shummer60- Wow this really makes me want to give the illegals amnesty. NOT. If the are working, paying taxes, speak english okay.

Pinal County Sheriff's deputy shot in desert confrontation

Apr. 30, 2010 06:37 PM
Republic staff

A Pinal County Sheriff's deputy was shot in
the stomach Friday by a suspected drug
smuggler off Interstate 8, according sheriff's
officials.

Lt. Tami Villar told 12 News that the search
and rescue deputy was investigating a load
of marijuana in the desert and was
confronted by five suspects.

Deputies believe at least two people were
armed with long guns and at least one
handgun. The deputy, whose name was not
released, was patrolling alone in what is
considered a high-traffic drug and human-
smuggling corridor.

Villar said the deputy radioed dispatch about
4:30 p.m. to say he had been shot off
Interstate 8 and Arizona 84, but he could not
be found when authorities arrived at the
scene.

The deputy was located more than an hour
later and taken to the Casa Grande Regional
Medical Center for treatment. He is expected
to survive.

Authorities are still on the hunt for all five
suspects.

The Maricopa County Sheriff's Office
dispatched a helicopter and members of its
SWAT team to Pinal County to assist in the
case, said MCSO Lt. Brian Lee. Lee said at 5:
45 p.m. there were reports over the police
scanner that suspects were shooting at a
police helicopter. Lee did not know which
agency was operating the helicopter.

Maricopa County Sheriff Joe Arpaio was
headed to Pinal County to assist in the
investigation, Lee said. About 70 MCSO
employees were responding to the scene.
Lee said most were involved in a crime
suppression sweep in the Maryvale area.

The Border Patrol has sent agents to assist
the Pinal County Sheriff's Office with the
investigation, said Mario Escalante, a Border
Patrol spokesman assigned to the Tucson
sector.

The nearest Border Patrol station in the area
is located in Casa Grande.

Shortly after the shooting, Pinal County also
requested assistance from the Arizona
Department of Public Safety, which
responded with two helicopters and a SWAT
team.

Return to azcentral.com for updates.

Staff writers Craig Harris, Allison Hurtado
and Daniel Gonzalez contributed to this
report.

The Strategic Foundations of the US-Israel Alliance

By Caroline B. Glick

A MUST READ essay explaining why a strong Israel is essential for US national security. Its author is one of the foremost commentators on Middle East affairs.

PLEASE FORWARD this column to anybody who feels the need to defend the only democracy in the Middle East

http://www.JewishWorldReview.com |
Israel's status as the US's most vital ally in the Middle East has been so widely recognized for so long that over the years, Israeli and American leaders alike have felt it unnecessary to explain what it is about the alliance that makes it so important for the US.

Today, as the Obama administration is openly distancing the US from Israel while giving the impression that Israel is a strategic impediment to the administration's attempts to strengthen its relations with the Arab world, recalling why Israel is the US's most important ally in the Middle East has become a matter of some urgency.

Much is made of the fact that Israel is a democracy. But we seldom consider why the fact that Israel is a representative democracy matters. The fact that Israel is a democracy means that its alliance with America reflects the will of the Israeli people. As such, it remains constant regardless of who is power in Jerusalem.

All of the US's other alliances in the Middle East are with authoritarian regimes whose people do not share the pro-American views of their leaders. The death of leaders or other political developments are liable to bring about rapid and dramatic changes in their relations with the US.

For instance, until 1979, Iran was one of the US's closest strategic allies in the region. Owing to the gap between the Iranian people and their leadership, the Islamic revolution put an end to the US-Iran alliance.

Egypt flipped from a bitter foe to an ally of the US when Gamal Abdel Nasser died in 1969. Octogenarian President Hosni Mubarak's encroaching death is liable to cause a similar shift in the opposite direction.

Instability in the Hashemite kingdom in Jordan and the Saudi regime could transform those countries from allies to adversaries.

Only Israel, where the government reflects the will of the people is a reliable, permanent US ally.

America reaps the benefits of its alliance with Israel every day. As the US suffers from chronic intelligence gaps, Israel remains the US's most reliable source for accurate intelligence on the US's enemies in the region.

