

“Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump is calling changes to his proposed ban on foreigners entering the U.S. from countries ‘compromised by terrorism’ an ‘expansion’ of his Muslim ban. That expansion could even include allies like France and Germany, Trump said Sunday during a TV interview… Originally a ban on all Muslims entering the U.S., Trump changed his plan to one that focused on countries compromised by terrorism.

“‘I’m looking now at territory,’ he told moderator Chuck Todd… ‘And I would stop the Syrian migration and a Syrian from coming into this country in two seconds.’ Todd raised the point that allies like France and Germany with large Muslim populations have also produced home-grown terrorists. Would they be included in the ban, he asked. ‘We have problems in Germany and France,’ Trump said… ‘It’s their fault because they allowed people over years to come into their territory and that’s why Brexit happened,’ Trump said… ‘You can get to the point where you’re not allowing a lot of people to come into this country,’ Todd pointed out. ‘Maybe we get to that point.’’”

The Local wrote on July 24:

“‘I’m going to be coming out over the next few weeks with a number of the places [which have been compromised by terrorism],’ said Trump… ‘People were so upset when I used the word Muslim. Oh, you can’t use the word Muslim. Remember this. And I’m okay with that because I’m talking territory instead of Muslim,’ he said. ‘Just remember this,’ Trump said. ‘Our Constitution is great. But it doesn’t necessarily give us the right to commit suicide, okay? Now, we have a religious, you know, everybody wants to be protected. And that’s great. And that’s the wonderful part of our Constitution. I view it differently.’”

As all of these comments show, it is often quite difficult to figure out what Donald Trump is actually saying, and what he may mean. But if he is serious about denying German and French tourists entry to the USA, as they would be coming from countries or “territories” that have “totally been compromised by terrorism,” and because they “can’t prove what they have to be able to prove” (whatever that means), then this concept might help him to get more votes at the Presidential election, but it would be a bombshell of such magnitude in Europe that especially France and Germany would quickly unite in opposing and fighting Donald Trump as US President. Donald Trump is already extremely disliked in much of Europe, but such a policy, as indicated by Trump, would be considered as a hostile attack against Germany and France and the last nail of the coffin. It would, of course, be in total harmony with prophesied events, which predict a total deterioration of the relationship between Europe and the USA, which would ultimately contribute to the beginning of World War III.

Being aware of the absolutely explosive nature of Trump’s somewhat predictable comments, the Associated Press reported on July 25 that “Trump’s campaign chairman, Paul Manafort, played down the potential effects of Trump’s call for ‘extreme vetting’ for people coming from France and Germany. Manafort said the US will have an easier time screening people from those countries because of long-standing ‘cooperative agreements.’”  However, one must ask what Trump really means, because his vague indications are great cause for alarm in Europe. The German press (for instance, Die Welt and Focus) paid much attention to Trump’s comments.

Trump: “Can’t Go Into World War III for NATO”

On July 26, Newsmax published an article with the following headline: “Trump: Can’t Go Into World War III for NATO Allies Who Don’t Pay.”

The article continued:

“GOP presidential nominee Donald Trump doubled down on his criticism of NATO allies not paying while expecting the United States to protect them…  ‘We are funding 73 percent of the cost of NATO,’ he said. ‘They have an agreement to reimburse us and pay us and they are not doing it … And then we are supposed to get into World War III.’”

Head of Democratic Party Resigns in Disgrace

Reuters wrote on July 24:

“The head of the Democratic Party resigned on Sunday amid a furor over embarrassing leaked emails, hoping to head off a growing rebellion by Bernie Sanders supporters on the eve of the convention to nominate Hillary Clinton for the White House. Lingering bitterness from the heated primary campaign between Clinton and Sanders erupted after more than 19,000 Democratic National Committee emails, leaked on Friday, confirmed Sanders’ frequent charge that the party played favorites in the race.

“In a statement, DNC Chairwoman Debbie Wasserman Schultz said the best way for the party to accomplish its goal of putting Clinton in the White House was for her to step aside. Sanders had demanded earlier in the day that Wasserman Schultz resign. The furor was a blow to a party keen on projecting stability in contrast to the volatility of Republican candidate Donald Trump, who was formally nominated at a raucous convention in Cleveland last week.

“It also overshadowed preparations in Philadelphia for Clinton’s coronation as the nominee to face Trump in the Nov. 8 presidential election…

“The cache of emails leaked on Friday by the WikiLeaks website disclosed that DNC officials explored ways to undermine Sanders’ insurgent presidential campaign, including raising questions about whether Sanders, who is Jewish, was really an atheist…

“The Clinton camp questioned whether Russians may have had a hand in the hack attack on the party’s emails and were interested in helping Trump, who has exchanged words of praise with Russian President Vladimir Putin… Trump campaign manager Paul Manafort said the Clinton camp was trying to distract from its party discord… ‘What’s in those emails show that it was a clearly rigged system, that Bernie Sanders … never had a chance.’”

Subsequently, Hillary Clinton allegedly hired Debbie Wassermann Schultz for her campaign. On Tuesday, Hillary Clinton was officially nominated as Democratic Presidential candidate, “making history as the first major political party to choose a woman as its standard-bearer,” according to the New York Times, dated July 26.

Did Russia Do It?

Thomson/Reuters wrote on July 25:

“If the Russian government is behind the theft and release of embarrassing emails from the Democratic Party, as U.S. officials have suggested, it may reflect less a love of Donald Trump or enmity for Hillary Clinton than a desire to discredit the U.S. political system. A U.S. official who is taking part in the investigation said that intelligence collected on the hacking of Democratic National Committee (DNC) emails released by Wikileaks on Friday ‘indicates beyond a reasonable doubt that it originated in Russia.’

“The timing on the eve of Clinton’s formal nomination this week for the Nov. 8 presidential election has raised questions about whether Russia may have been trying to hurt her, to help Trump, her Republican rival, or to fan populist sentiment against establishment politicians as it has sought to do across Europe in recent years… The emails showed that DNC officials explored ways to undermine U.S. Senator Bernie Sanders’ presidential campaign against Clinton and raised questions about whether Sanders, who is Jewish, was really an atheist. The disclosures confirmed Sanders’ frequent charge that the party played favorites against him and clouded a party convention Clinton hoped would signal unity, not division…

“Two U.S. intelligence officials, speaking on condition of anonymity, said the hack could be part of a broader campaign by Russian President Vladimir Putin to push back against what he thinks is an effort by the European Union and NATO, a military alliance of European and North American democracies, to encircle and weaken Russia…

“Despite Clinton’s short-lived attempt as secretary of state to ‘reset’ U.S.-Russian relations after U.S. President Barack Obama took office in 2009, the leaked emails could damage a candidate the Kremlin may consider hostile and benefit her opponent, who has been friendlier. Putin accused Clinton of stirring up protests against his rule after a December 2011 Russian parliamentary election that was marred by allegations of fraud, saying she had encouraged ‘mercenary’ Kremlin foes by criticizing the vote…

“Asked about claims that Russian intelligence had hacked the DNC to obtain the emails, Wikileaks founder Julian Assange told NBC News’ Richard Engel ‘there is no proof of that whatsoever’ and said ‘this is a diversion’ pushed by the Clinton campaign…

“The Russian leader may well have been encouraged by Trump’s comments to The New York Times last week that with him in the White House, NATO might not automatically defend the Baltic states that were once a part of the Russian-led Soviet Union.