Israel is the US's only ally in the Middle East that always fights its own battles. Indeed, Israel has never asked the US for direct military assistance in time of war. Since the US and Israel share the same regional foes, when Israel is called upon to fight its enemies, its successes redound to the US's benefit.

Here it bears recalling Israel's June 1982 destruction of Syria's Soviet-made anti-aircraft batteries and the Syrian air force. Those stunning Israeli achievements were the first clear demonstration of the absolute superiority of US military technology over Soviet military technology. Many have argued that it was this Israeli demonstration of Soviet technological inferiority that convinced the Reagan administration it was possible to win the Cold War.

In both military and non-military spheres, Israeli technological achievements - often developed with US support - are shared with America. The benefits the US has gained from Israeli technological advances in everything from medical equipment to microchips to pilotless aircraft are without peer worldwide.

Beyond the daily benefits the US enjoys from its close ties with Israel, the US has three fundamental, permanent, vital national security interests in the Middle East. A strong Israel is a prerequisite for securing all of these interests.

America's three permanent strategic interests in the Middle East are as follows:

1 - Ensuring the smooth flow of affordable petroleum products from the region to global consumers through the Persian Gulf, the Gulf of Aden and the Suez Canal.

2 - Preventing the most radical regimes, sub-state and non-state actors from acquiring the means to cause catastrophic harm.

3 - Maintaining the US's capacity to project its power to the region.

A strong Israel is the best guarantor of all of these interests. Indeed, the stronger Israel is, the more secure these vital American interests are. Three permanent and unique aspects to Israel's regional position dictate this state of affairs.

1 - As the first target of the most radical regimes and radical sub-state actors in the region, Israel has a permanent, existential interest in preventing these regimes and sub-state actors from acquiring the means to cause catastrophic harm.

Israel's 1981 airstrike that destroyed Iraq's Osirak nuclear reactor prevented Iraq from acquiring nuclear weapons. Despite US condemnation at the time, the US later acknowledged that the strike was a necessary precondition to the success of Operation Desert Storm ten years later. Richard Cheney - who served as secretary of defense during Operation Desert Storm - has stated that if Iraq had been a nuclear power in 1991, the US would have been hard pressed to eject Saddam Hussein's Iraqi army from Kuwait and so block his regime from asserting control over oil supplies in the Persian Gulf.

2 - Israel is a non-expansionist state and its neighbors know it. In its 62 year history, Israel has only controlled territory vital for its national security and territory that was legally allotted to it in the 1922 League of Nations Mandate which has never been abrogated or superseded.

Israel's strength, which it has used only in self-defense, is inherently non-threatening. Far from destabilizing the region, a strong Israel stabilizes the Middle East by deterring the most radical actors from attacking.

In 1970, Israel blocked Syria's bid to use the PLO to overthrow the Hashemite regime in Jordan. Israel's threat to attack Syria not only saved the Hashemites then, it has deterred Syria from attempting to overthrow the Jordanian regime ever since.

Similarly, Israel's neighbors understand that its purported nuclear arsenal is a weapon of national survival and hence they view it as non-threatening. This is the reason Israel's alleged nuclear arsenal has never spurred a regional nuclear arms race.

In stark contrast, if Iran acquires nuclear weapons, a regional nuclear arms race will ensue immediately.

Although they will never admit it, Israel's non-radical neighbors feel more secure when Israel is strong. On the other hand, the region's most radical regimes and non-state actors will always seek to emasculate Israel.

3-- Since as the Jewish state Israel is the regional bogeyman, no Arab state will agree to form a permanent alliance with it. Hence, Israel will never be in a position to join forces with another nation against a third nation.

In contrast, the Egyptian-Syrian United Arab Republic of the 1960s was formed to attack Israel. Today, the Syrian-Iranian alliance is an inherently aggressive alliance against Israel and the non-radical Arab states in the region. Recognizing the stabilizing force of a strong Israel, the moderate states of the region prefer for Israel to remain strong.

From the US's perspective, far from impairing its alliance-making capabilities in the region, by providing military assistance to Israel, America isn't just strengthening the most stabilizing force in the region. It is showing all states and non-state actors in the greater Middle East it is trustworthy.

On the other hand, every time the US seeks to attenuate its ties with Israel, it is viewed as an untrustworthy ally by the nations of the Middle East. US hostility towards Israel causes Israel's neighbors to hedge their bets by distancing themselves from the US lest America abandon them to their neighboring adversaries.

A strong Israel empowers the relatively moderate actors in the region to stand up to the radical actors in the region because they trust Israel to keep the radicals in check. Today's regional balance of power in which the moderates have the upper hand over the radicals is predicated on a strong Israel.

On the other hand, when Israel is weakened the radical forces are emboldened to threaten the status quo. Regional stability is thrown asunder. Wars become more likely. Attacks on oil resources increase. The most radical sub-state actors and regimes are emboldened.

To the extent that the two-state solution assumes that Israel must contract itself to within the indefensible 1949 ceasefire lines, and allow a hostile Palestinian state allied with terrorist organizations to take power in the areas it vacates, the two-state solution is predicated on making Israel weak and empowering radicals. In light of this, the two-state solution as presently constituted is antithetical to America's most vital strategic interests in the Middle East.

When we bear in mind the foundations for the US's alliance with Israel, it is obvious that US support for Israel over the years has been the most cost-effective national security investment in post-World War II US history.

World markets tumble as euro debt crisis escalates


Apr 28, 6:01 AM (ET)

By PAN PYLAS

LONDON (AP) - World markets tumbled Wednesday amid acute fears that Greece's debt crisis would spread like wildfire through Europe after a leading credit ratings agency downgraded the country's debt to junk status and cut Portugal's rating as well.

The downgrades by Standard & Poor's reinforced investor fears that Europe leaders were failing to get a handle on the government debt crisis afflicting Greece and that there is now a big chance of contagion with higher borrowing costs hitting other euro-using countries with weak finances.

"Contagion is the 'buzz' word and investors alike seem to be using it as a reason to take cash off the table," said Andrew Sykes, a trader at Spreadex.

In Europe, the FTSE 100 index of leading British shares was down 52.98 points, or 1 percent, at 5,550.54 while Germany's DAX fell 107.20 points, or 1.7 percent, to 6,052.31. The CAC-40 in France was 81.11 points, or 2.1 percent, to 3,763.49. These falls come on top of Tuesday's biggest declines in months following S&P's downgrades.

Earlier, Asian stocks tanked, with Japan's Nikkei 225 stock average leading the region-wide retreat with a 2.6 percent fall to 10,924.79. Wall Street was poised for further declines following Tuesday's hammering - Dow futures were down 27 points, or 0.3 percent, at 10,928 while the Standard & Poor's 500 futures fell 2 points, or 0.2 percent, at 1,179.

The most dramatic decline Wednesday was registered in Portugal, where the main PSI 20 index in Lisbon slid 5.8 percent to 6,736.26.

Athens' composite ASE index fared modestly better after the regulator banned short-selling of banking stocks for two months - following five days of dramatic declines, the index was down only 0.9 percent at 1,682.24.

For many in the markets, the euro area is now facing a real existential threat because the rules set up to support the euro have not prevented governments from spending their way into a crisis.

"The message is clear that the euro only works if all countries give up financial sovereignty and pool resources for common taxes, budgets and social security," said David Buik, markets analyst at BGC Partners.

"If these boxes are not all ticked the whole philosophy and ethos of a united Europe crumbles in to dust," he said.

Investors will be keeping a close watch on Berlin, where both Dominique Strauss-Kahn, the managing director of the International Monetary Fund, and Jean-Claude Trichet, the president of the European Central Bank, are expected to press German Chancellor Angela Merkel that the eurozone's largest country has to release its share of the euro45 billion bailout fund for Greece swiftly if this crisis is not going to lead to wide-scale government defaults, another banking crisis and a swift return to recession across the whole single currency bloc.

Germany, where the bailout is unpopular with voters, has been slow in authorizing the release of the funds - its failure to do so stoked the panic in the markets, which has seen market rates on Greece's two-year bonds skyrocket to 21 percent.

"Jittery investors are concerned that the instability in the markets could snowball into something much bigger, and are hoping that real progress today may help to melt the ice," said Anthony Grech, market strategist at IG Index.

There's even talk now in the markets that the European Central Bank may have to play a more active role in resolving this crisis, especially as the policymakers in the European Union and the institutions have failed to provide a lead.