“Despite public Trump-Putin exchanges of praise, Eugene Rumer, a former national intelligence officer for Russia and Eurasia, warned against reaching any quick conclusions about Putin’s view of Trump. ‘We can say with some degree of confidence that they don’t like Hillary,’ Rumer said. ‘It’s less clear that they like Trump, although over the years the Russians have said they prefer to deal with the Republicans – (that) they are kind of hard-line but they can do deals.’…

“A U.S. intelligence official who is reviewing the emails as part of the investigation into their origin said that those emails describing the privileges the Democratic National Committee showers on its wealthiest donors bolster the Russian narrative of an American political system rigged by the wealthy and riddled with corruption. ‘In addition to countering the U.S. narrative that the Russian government is a corrupt oligarchy, leaking these emails fits rather conveniently with Trump’s charges about a rigged system and “crooked Hillary”,’ said the official…”

AFP reported on July 26:

“The Kremlin on Tuesday dismissed allegations that Russia was behind a hack of the Democratic National Committee’s emails as absurd, mocking what it called obsessive references to Russia in the US presidential campaign. ‘This absurd news was immediately refuted by the family of the well-known presidential candidate,’ Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told journalists, referring to Trump’s eldest son, Donald Trump Jr. ‘We are still seeing attempts to obsessively use the topic of Russia during the US electoral campaign,’ Peskov complained.”

Bernie Sanders’ Followers Unhappy with Clinton

The New York Times wrote on July 26:

“Bernie Sanders likes to boast that he has ignited a fiery movement. At times on Monday, it seemed that even he had lost control of how it burns.

“On the opening day of the Democratic National Convention, the ragtag coalition of liberals that Mr. Sanders is supposed to deliver to Hillary Clinton heckled from the convention floor. They marched in the streets. They protested outside the arena. They refused to go quietly… For the Sanders faithful, piercing disappointment was the unmistakable theme of the day… ‘We won’t vote for Hillary!’ his supporters yelled to Democratic delegates as they walked into the convention hall on Monday night. ‘Lock her up!’ they screamed from the streets.

“Revolutions rarely end quietly. It was a lesson that Mr. Sanders seemed to absorb on live national television, with his face betraying surprise and his wagging finger pleading for peace, while his backers shouted over him at a Center City rally on Monday afternoon… But his most loyal supporters were hungry for more combat.

“… a delegate from New Jersey said she refuses to lay down arms and accept Mrs. Clinton as the nominee. ‘She has the moral depth of a thimble,’ [the delegate] said…

“Here in Philadelphia, it was the Sanders-inspired activists who seized the message and the megaphone of his self-proclaimed rebellion against money and power — and who decided that the man who had inspired their cause… was no longer their movement’s unchallenged leader… In a way, the angry remnants of Mr. Sanders’s presidential campaign are not really about him anymore: They have become a stew of simmering grievances from the primaries about rules, process, money, fairness and democracy — and were reignited by leaked emails from the Democratic National Committee revealing the bias of some party officials in favor of Mrs. Clinton…

“‘He joined this party to bring about some serious change, and they have been playing him the entire time,’ said… a Sanders supporter… Their distrust of Mrs. Clinton runs deep. Even if she wins, they already expect to be disappointed by her presidency…”

Relations Between Washington and Ankara Will Get Worse

The Independent wrote on July 22:

“The disaster is that it will now be much more difficult for Turks to resist Erdogan establishing a monopoly of power. By resisting the coup as the leader of a democratically-elected government, he has enhanced his legitimacy. Moreover, all opposition to his rule can be labelled as support for terrorism and punished as such…

“Islamic State will benefit from the new political landscape because security forces [in Turkey] will be tracking Gulenist sleepers rather than Isis cells. Isis will gain from the anti-American mood in Turkey post-coup because the Government and much of the population are convinced that the US was implicated in the attempt.

“Whatever happens to the Turkish demand that the US hand over Gulen, Turks are convinced of a US role, citing as evidence Mr Gulen’s long presence outside Philadelphia. Isis will seek the support of a widening anti-US constituency in Turkey. Relations between Ankara and Washington were not good before; they are about to get worse.”

This development is also prophesied in Scripture.

Erdogan’s Brutal Crackdown Continues…

The Washington Post wrote on July 24:

“Thousands of people taken into custody since Turkey’s attempted coup are being held in sports facilities and stables, where some have been beaten and mistreated, according to lawyers familiar with the cases. Lawyers from the Ankara Bar Association’s human rights commission say members have reported the alleged abuses after trying to meet with clients. Other lawyers and human rights organizations have made similar allegations… The mistreatment is ‘systematic’… while lawyers have been prevented from documenting physical signs of beatings and abuse… Erdogan, who has declared a state of emergency, has pledged to ‘cleanse’ what he has described as a ‘cancer’ that has metastasized in the country…

“The state of emergency has compounded fears among lawyers and human rights groups that the rule of law will be eroded, which would threaten Turkey’s long-standing bid to join the European Union… The Ankara Bar Association has set up a 24-hour hotline and crisis center, where phones ring incessantly. In a state of fear about being seen as sympathetic to coup plotters or critical of the Turkish government, most lawyers and family members declined to be quoted by name… The prosecutors office gave the Ankara Bar Association a list of 189 lawyers who aren’t allowed to represent coup plotters…

“Andrew Gardner, a researcher for Amnesty International, said he didn’t think that the fact that beatings had taken place in custody was ‘in dispute whatsoever.’ ‘There are a litany of abuses that have been reported to us,’ he said. ‘There are serious allegations of widespread mistreatment and mutually corroborating reports going beyond beatings to high levels of abuse.’ Gardner also said that complaints of sexual abuse had been reported to Amnesty. One lawyer, who spoke on the condition of anonymity because of the sensitivity of the topic, said a detainee reported being raped in custody…”

Erdogan’s government has strongly denied those allegations. Of course, one would not expect admitting them; nor, that they would NOT engage in such brutal conduct. It is also interesting that Erdogan’s choice of words regarding “cancer” is identical with Hitler’s famous vocabulary about persecuted minorities in Nazi Germany.

Palestinians vs. Great Britain

The Times of Israel wrote on July 25:

“The Palestinian Authority is preparing a lawsuit against the British government over the issuing of the 1917 Balfour Declaration that paved the way for the creation of the State of Israel. The PA’s Foreign Minister Riyad al-Malki told Arab League leaders gathered in Mauritania Monday that London is responsible for all ‘Israeli crimes’ committed since the end of the British mandate in 1948.