Many analysts are now postulating the idea that the European Central Bank may invoke emergency powers to buy Greek bonds, using the argument that the turmoil in Greece was threatening the stability of the euro area.

Even then, the consensus in the markets is that Greece will have to restructure its debts, by either cutting the amount it pays debtholders - Standard & Poor's warned on Tuesday they might get only 30-50 percent of their principal investment back - or by extending the terms of repayment.

The euro managed to find some respite after slumping to a one-year low of $1.3146 in the wake of the S&P downgrades - by late morning London time, the euro was up 0.1 percent at $1.3172.

Some distraction will likely emerge later when the U.S. Federal Reserve unveils its latest policy statement following the conclusion of its interest rate meeting.

Though no change in the Fed funds rate is expected from the current 0-0.25 percent, investors will be focusing in on the minutiae of the accompanying statement, particularly on whether there is an ongoing commitment to keep borrowing costs low for "an extended period."

"Wider contagion and the negative impact on global equity markets, if maintained, might stay the Fed's hand," said Neil Mackinnon, global macro strategist at VTB Capital. "International market developments will not be ignored."

Elsewhere in Asia, Hong Kong's Hang Seng dropped 1.5 percent to 20,949.40 and South Korea's Kospi was off 0.9 percent to 1,733.91. Markets in Australia and India retreated between 1 percent and 2 percent. Shanghai closed down 0.3 percent.

The euro stabilized after a steep drop the day before to a near 1-year low before slipping again, trading down at $1.3153 from $1.3155. The dollar rose to 93.42 yen from 93.07 yen.

Oil prices dropped for a second straight day, with benchmark crude for May delivery down 96 cents at $81.46 a barrel.

---_

AP Business Writer Jeremiah Marquez in Hong Kong contributed to this report.

Iceland volcano affected by major Sunspot Cycle that will occur from 2010 to 2015, which will intensify volcanoes, earthquakes, super storms and disrupt satellites - Bill Koenig

Note from Bill:

We pointed to the impact that Sunspot Cycles and the history of their connection to swarms of volcanic eruptions in our March 26, 2010, "Koenig's Eye View from the White House."

Eric Hadik, an earth cycle expert, wrote that the Sun shifts polarity during each sunspot cycle hellip; with seven to ten volcanoes expected to erupt in the next five years. Moreover, these numbers could increase with an even higher number of sunspots.


I shared articles from Wired Magazine: 'The 2012 apocalypse' and the National Academy of Sciences that stated if the great geomagnetic storm of 1859 occurred during a solar cycle of about the same size predicted for 2013, it could cause $1 to 2 trillion in damages to society's high-tech infrastructure.

We are in the beginning of a major record setting Sunspot Cycle that will increase in intensity periodically up to and into 2015. Eric said the period from 2012 to 2014 may likely be the most intense period of sunspots. These will affect the intensity and frequency of volcanoes, earthquakes, super storms, and disrupt satellites and technologies on earth.

Below is an excerpt from from our March 26, 2010 news report.

We thank those who support our ministry work through a subscription to our weekly news report.

---------------------------

The Solar-Polar Combo by Eric Hadik:

For those who want to do more than just observe, there is actually a very good reason for this 22-year sunspot cycle.

The unique thing about the sun is that it shifts polarity during each sunspot cycle. In effect, what was north becomes south and what was south becomes north (this is evident in the magnetic polarity of the actual sunspots and solar storms).

So, it takes two of these 11-year cycles for the sun to return to a similar polar position.

Peaks in sunspot cycles and multiple and violent volcanic eruptions

So, what can we expect in the coming years?

While the following might not be an accepted scientific fact, I cannot help but notice the close correlation between the peaks in the sunspot cycle — when Earth is sometimes pummeled by a massive surge of electromagnetivity — and the concentration of multiple, violent volcanic eruptions.

The important distinction is not when a single volcano erupted, but rather when a swarm of them did.

It is the principle of synergy when multiple, coinciding events increase the significance of a particular time frame.

Cycle of volcano swarms. This is why I also include a projection, based on multiples of '22'years.

1792 – Mt. Unzen, Japan – This is the same volcano that erupted in 1991 — along with Mt. Pinatubo & Mt. Hudson — but with more catastrophic consequences. In 1792, the eruption of this volcano killed 15,000 people. (+ 220 or 10 x 22 = 2012)

1814–1815 – Mt. Tambora (Indonesia) erupted — killing 92,000 and creating, in the ensuing year of 1816, the ‘year without a summer'; The Mayon Volcano (Philippines) erupted with the most destructive eruption of its history. This volcano later erupted in 1968 … and just came to life again, in December 2009. (+ 198 or 9 x 22 = 2012-2013)

1882–1883 – Krakatoa (Indonesia) — the most powerful eruption since Tambora — erupted, killing 36,000 people. Next to Tambora, this was the most deadly volcano of the past 300-500 years. (+ 132 or 6 x 22 = 2014–2015)

1902 [- 1906] – 1902 saw Mt. Pelee (Martinique) erupt and kill 29,000; Santa Maria (Guatemala) erupt and kill 6,000; and Soufriere (Caribbean) erupt and kill 1,680. Four years later — at the peak of the Sunspot Cycle — devastating earthquakes hit San Francisco and Messina, Italy. (+ 110 or 5 x 22 = 2012–2016)

1946–1948 – Major eruption of Popocatépetl (Mexico — erupted again in 1994 and now is active), Hekla in Iceland (1947 eruption started March 29, 1947 and ended April 1948), second greatest global lava eruption of 1900–1970; last erupted in 2000) and the creation of and eruption of Paricutin (Mexico). Cerro Negro (Nicaragua) experienced its largest eruption on July 9, 1947, with a second eruption in March 1948. (+ 66 or 3 x 22 = 2012–2014)

1948 – Niuafo'ou (Tonga) erupted violently, forcing a 12-year evacuation of that island. One additional, related point of interest … During this particular sunspot 'up' phase — in 1944 — Mt. Vesuvius experienced its last eruption. As explained a couple years ago, this volcano had a regular activity periodicity of 10-20 years for the past couple centuries. However, it has been basically dormant since 1944, an unusually long period of time for this particular volcano to be building up pressure when its 1900-year history — since the 79 A.D. eruption — is taken into consideration. (+ 66 or 3 x 22 = 2010–2014)

For what it's worth, a period of 4 x 22 x 22 years from 79 A.D. is 2015.

1967–1970 – Eruption of Arenal (Costa Rica), Mayon (Philippines), Tambora (Indonesia; see 1815), Hekla (Iceland) and an encore performance from Cerro Negro (Nicaragua), which again had multiple eruptions in 1968 and 1969. (+ 44 or 2 x 22 = 2011–2014)

1991-1992 – Mt. Pinatubo (Philippines) erupted and lowered global temperatures the following year; Mt. Unzen (Japan; see 1792), Mt. Hudson (Chile) and Hekla (Iceland) erupted. Cerro Negro (Nicaragua) was back for a second encore with its secnd largest eruption to date. (+ 22 years = 2013)

2010-2014 ??? – The greatest concentration of these cycles seems to be pointing to 2012–2014, although diverse cycles show the likelihood for major eruptions in each of the next 3-5 years.
------
For biblically relevant news and commentary, subscribe to "Koenig's Eye View from the White House." The news report is distributed by email and posted in our Subscriber Area on the website by 5 p.m. ET every Friday.

American lambs to the slaughter
Exclusive: Chuck Norris warns, 'Perfect storm of domestic disarmament' is on horizon

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Posted: April 26, 2010
1:00 am Eastern

By Chuck Norris
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
(Editor's note: This is Part One of a three-part series on the threat to the Second Amendment and Americans' firearm freedoms.)

Right now, Washington is scheming and scamming to erode then erase the Second Amendment from our Constitution. And it will accomplish it through the signing of international treaties on gun control, bypassing the normal legislative process in Congress, tightening regulations upon firearm and ammunition manufacturers, using the antigun financing of tycoons and ultimately confiscating all firearms under the guise of terrorism patrol and enforcement. Without public debate and cloaked in secrecy, gun control will covertly come upon us like a thief in the night. One day, we will wake up to discover that the U.S. has signed a global treaty that will prohibit any transfer of firearm ownership, force reductions in the number of firearms privately owned and eventually eradicate the planet of guns for law-abiding citizens. Of course, the criminals will still illegally have their guns. And on that day, if you do not comply with that global treaty, you will be fined and face imprisonment. This is not a fictitious story or false warning. As sure as government health care has been shoved down our throats, so will the barrels of our guns. And left with little defense, we will go as lambs to the slaughter.