“Signed by British Foreign Secretary Lord Arthur James Balfour in 1917, the declaration was seen as giving the Zionist movement official recognition and backing on the part of a major power, on the eve of the British conquest of the then-Ottoman territory of Palestine. The decision, al-Malki said, ‘gave people who don’t belong there something that wasn’t theirs.’”

Please read our Q&A in this issue for further elaboration on Palestinian opposition to “Israel”—including Great Britain.

New Poll in Britain: Let’s Leave the EU Now.

Express wrote on July 26:

“A new Daily Express online poll has revealed that 98 per cent of respondents – 3,548 people – want the historic Brexit vote to be enacted now instead of Britain being embroiled in months or years of talks with Brussels bureaucrats. Express readers have urged the Government to quit the EU now and avoid lengthy negotiation.

“It comes amid alarm over comments by Theresa May to Tory MEPs saying that  there could be ‘months of negotiations’ before Article 50 is triggered to even start freeing Britain from Brussels rule. And last night it was clear that those who want to harm Britain… intend to use any delay in leaving the EU to inflict damage on the country. European Commission President Jean Claude Juncker said that free trade could not happen without free movement while separatist Scottish First Minister Nicola Sturgeon made a speech ‘blackmailing’ the rest of the UK into abandoning Brexit or risk a second independence referendum.

“Former Tory cabinet minister John Redwood has led a cross party group of MPs which has come up with a plan to get Britain out of the EU ‘in just a matter of weeks’. The simple solution, also backed by Labour Leave, would be to trigger article 50 by repealing the 1972 European Communities Act and then informing the EU that the UK is no longer a member but intends to trade tariff free. If the EU then decides to impose tariffs then Britain would respond but because the UK has a trade deficit with the EU of  almost £24 billion a trade war would be more damaging to European countries especially Germany which could lose its biggest car market. He said: ‘The poll is great news, well done to the Daily Express.’…

“Speaking to French TV channel France 2, Mr Juncker denied he was taking a ‘hard line’ on the UK. ‘It’s not a hard line, it’s common sense,’ he told the Telematin programme. ‘It reflects the philosophy of the European project itself.’”

The Coming United States of Europe

Express wrote on July 26:

“The European Union must immediately merge into a huge superstate or face fast approaching oblivion, a leading credit ratings agency has warned. Standard and Poor’s (S&P) said only the rapid creation of a United States of Europe, run by a federal government in Brussels, can prevent the bloc from total collapse…

“Already the French and German foreign ministers have called for a radical overhaul of the EU to further erode the influence of national governments, whilst calls are also being made for further merging of the Eurozone.”

Even though the article is overly dramatic and the idea of a total collapse of Europe as a possible alternative is unrealistic, the truth of the matter is that a “United States of Europe” or a “Superstate” will develop.

Chinese Buyers Increase in UK after Brexit

Reuters reported on July 24:

“Interest among Chinese buyers in buying UK property has surged since Britain voted to leave the European Union last month, as the pound’s slide has created opportunities to buy at a discount… The number of Chinese enquiries about the British residential and commercial property market has been 30-40 percent higher than average in each week from June 20 to July 11…

“The… upbeat view contrasts with developments in the British commercial property market since the referendum. Investment demand for British commercial property dropped by the largest amount on record after the EU vote…

“Over the past few years, Chinese investors have been among the biggest foreign buyers of British property, snapping up everything from opulent homes to iconic commercial property. Many of their investments have been focused around London and Manchester…”

The Bible prophesied that in the UK, foreigners would be the head, and native Brits would be the tail…

Dark Days for Turkey

The Guardian wrote on July 16:

“The attempted military coup in Turkey on Friday [leading to the deaths of 265 people with over 1,100 injured] sent shockwaves through the country and international community. Aimed at toppling Turkey’s strongman president, Recep Tayyip Erdoğan and his Justice and Development party (AKP), the failed uprising threw a spotlight on a deeply divided country embroiled in war at home and abroad…

“Friday’s coup attempt was by far Turkey’s least effective. The military did not control the media and lacked sufficient support both within its ranks and on the streets… However, it should not have been surprising that a move to oust Erdoğan has occurred. In recent years, Erdoğan has alienated rivals and exacerbated Turkey’s instability for his personal gain. He has exploited ethnic and sectarian tensions, restarted a domestic war with the Kurds and sought to divide the population to garner greater constitutional powers. Erdogan’s dangerous games [have] brought levels of violence and instability not seen in Turkey for decades.

“As with many coups around the world, the aftermath will be bloody and repressive. It will be rule of the mob, rather than rule of law that will shape Turkish politics and society… Pro-government mobs have brutally attacked anyone they perceive as being anti-Erdoğan or anti-government. Darker days lie ahead for Turkey.”

Deutsche Welle stated on July 17 that  the “attempted coup in Turkey ‘will lead to a witch hunt’.”

The Telegraph wrote on July 16:

“Vengeful, irascible, authoritarian, obdurate…  Now that he has survived their machinations, his worst instincts will be redoubled and reinforced. If Mr Erdogan was a maddening ally for Europe and America in the past, the leader who has just overcome a military coup will be capable of almost anything…

“Even before he was pushed to the edge of a precipice, his minions had jailed scores of journalists and brought 1,800 criminal cases against people accused of ‘insulting the president’. Now that he has escaped a real putsch, Mr Erdogan will redouble his efforts to silence every critic. As Turkey ponders the aftermath of its surreal 24 hours, there is one bitter truth: hell hath no fury like an Erdogan who narrowly survives.”

It is clear that “Tyrant Erdogan” will seize on the opportunity to continue with his oppressive and brutal measures against anyone who questions his dictatorial ambitions.

Potential Rift Between USA and Turkey?

The Huffington Post wrote on July 16:

“Turkish officials have placed blame [for the coup] on members of the Gülen movement, a religious and social group that the government has accused in the past of endeavoring to establish a ‘parallel state’ inside of Turkey. This presents a potential rift between Ankara and Washington, as Fethullah Gülen, the Sunni cleric who heads the group, has lived in self-imposed exile in Pennsylvania since 1999.

“Erdogan, whose alliance with the Gülen movement ruptured in 2013, demanded on Saturday that Washington hand over the cleric. Additional comments from Turkish officials suggested that Gülen’s residence in the U.S. could pose a threat to relations between the two countries… Gülen strongly denied any role in the uprising against Erdogan’s government. ‘As someone who suffered under multiple military coups during the past five decades, it is especially insulting to be accused of having any link to such an attempt. I categorically deny such accusations,’ he said in a statement…

“Speaking to reporters in Pennsylvania on Saturday, Gülen suggested [and the media in Britain, Germany, Syria and other places have also speculated] the coup may have been staged, Reuters reported…

“Washington has rebuffed past calls from Ankara to turn over Gülen, citing a lack of evidence that he was guilty of wrongdoing. It’s likely that Erdogan’s government will now step up the effort to present evidence against the cleric, putting the U.S. in a difficult position with an ally that currently hosts U.S. troops operating the air war against ISIS in Iraq and Syria. Secretary of State John Kerry… invited the Turkish government to present evidence of Gülen’s involvement in the coup attempt that ‘withstands scrutiny.’…

“Turkey abolished the death penalty over a decade ago as a condition of ascension talks with the European Union, but [it is now] considering reinstating the policy…”

Deutsche Welle added on July 17 that “US Secretary of State John Kerry… angrily denied rumors within Turkey that the US had also played a part in the plot to overthrow the Turkish government.”