I believe the political stars are aligning right now for just such a "perfect storm" of domestic disarmament: via the election and work of an antigun president, the disarmament passions of the Washington elites and the United Nations, the appointments of gun prohibitionists from the White House to the Supreme Court, and the funding of an anti–Second Amendment movement by billionaire progressives like George Soros.

This is Part One of three articles in which I'll be addressing the evidence – the smoking gun, if you will – of the pressing threat to the Second Amendment and our firearm freedoms.

As Wayne LaPierre, executive vice president of the National Rifle Association, wrote in the American Rifleman (February 2010): "President Obama's political mantra of 'hope and change' has morphed into a very real threat. Obama's deep curtsy to international arms control has given 'hope' to the international gun-ban crowd that they will prevail."

It was no surprise when Obama was elected that the nation was consumed with other domestic issues and had selected a president with one of the most anti-firearm records in American history. During his presidential campaign, the National Rifle Association outlined more than two dozen ways that Obama has fought against America's Second Amendment firearm freedoms over the years. So much so, that the NRA graded Obama's (and Hillary Clinton's) voting records among other presidential candidates as an "F." (Does that give any freedom-loving firearm bearer any hope now that both are now part of the same administration?) No wonder a Gallup poll in October 2009 revealed that 41 percent of all Americans and 52 percent of gun owners believe that Obama will try eventually to ban the sale of guns.

It was also no surprise, therefore, a year ago this month when Obama personally promised Mexican President Felipe Calderon that the White House would push to ratify through the Senate the CIFTA (the Inter-American Convention Against Illicit Manufacturing of and Trafficking in Firearms) treaty, which has sat tabled and unapproved by the U.S. Senate since 1997.

But then, as quickly as he initiated the debate, the president just as quickly ceased trying to ratify CIFTA in the U.S. Senate. Why was that? Cato Institute scholar Ted Galen Carpenter said there was a reason that the treaty was tabled a year ago by Obama. I agree. I believe that reason was Obamacare. He knew he couldn't tackle and force through Congress two incredibly hot and volatile issues at once, at least of this caliber. But now that Obamacare is law, it's no surprise that both CIFTA and a separate U.N. small-arms treaty are experiencing a renewed life. And like Obamacare was pitched solely under "health-care reform," you can bet that a small-arms weapon ban will be pitched under "a fight against global terrorism and drug wars."

Trust me that what sounds like a tool being used against terrorism or illegal arm trade will actually further restrict Americans' right to bear arms. Under the disguise of an effort to combat drug violence, the passage of CIFTA or its equal will further clamp down upon our Second Amendment freedoms.

Again, as Wayne LaPierre, executive vice president of the National Rifle Association, summarized in the American Rifleman (February 2010): "The administration is trying to act as though this is really just a treaty about international trade between nations, but there's no doubt … that the real agenda here is domestic firearms control."

NRA might mean National Rifle Association, but it also means to me, "Never Remove (your) Arms." The fact is, the Second Amendment could even save your life.

That was the case this past year for Vern Grant, a 75-year-old Army veteran with Parkinson's disease and diabetes, who had just suffered through the death of his wife. Two weeks later, Vern was attacked by a burglar in his Washington home. After smashing the windows of Vern's handicap van and scavenging through his medicines, the intruder broke the glass of his back door and entered his home. Vern says the intruder was incoherently screaming.

The intruder nearly killed Vern after hitting him in the head. But Vern was able to grab and fire his gun in self-defense, hitting the suspect. Vern miraculously made it to his neighbor's house, where he sought help.

The suspect was airlifted to a hospital with non-life-threatening injuries, and Vern was released from the hospital after his head wounds were treated.

Grateful for his life and the Second Amendment, Vern asked a question to a reporter that we all should easily answer, "You'd do the same if you thought he was going to kill you, wouldn't you?"

Yes I would, Vern. In fact, by way of fair warning for any would-be burglars that break into my house, I hope they read the sign on my front porch first: "We don't dial 9-1-1 here."