Suspicious Revelations and Developments in Turkey

The Daily Mail reported on July 18:

“EU commissioner Johannes Hahn has cast doubt on [the] speed to coup arrests… [The] EU official… suggests the government had a list of names prepared beforehand… [Hahn] explained: ‘It looks at least as if something has been prepared. The lists are available, which indicates it was prepared and to be used at a certain stage. ‘I’m very concerned. It is exactly what we feared.’”

Turkey’s “Purge” Continues

Deutsche Welle reported on July 18:

“The government has now detained or fired about 20,000 people in connection with last weekend’s botched coup. The army, police, judiciary and civil servants are among those continuing to be targeted.”

The New York Times wrote on July 18:

“The United States and the European Union stepped up pressure on Monday on President Recep Tayyip Erdogan of Turkey to not use an attempted coup as an excuse for an authoritarian crackdown. Officials even suggested that Turkey’s continued membership in NATO and its aspirations of joining the European Union could be at stake…

“Germany said that Turkey would not be allowed to join the European Union if President Recep Tayyip Erdogan followed through on his call for capital punishment against those who attempted a coup against him.

“… the scale of the crackdown in the wake of the attempted coup in Turkey has rattled Western leaders. Alongside the members of the military, the Turkish government also dismissed thousands of judges, who seemingly played no role in the military revolt. ‘Obviously a lot of people have been arrested and arrested very quickly,’ Mr. Kerry said, appearing to echo allegations by some Europeans that the Turkish authorities had prepared lists of people for reprisals even before the coup…”

Reuters reported on July 19:

“Turkey vowed to root out allies of the U.S.-based cleric it blames for an abortive coup last week, widening a purge of the army, police and judiciary on Tuesday to universities and schools, the intelligence agency and religious authorities.

“Around 50,000 soldiers, police, judges, civil servants and teachers have been suspended or detained since the coup attempt, stirring tensions across the country of 80 million which borders Syria’s chaos and is a Western ally against Islamic State.”

Deutsche Welle stated on July 19:

“The Higher Education Board ordered all deans to resign as part of a crackdown following last weekend’s failed coup. Staff from the education ministry and the office of the prime minister were also told to leave. The order, made to all 1,577 university deans at state and private institutitions, was reported by Turkey’s state broacaster TRT, and followed the earlier sacking of 15,200 staff working for the National Education Ministry.”

The Telegraph wrote on July 19 that “Erdogan’s purge may give Nato no choice but to expel Turkey from the alliance.”

Deutsche Welle wrote on July 20:

“Turkish academics overseas have been told to return home by Turkey’s higher education board. It’s also banned academics from leaving Turkey, say state media. President Tayyip Erdogan is chairing top meetings in Ankara… Since Friday, some 29,000 government employees have been suspended, including more than 6,300 soldiers and 3,000 members of the judiciary.”

Turkey’s Reichstag Fire

The website of commondreams.org published the following article on July 17, 2016:

“With the crackdown on media, academic freedoms, random arrests, and the increasing violence in the southeast provinces, citizens in Turkey have been facing major limitations on their basic freedoms for the past few years. The attempted coup d’état of July 15 is like the last nail in the coffin…

“The damage that was inflicted on the parliament building in Ankara was huge. Many of its major halls and corridors are in ruins. The sight was reminiscent of the Reichstag fire in Germany that took place on February 27, 1933, about a month after Adolf Hitler became the Chancellor. The similarities are not limited to the visible damage of both parliament buildings. The Reichstag fire was also a last nail in the coffin of the possibility of basic freedoms as well as critical thinking in Germany. On the evening of the Reichstag fire, Chancellor Hitler was relaxing at a dinner party in Joseph Goebbels’ home. The fire was soon blamed on a demented Dutch Communist named Marinus van der Lubbe who had a record of crimes of arson. The reality behind the Reichstag fire was not even clarified during the Nuremberg trials. Still, there was a lot of evidence that pointed to the responsibility of the Nazis behind it. But what was important was not so much who set fire to the Reichstag but rather what came out of it.

“On the day following the Reichstag fire, juridical order was suspended by the Decree of the Reich President for the Protection of People and State (Verordnung des Reichspräsidenten zum Schutz von Volk und Staat). The decree involved the suspension of seven sections of the Constitution which guaranteed individual and civil liberties. The decree authorized the government to take complete control in the federal states and impose the death penalty for a number of crimes. In fact, Goering wanted to hang the arsonist on the spot right after his arrest…

“The Decree following the Reichstag Fire led to emergency measures that created a state of exception. It suspended the personal liberties listed in the Weimar Constitution, including the rights of personal freedom, freedom of opinion, freedom of the press, freedom of organization and assembly, and privacy of communication. The Decree was followed by the Enabling Act (23 March 1933) which enabled the cabinet to enact laws without the participation of the Reichstag. In sum, it led to the consolidation of the Nazi regime…”

What is happening in Turkey right now reminds us of the failed coup of German generals against Hitler in Nazi Germany. At that time, the coup could not succeed, as Hitler had not yet finished his evil deeds, in the light of biblical prophecy. Some of the developments in connection with the Turkish coup are strikingly similar to events regarding the coup against Hitler.

And Now… a “State of Emergency”

Deutsche Welle reported on July 20:

“Speaking in a televised address, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan announced the three-month emergency measures, while saying the move did not represent any threat to the country’s democratic order… The state of emergency… allow[s] the president and cabinet to bypass parliament in passing new laws and limit or suspend rights and freedoms when deemed necessary…

“Since the failed coup, many protesters have taken to the streets in support of Erdogan and demanded the restoration of the death penalty. Erdogan said that if parliament approves capital punishment, he would back the move – 12 years after the death penalty was abolished in Turkey.”

Newsmax added on July 20:

“‘Europe does not have the right to criticize this decision,’ Erdogan [said], apparently anticipating expressions of concern from the European Union, which has become increasingly critical of Turkey’s rights record and has urged restraint as Ankara purges its state institutions since the abortive coup. Turkey is an EU candidate country, though it is not expected to join for many years if ever.”

The articles prove that Erdogan’s lust for unlimited power has no bounds, and show further striking similarities between his moves and those under Hitler.

The Bastille Day Massacre – Murderer

The Guardian wrote on July 18:

“The Bastille Day massacre in Nice was a ‘premeditated, prepared and planned’ attack, French prosecutors have said. Mohamed Lahouaiej-Bouhlel had grown a beard in the eight days before he carried out the attack and told friends ‘the significance of the beard is religious’, prosecutor François Molins told a press conference…

“Investigators had found no proof of any ‘allegiance or any direct link’ to Islamic State or other terrorist organisations, according to Molins. However, Lahouaiej-Boulel’s computer contained ‘very violent’ images from radical Islamic sites and links to jihadi websites, as well as articles about the Bastille Day fireworks display in Nice, the recent nightclub attack in Orlando, shootings in Dallas, the killing of two police officers in Paris suburb Magnanville, and research into Osama bin Laden and the Algerian terrorist leader Mokhtar Belmokhtar.

“Molins said the attack could be defined ‘terrorism’ as described by French law… Molins confirmed that 84 people had been killed and 74 others remained in hospital. Twenty eight of these people are in intensive care, of whom 19 have life threatening injuries, he said… The attacker’s computer records showed a ‘sure and recent interest for radical jihadist movements’, Molins said, adding that Lahouaiej-Bouhlel had also consulted articles on fatal accidents including a report from Nice-Matin newspaper headlined: ‘Man drives his car into a restaurant terrace.’ ‘Investigators have established the premeditated nature of this act,’ Molins told journalists…

“Documents and images on Lahouaiej-Bouhlel’s phone showed he had visited the Promenade des Anglais on 12 July, two days before the attack, and taken several photographs including selfies… On 7 July, Lahouaiej-Bouhlel had researched the Qu’ran on his computer as well as religious songs. He picked up the lorry used to carry out the massacre on 8 July at 8.30am. He was due to return it on 11 July and left a guarantee cheque for €1,600. In the three days before the attack he went to the Promenade des Anglais several times…

“Three days of national mourning in France have been overshadowed by an intensifying debate about whether the government has done enough to respond to terrorism. On Saturday, Isis claimed responsibility for inspiring the attack, and said Lahouaiej-Bouhlel was one of its followers…”

In Wake of Terror Attack in Nice, France To Become an Armed Camp

AFP wrote on July 16:

“French Interior Minister Bernard Cazeneuve on Saturday called on young citizens to become reservists and help boost security forces in the wake of the country’s latest terror attack. France’s ‘operational reservists’ include French citizens with or without military experience as well as former soldiers. ‘I want to call on all French patriots who wish to do so, to join this operational reserve,’ said Cazeneuve…

“The Islamic State group has said it was behind Thursday’s truck massacre in Nice which left 84 people dead and many more injured. It was the third major Islamist attack which France has suffered in the past 18 months. French President Francois Hollande said Friday that the new reservists would be called upon to boost the ranks of police and gendarmes… Volunteers must be between 17 and 30 years of age, have the right physical and moral aptitude and undergo military training.”

France has also re-established martial law for the country.

Islamist Attack in Germany

Daily Mail wrote on July 18:

“A teenage Afghan refugee shouted ‘Allahu Akbar’ before hacking at passengers during an axe and knife rampage on a train in Germany. The 17-year-old was gunned down by armed police after fleeing from the scene near the city of Wurzburg, 70 miles north of Nuremberg in southern Germany. As many as 19 passengers needed hospital treatment while three victims are fighting for their lives after being attacked with ‘cutting and stabbing weapons’. Officials have said it was ‘probably’ an Islamist attack.

“… Authorities have said the attacker entered Germany as an unaccompanied child refugee.  Local media report that he had lived with a German foster family for two weeks having previously lived in a refugee camp… Germany had thus far escaped the kind of large-scale jihadist attacks seen in the southern French city of Nice last week, in which 31-year-old Mohamed Lahouaiej Bouhlel used a truck to mow down people leaving a Bastille Day fireworks display, killing 84 people in an attack claimed by ISIS.

“In May, a mentally-unstable 27-year-old man carried out a similar knife attack on a regional train in the south, killing one person and injuring three others. Early reports suggested he had yelled ‘Allahu akbar’ but police later said there was no evidence pointing to a religious motive. He is being held in a psychiatric hospital.

“Germany let in a record nearly 1.1 million asylum seekers last year, with Syrians the largest group followed by Afghans fleeing ongoing turmoil and poverty in their country…

“Bavaria is governed by the Christian Social Union (CSU), sister party to Chancellor Angela Merkel’s conservative Christian Democrats. The CSU has been loudly critical of Merkel’s welcoming stance toward asylum seekers, a split that threatened the unity of the ruling coalition in Berlin and sent the government’s approval ratings plunging.

“It has also lent support to a right-wing populist party, Alternative for Germany, which was founded as a eurosceptic protest party in 2013 but now mainly rails against Islam and Germany’s refugee influx. It currently polls at more than 10 percent and is represented in half of Germany’s 16 states as well as the European Parliament. The attack in Bavaria is likely to revive political tensions.”

Deutsche Welle added on July 19:

“Bavarian Interior Minister Joachim Herrmann said… ‘A hand-painted IS flag was found in his room’…  Later Tuesday, Aamaq, a news agency linked to the extremist group said IS claimed responsibility for the attack and that the 17-year-old was its ‘fighter.’ The claim was phrased in a similar way to the IS response to the Bastille Day truck attack which killed 84 people in Nice, France last week…

“In light of the recent mass-casualty terror attacks in neighboring France and Belgium, German society is on heightened alert…”

The Local wrote on July 19:

“On Tuesday morning the terror-group Isis claimed that the Afghan teenager was one of ‘their soldiers.’ It is the first time they have claimed an attack in Germany. A statement released through the group’s news agency claimed he had ‘executed the operation in response to calls to target nations in the coalition fighting the Islamic state.’ Later in the day Isis published a video on the internet which appears to show the attacker. The video shows teenager ‘Mohammed Riyadh’ – knife in hand – announcing in Pashto he would carry out an ‘operation’ in Germany, and presenting himself as a ‘soldier of the caliphate’.

“… In his room they found a homemade Isis flag and texts in Arabic and Latin scripts which suggested he had become radicalised while at home. Investigators said on Tuesday that he did not regularly attend mosque, but prayed often by himself at home… Several eye witnesses have now said that they heard the teen screaming ‘Allahu Akbar.’ There also appears to be a recording of an emergency call with him shouting these words in the background. Furthermore, police found a letter in the boy’s bedroom which they believe was a farewell note to his father. In it he wrote “pray for me that I seek revenge on the unbelievers and pray for me that I go to heaven.’”

In a related article the Local added:

“The Würzburg attack has reignited the debate whether Germany’s open policy towards refugees has put the country’s security at risk by allowing extremists into the country, and also whether there has been a failure in integration policy – the train attacker had lived in Germany for over a year.”

Hate Speech in Germany?

Breitbart wrote on July 19:

“In the latest attempt to crack down on what the German government defines as ‘hate speech’ Germany’s Justice Minister Heiko Maas has made it clear that he believes social media sites like Facebook are not doing enough to combat so-called ‘hate posts’.