(For more on how to reawaken America to our founders' vision and plans for this country, check out Chuck Norris' brand-new patriot service announcement at BlackBeltPatriotism.com.)

Federal agents invade farm for 5 a.m. milk inspection
Serve warrant on farmer up to milk cows

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Posted: April 22, 2010
10:55 pm Eastern

By Bob Unruh

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
WorldNetDaily

Federal agents invaded an Amish farm in Pennsylvania at 5 a.m. to inspect cow-milking facilities then followed up the next day with a written notice that the farmer was engaged in interstate sale of raw milk in violation of the Public Health Services Act.


A failure to correct the situation could result in "seizure and/or injunction," the warning letter from Kirk Sooter, district director of the Philadelphia office of the Department of Health and Human Services, told farmer Dan Allgyer of Kinzers, Pa., on Wednesday.

The farm invaded Tuesday is the one agents visited in February, driving past "Private Property" signs to demand Allgyer open his property for their inspection, saying, "You have cows. You produce food for human consumption."

The case is being publicized by the National Independent Consumers and Farmers Association, which promotes traditional methods of linking farmers with consumers.

Spokeswoman Deborah Stockton told WND Allgyer "is the type of farmer who exemplifies what we are trying to restore." On her organization's website is the commitment "to promote and preserve unregulated direct farmer-to-consumer trade that fosters availability of locally grown or home-produced food products."

She reported she got details directly from Allgyer of Tuesday's early-morning inspection, which highlights the growing conflict between farmers who want to provide health food locally and federal regulators.

Allgyer could not be reached immediately for comment.

The farmer told NICFA he came out of his house about 4:30 a.m. for his milking routine and noticed a lot of traffic on Kinzer Road.

Shortly later, the cars were coming up his lane.

"I stood back in the dark barn to see what they were going to do. They drove past my two 'Private Property' signs, up to where my coolers were, with their headlights shining right on them," Allgyer reported.

He called to the five men as they were preparing to knock on his home, where his wife and family remained asleep.

"Two were from the FDA, agent Joshua C. Schafer who had been there in February and another. They showed me identification, but I was too flustered to ask for their cards. I remember being told that two were deputy U.S. marshals and one a state trooper. They started asking me questions right away. They handed me a paper, and I didn't realize what it was," he said.

"Schafer told me they were there to do a 'routine inspection.' At 5:00 in the morning, I wondered to myself? 'Do you have a warrant?' I asked, and one of them, a marshal or the state policeman, said, 'You've got in your hand buddy.' I asked, 'What is the warrant about?' Schafer responded, 'We have credible evidence that you are involved in interstate commerce,'" the farmer reported.

WND telephone calls and e-mails to the FDA requesting comment did not generate a response.

Allgyer said he confirmed his identification but then said he wouldn't answer anything further.

He said he questioned their arrival at his farm at 5 a.m. when the warrant clearly stated it was valid during "reasonable times during ordinary business hours," but one of the agents said "ordinary business hours for agriculture start at 5 a.m."

The agents spent their time "rooting around, like a couple of pigs, in the freezer and cooler area and took many pictures," Allgyer reported.

"They came in the dark, shining bright flashlights while my family was asleep, keeping me from milking my cows, from my family, from breakfast with my family and from our morning devotions, and alarming my children enough so that the first question they asked my wife was, 'Is Daddy going to jail?'" Allgyer said.

The subsequent warning letter was an all-inclusive notice that federal regulations prohibit "the delivery into interstate commerce of milk and milk products in final package form for direct human consumption unless they have been pasteurized."

"It is your responsibility to ensure adherence with all requirements. … Failure to make prompt corrections could result in regulatory action without further notice," the letter said.

The letter directed Allgyer to notify Compliance Officer Richard Cherry of the corrections.

Stockton warned the requirement now is for federal agents to claim they have "credible evidence" regarding a case, but a proposed federal change would strike those words in the law and replace them with "reason to believe."

"The phrase 'reason to believe' would be inserted 14 times into the code with S. 510," she said. "If this bill goes through, the FDA will have control of farms. They will not need 'credible evidence' to act. They will essentially be given a free hand to act as they want. And look at how they already act, even with the existing constraints in place."

Allgyer previously had told the officers that as a private farmer, he does not sell to the public.

Advocates say raw milk is healthier.