“Mr. Maas has claimed that Facebook in particular is too slow at removing ‘offensive’ posts by its users who criticise migrants or who make ‘racist’ remarks. The Justice Minister has gone so far as to threaten Facebook and other social media platforms with further EU regulations if they do not take ‘stronger action’ against ‘hate speech’…

“The task force that the Justice Minister refers to was set up last year in order to combat ‘hate speech’, which can range from the promotion of Nazi ideology all the way to mere criticism of the German government’s migrant policy. Mr. Maas and the task force have been largely criticised after it was revealed that one of the organisations set up to help with the task force was headed by Anette Kahane, a former informant of the notorious east German domestic spy agency, the Stasi…

“The real world result of the task force has been large-scale raids of the homes of German citizens who have posted comments online. Just last week 60 residences were raided by the German Federal police for what were termed as ‘xenophobic remarks.’ In April of this year a similar raid occurred in which nine suspects were arrested. The spokesman of the police in that case said the suspects may have just been ‘people who just once expressed their hate-opinion’, but were still arrested.”

These are very disturbing developments.

Coming… An Atomic Arms Race in Space?

The Daily Beast wrote on July 14:

“The Russian military claims it’s making progress on a space plane similar to the U.S. Air Force’s secretive X-37B robotic mini-shuttle… But alone among space-plane developers, the Kremlin is proposing to arm its space plane. With nukes…

“To be clear, a nuclear-armed space plane would be dangerously destabilizing, as it would totally upset the current, tenuous balance of power between the United States and Russia. The Pentagon could respond to a Russian orbital nuke bomber by quickly deploying a space bomber of its own. In other words, an atomic arms race… in space—a development no one should welcome.

“Lt. Col. Aleksei Solodovnikov, a rocketry instructor at the Russian Strategic Missile Forces Academy in St. Petersburg who is overseeing the space plane’s development, said the orbital bomber would be flight-ready by 2020… ‘The idea is that the bomber will take off from a normal home airfield to patrol Russian airspace,’ Solodovnikov said, according to Sputnik, a government-owned news site. ‘Upon command, it will ascend into outer space, strike a target with nuclear warheads and then return to its home base.’

“Thanks to its orbital capability, the bomber would be able to nuke any target on Earth no longer than two hours after taking off, Solodovnikov claimed…”

Would Britain Press the Nuclear Button?

The Telegraph wrote on July 18:

“Theresa May has said she would be prepared to authorise a nuclear strike that would kill 100,000 people… She said it was ‘sad’ that the Green Party and some members of the Labour party seem to be the ‘first to defend the country’s enemies’…

“Jeremy Corbyn [a life-long pacifist] said he would not press the nuclear button, adding: ‘I do not believe the threat of mass murder is a legitimate way to go about international relations.'”

Britain’s TRIDENT Missile System Approved

The Sun wrote on July 18:

“Theresa May last night won her first victory as PM — as MPs gave the green light to renewing Britain’s nuclear deterrent for another 40 years. The House of Commons voted by 472 to 117 — a majority of 355 — to start work on extending the Trident missile system until the 2060s. The landmark decision means the £31billion project to replace the ageing Vanguard fleet with four new submarines will press ahead…

“Mrs May… shot down arguments thrown up by left-wing MPs that the threat of nuclear attack on the UK has diminished since the end of the Cold War. Russia is rebuilding its arsenal, and North Korea has enough nuclear material to produce a dozen nuclear weapons. She argued that the rogue state, run by despot Kim Jong-un, will soon have a missile with the capability of reaching the US.”

Theresa May Want More Time… But Will She Get It?

BBC News wrote on July 20:

“Theresa May…  held talks with Germany’s Chancellor Angela Merkel. Speaking in Berlin, the PM said securing a ‘sensible and orderly departure’ from the EU would take time. But she insisted the UK would not ‘walk away’ from Europe and wanted to retain the ‘closest economic links’.

“Mrs Merkel said the two sides desired to get the ‘best result for Britain’ but urged more clarity on timing… Mrs May said the UK was in no rush to trigger the two-year process of leaving the EU – telling reporters that although ‘this would not please everyone’ it was right to hold off until the UK’s ‘objectives were clear’…

“The process of preparing the UK for Brexit would require ‘serious and detailed work’ but, irrespective of this, she said the UK was determined to maintain strong trading, economic and security links with Germany, which she described as ‘a vital partner and special friend’.

“‘Of course, the nature of our relationship is going to change as the UK leaves the EU, but we both want to maintain the closest possible economic relationship between our countries and I believe that is what German and British businesses want too,’ she said. ‘So it’s good that we start from such a strong foundation and a position where both our countries believe in liberal markets and free trade and these should be the principles that guide us in the discussions ahead.’

“BBC political editor Laura Kuenssberg… said it was clear that Germany would hold the ‘balance of power’ in the negotiations to come and although Mrs Merkel did want to make the UK’s departure work, the UK’s ‘leverage had really faded’ following the decision to leave…

“Downing Street announced the UK was to relinquish its upcoming six-month presidency of the Council of the EU. The UK had been scheduled to take up the presidency of the Council of the EU – which rotates on a six-monthly basis between the 28 EU countries, giving each the opportunity to shape the agenda – in the second half of 2017. But Mrs May has decided that Britain should skip its turn in the light of the Brexit vote in June’s referendum…”

The Bible says that even though Britain will seek Germany’s help and even though Germany might want to help Britain, in the end, these plans and endeavors will be unsuccessful.

Black Police Officer Was Murdered… But Where Is Outrage of “Black Lives Matter”?

On July 18, Daily Mail published the following editorial by Piers Morgan, former moderator of CNN:

“A black man named Montrell Jackson was executed in cold blood in America yesterday. A hooded assassin drove hundreds of miles to deliberately shoot him and two of his white co-workers dead in the street with an AR-15. It was a senseless, callous, horrific act of violence that left a wife without a husband and a baby 4-month old son without a father.

“Montrell was by all accounts a decent, generous and loving man. A ‘gentle giant’ who was ‘always about peace.’…

“Last week, after two black men of similar age were shot dead, there was national outrage. The black community rose as one to demand action against the perpetrators. There was fury in the streets from New York to Los Angeles. Men, women and children marching as one, baring placards screaming ‘Black Lives Matter!’ Beyoncé even stopped a concert to read out a rally-cry for justice for the men who had been killed.

“Yet for THIS black victim, there was a very different reaction from that same black community. Where are the protests? Where are the placards? Where’s the incendiary Beyoncé statement? Where’s the RAGE? Sadly for Montrell Jackson, he simply didn’t matter as much as those other two men to the Black Lives Matter movement. Why? Because he was a police officer. This, to many Black Lives Matter activists, made him the enemy…

“In an eloquent Facebook post he wrote on July 8, the day after five other police officers were shot dead in Dallas, Montrell spoke of the difficulties he faced as black law enforcer…  Today, just ten days later, Montrell Jackson is dead, targeted as he worked by another black man, a former Marine named Eugene Long from Kansas City who believed the only way to successfully protest was ‘through bloodshed’. Such was Long’s hatred of the police that he didn’t care that one of the men he was killing was black. So a black man full of hate and violence murdered another peace-loving black man because he wanted to exact revenge for the deaths of black men.

“This is how twisted the spirit of the Black Lives Matter movement has now become in the wrong minds and the wrong gun-toting hands…”

UNESCO Resolution to Declare Temple Mount Solely as a Muslim Site?

The Jerusalem Post wrote on July 14:

“Israel warned the European Union… that supporting a UNESCO resolution which views the Temple Mount as a solely Muslim site is akin to ignoring Europe’s Christian roots… ‘There is no Christianity without Judaism and there is no Jesus without a Jewish Jerusalem and the Temple Mount,’ [Foreign Ministry spokesman Emmanuel Nachshon] said.

“… some of its member states – namely the United Kingdom, France and Germany – have opposed such a one-sided text… The countries on the committee are Angola, Azerbaijan, Burkina Faso, Croatia, Cuba, Finland, Indonesia, Jamaica, Kazakhstan, Kuwait, Lebanon, Peru, Philippines, Poland, Portugal, Republic of Korea, Tunisia, Turkey, Tanzania, Vietnam and Zimbabwe. But the battle for and against the resolution has involved a much wider list of countries than exist on the committee.”

“EU: Israeli Occupation Is ‘Root’ Cause of Violence”

The EUObserver wrote on July 15:

“EU states, in an internal report drafted last year, have said the outbreak of Palestinian knife and car-ramming attacks against Israelis in Jerusalem is due, in large part, to Israel’s occupation. They said the attacks began after right-wing Israeli politicians and religious groups began to question the status quo on Arab rights at the Temple Mount complex in the Old City.”

The EU is uniting more and more in their stance against Israel…. which is to be expected in the light of biblical prophecy.

Deport all Muslims Who Believe in Sharia Law?

Business Insider wrote on July 14:

“Newt Gingrich said Thursday night in the aftermath of the deadly truck attack in France [when at least 80 were killed and more than 100 more were wounded in Nice when a man drove a truck through revelers celebrating Bastille Day] that the US should issue a religious test to Muslims and deport those who are found to believe in Shariah, or Islamic law…

“‘Western civilization is in a war,’ Gingrich said. ‘We should frankly test every person here who is of a Muslim background, and if they believe in Shariah, they should be deported. Shariah is incompatible with Western civilization. Modern Muslims who have given up Shariah, glad to have them as citizens… Anybody who goes on a website favoring ISIS, or Al Qaeda, or other terrorist groups, that should be a felony, and they should go to jail. Any organization which hosts such a website should be engaged in a felony. It should be closed down immediately’…”

Newt Gingrich was strongly criticized for his statements as being unconstitutional, and he responded that his statements had been grossly misunderstood.

Donald Trump Picks Mike Pence as Running Mate

JTA wrote on July 15:

“Donald Trump picked Indiana Gov. Mike Pence, a pro-Israel stalwart and conservative Christian, as his running mate…

“Pence, 57, emerged quickly as a leader on pro-Israel issues during his 12 years in Congress from 2001 to 2013… He led a number of bids to place conditions on funding for the Palestinian Authority… Pence has continued his pro-Israel advocacy as Indiana governor, earlier this year signing one of the most robust state laws targeting the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions movement against Israel.

“Pence is known as a social conservative and Evangelical Christian. [He called himself a Christian, a conservative and a Republican, “in that order.”] He opposes abortion rights as well as gay marriage… In 2015, he signed a bill that would have allowed businesses to refuse service to customers based on their sexual orientation. Following protest, he signed a revised version of the law that prohibited such discrimination… Pence faced pointed questioning… about [that] law… allowing businesses to discriminate against LGBT people… [It was pointed out to him that the law] could undermine the GOP’s efforts at attracting women and minorities… Pence was apologetic. The law went too far he acknowledged, and it was revised.”

The choice of career politician Gov. Mike Pence as Mr. Trump’s running mate is a surprisingly odd one. Mr. Pence originally endorsed Ted Cruz, rejected Donald Trump’s policy on trade (endorsing instead NAFTA and the Trans Pacific Partnership, both of which Trump aggressively opposes); and he strongly condemned Trump’s statements regarding a temporary ban for Muslims entering the USA (calling the idea “offensive and unconstitutional.”). He had also supported the Iraq war, which Trump had opposed.

It has been reported that Mr. Trump was “pressured” into naming Mr. Pence as his running mate, apparently in order to solidify the Republican Party, but that he had been considering and re-considering the appointment of Mr. Pence as late as Thursday night. [The Trump campaign vehemently denied these reports, even though Mr. Trump declared on Thursday afternoon to Fox News that he had not made a “final final” decision. This statement was later “explained” that he was trying to keep the public in suspense. But also note the next articles.] According to the Huffington Post, dated July 16, “He was first piqued that the news leaked before he’d gotten around to telling the runners-up, Newt Gingrich and Chris Christie, about his choice. He then had second thoughts, postponed the announcement and spent Thursday night trying to find a way to back out of his choice, according to multiple news reports [including CNN] and the source close to Trump.

Plagiarism in Mrs. Trump’s Speech?

The New York Times wrote on July 19:

“Melania Trump earned praise for her speech on Monday at the opening night of the Republican National Convention, but her remarks almost immediately came under scrutiny when striking similarities were discovered between her speech and one delivered by Michelle Obama at the Democratic convention in 2008… Here are the relevant passages.

“Ms. Trump, Monday night: ‘From a young age, my parents impressed on me the values that you work hard for what you want in life, that your word is your bond and you do what you say and keep your promise, that you treat people with respect… And we need to pass those lessons on to the many generations to follow. Because we want our children in this nation to know that the only limit to your achievements is the strength of your dreams and your willingness to work for them.’…

“Mrs. Obama, in her 2008 speech: ‘Barack and I were raised with so many of the same values: that you work hard for what you want in life; that your word is your bond and you do what you say you’re going to do; that you treat people with dignity and respect, even if you don’t know them, and even if you don’t agree with them. And Barack and I set out to build lives guided by these values, and pass them on to the next generation. Because we want our children — and all children in this nation — to know that the only limit to the height of your achievements is the reach of your dreams and your willingness to work for them…’

“Accusations of plagiarism are not unheard-of in political speeches, although the consequences have varied.

“In 2008, Mrs. Clinton criticized Mr. Obama for appearing to lift a passage from Deval Patrick, then the governor of Massachusetts, in a speech about how words matter. Mr. Obama, then a senator, said that he could have credited Mr. Patrick but that he did not consider it a case of plagiarism.

“When Mr. Biden was running for president in the 1980s, he faced questions about plagiarizing speeches from Robert F. Kennedy, Hubert H. Humphrey and Neil Kinnock, a British Labor Party leader. Mr. Biden said at the time that it was ‘ludicrous’ to expect a politician to attribute everything he said.”

Newsmax wrote on July 19:

“Talk of [Mrs. Trump’s] speech dominated the morning talk shows, particularly on MSNBC’s ‘Morning Joe,’ where a video clip played a side-by-side comparison of the two women’s speeches, and show host Joe Scarborough reported later in the morning that [campaign’s chief strategist, Paul] Manafort was blaming Trump’s spouse for the speech.  ‘Donald Trump pushed her into doing this speech, saying it was very important to do,’ said Scarborough. ‘Katy Tur is reporting this morning that Melania Trump has become disillusioned with the campaign and did not show up with the [Indiana Gov.] Mike Pence selection because she felt like the children had put too much pressure on her husband to select a vice presidential candidate that he was not comfortable with.’…

“‘We have three different reporters that have come back saying that Manafort is claiming, or those close to Manafort, are claiming that Melania Trump is the one that added Michelle Obama’s words to the speech,’ said Scarborough. ‘You don’t have to have a master’s degree in political science to know that that stuff is not going to fly.’”

It was reported that both Mr. and Mrs. Trump were furious about the affair and the mishandling of the matter by campaign officials and speech writers. On the second day of the convention, Donald Trump won the official presidential nomination of the Republican Party.

A Staff Writer Did It?

On July 20, Newsmax reported:

“A writer in GOP presidential nominee Donald Trump’s organization admitted Wednesday she made a ‘mistake’ in using Michelle Obama’s words in the speech she prepared for Melania Trump to deliver at the Republican National Convention… [She] said in a statement that she was responsible for including passages from a speech Obama delivered at the 2008 Democratic National Convention.

“McKiver said Melania Trump read her some of Obama’s lines over the phone as inspiration during the writing process. ‘I wrote them down and later included some of the phrasing in the draft that ultimately became the final speech,’ McIver wrote, The Miami Herald reports. ‘I did not check Mrs. Obama’s speeches. This was my mistake, and I feel terrible for the chaos I have caused Melania and the Trumps, as well as to Mrs. Obama. No harm was meant.’

“McIver said she offered her resignation Tuesday, but Trump rejected it.”

Outrageous LA Times Article… Military Coup against Trump?

Breitbart wrote on July 20:

“Jamie Kirchick, writing in the Los Angeles Times, asks readers to imagine a military coup against a future President Donald Trump — and argues why one would be necessary. Kirchick cites the example of the recent failed coup in Turkey as a source of inspiration: ‘Americans viewing the recent failed coup attempt in Turkey as some exotic foreign news story — the latest, violent yet hardly unusual political development to occur in a region constantly beset by turmoil — should pause to consider that the prospect of similar instability would not be unfathomable in this country if Donald Trump were to win the presidency.’

“Kirchick goes on to argue that Trump is a nascent authoritarian, whose illegal military orders — such as torturing terrorists — the military would be required to ignore, and then resist by force. Curiously, Kirchick cannot fathom Hillary Clinton doing anything illegal with the military (despite her mis-handling of classified national security information, or her evident pride in the Libya war, which Congress never approved): ‘Needless to say, such dystopian situations are unimaginable under a President Hillary Clinton, who, whatever her faults, would never contemplate ordering a bombing run or — heaven forbid — a nuclear strike on a country just because its leader slighted her small hands at a summit.’

“Kirchick concludes that unless voters stop Trump from becoming president, a violent coup may be the only solution: ‘Trump is not only patently unfit to be president, but a danger to America and the world. Voters must stop him before the military has to.’”

Shameful Statistics from Germany

The Local wrote on July 15:

“One in three babies in Germany are born to parents who haven’t tied the knot… The report by the Cologne Institute for Economic Research this week showed that 35 percent of babies born in Germany in 2014 came into the world with unmarried parents. And the study also revealed that there was great contrast between former East and West Germany…

“The more religious and wealthy West saw 29 percent of new little bundles of joy born to unwed parents, compared to nearly 60 percent in the former states of socialist East Germany, where church members were often regarded with suspicion by communists during the Cold War.

“In the country’s capital, located in the East, more than half of baby Berliners were born out of wedlock, while some areas of surrounding Brandenburg were closer to 70 percent. In the southern German states of Baden-Württemberg and Bavaria, which are predominantly Catholic, babies were comparatively more often born to married parents…

“And roughly 40 percent of marriages in 1990 have since ended in divorce.”

Living together and having sexual relationships without being married is a sin.

Noah’s Ark and Much Confusion

NBC News reported on July 16:

“Days after white doves and shofar horns christened the opening of a new Noah’s Ark attraction in northern Kentucky, the land-anchored ship welcomed a conspicuous and curious visitor: Bill Nye ‘the Science Guy.’

“The bow-tied man of science — openly skeptical about the exhibit from the time it was announced — was an invited guest at the Ark Encounter, which opened July 7 and is billed as the largest timber-frame structure in the world, at 51 feet tall and 1-1/2 football fields in length. What he found, he told NBC News, was an eye-catching attraction that was ‘much more troubling or disturbing than I thought it would be. On the third deck (of the ark), every single science exhibit is absolutely wrong,’ he said…

“The project’s creator, Ken Ham, hopes it will attract fundamentalist Christians, some of whom are already visiting its nearby sister site, the Creation Museum, built in 2007. Ham and Nye have been jousting partners since 2014, when they sparred in a debate over creationism versus evolution that was broadcast online from the Creation Museum and racked up millions of views on YouTube…

“Ham, who was born in Australia and founded the Answers in Genesis ministry, believes the Bible and its Book of Genesis is literal historical fact — which means the Earth would be only about 6,000 years as opposed to the roughly 4.5 billion years estimated by scientists. As represented in the Ark exhibit, dinosaurs co-existed with humans. That’s also a big departure from the science of evolution, which says they became extinct some 65 million years ago — long before mankind emerged.

“Noah’s story, as told in Genesis, says he built an ark at God’s request in anticipation of a Great Flood. The patriarch packed up his family and corralled two of every kind of animal in the world to live on the ship — and for that, God spared him and those creatures. To Nye, that’s hogwash, although some scholars are open to the idea that a historic flood of Biblical proportions could have happened and inspired the Noah tale. Scientists, however, say there’s no evidence to suggest an epic, worldwide flood occurred within the past 6,000 years.

“Nye takes particular exception to the dinosaurs on the ark — re-created in cages among rows of other odd-looking animal replicas… Nye said the exhibit encourages visitors to trust faith over science and thereby undercuts their ability to engage in critical thinking. ‘It’s all very troubling. You have hundreds of school kids there who have already been indoctrinated and who have been brainwashed,’ he said…”

It is amazing how wrong both sides are. For a correct understanding about the creation of the world, the Flood and Noah’s Ark, please read our free booklets, “The Theory of Evolution—a Fairy Tale for Adults?” and “Heavens and Earth… Before and After the First Man.”