According to natural-foods blogger Kimberly Hartke, Kevin Trudeau touts raw milk in his New York Times best-seller "Natural Cures They Don't Want You to Know About," and Sally Fallon Morell's cookbook, "Nourishing Traditions," which has sold 350,000 copies.

On a forum page at Chronwatch-America.com, a participant concluded, "The food produced on that farm is probably far safer than anything you get at the grocery store."

That opinion was endorsed on the Food Freedom blog, where one participant wrote, "Factory foods are the ones making people sick & getting recalled."

The Weston A. Price Foundation, which is among the nonprofits that educate consumers about more natural food-production methods, said demand for such products is growing.

"Raw milk … is a supremely healthy food that should be available to those who want it," said Morell, the foundation's president.

In January, Canadian farmer Michael Schmidt won a court victory when he was found not guilty of selling raw milk to members of a cow-sharing consortium.

In a previous U.S. case, Mennonite farmer Mark Nolt of Maryland had his farm raided by SWAT-type agents. He was fined more than $4,000 and had his equipment confiscated for providing unpasteurized milk to participants in his program.

Obama Denies Individual Aid for Storm Relief
By LEANNE GENDREAU
Updated 3:45 PM EDT, Tue, Apr 27, 2010

President Barack Obama has denied aid to individuals affected by March’s massive storms and Gov. M. Jodi Rell said she plans to file a formal appeal.

The decision comes just days after Obama approved the state’s request for a “major disaster declaration,” which provides financial help to state and municipal governments in Fairfield, Middlesex and New London counties.

Storms plagues the state, especially these counties from March 12 to 14 and from March 29 to 31.

Rell was looking for help for homeowners, renters and employers.

“The storms that battered our state last month left a trail of astonishing devastation in their wake – crushed cars, homes struck by trees, week-long power outages and staggering flooding,” Rell said. “People and businesses all across Connecticut were left with millions of dollars in damage. They need help.

Rell called the decision “disappointing” and has started gathering information to file a formal appeal.

“I have directed our state emergency management officials to immediately gather whatever information may be needed to further support our application for assistance. I will also work with our Congressional delegation and with the Federal Emergency Management Agency to continue pursuing this matter until all avenues for aid are exhausted,” she said.

A survey was conducted that identified 1,315 homes in the five counties with damages totaling $5,262,100 in estimated housing assistance needs and “other needs assistance.” Rell's broader request also looked for help for Fairfield, Middlesex and New London counties, as well as New Haven and Windham counties.

The Small Business Administration determined that 116 businesses were affected and estimated the damages at $5,359,250.

Crippling Macafee Virus Stops XP Users Dead In Their Tracks - Dark Reading

Well, this is something I was warned about as a real possibility of happening a year or so ago. While I cannot say for certain this was intentional this is exactly the kind of thing some in the know out there said was likely to happen sooner or later.

I will say this, there are some really powerful forces out there who are doing what they can to kill XP. I think I told you that in some nations, it is illegal to put XP onto servers so people can use it, those violently repressive nations want you to use Vista or 7. Putting XP on those servers carries the death penalty. Why? Folks XP is a pretty rock solid operating system and has very little government spying capabilities built in. It was built before certain things happened over at Microsoft.

So now the key for these forces is how to destroy the OS. I am not saying this was such an attempt. I am saying that such attempts will be made. In fact, one major PC manufactuerer received a large quantity of OS discs that were, shall we say 'doctored'. When someone in authority got wind of this, certain individuals directly involved 'disappeared' before they could be arrested and questioned.

Why am I telling you this, just to show off? Nope. I usually do not like telling folks these things because it goes in one ear and out the other and they go happily on their way doing exactly what they were doing before you told them.

I have an older XP box that I use often, yes I do have a Vista box but I have 'fixed' may of the problems/things I don't like and yes... I also use Ubuntu quite a bit. My ancient box (Dell insprion 6000 bought in mid 2005) has XP-SP3 on it. But if you notice in SP3, Windows Update will always show up in your traffic logs even if you turn automatic updates off. While I will not tell you what you should do, my computers only talk to update servers when I allow them to, both Windows and Linux. That includes my antivirus, Windows update, Office software, Ubuntu update... you name it. Why? because of things like this. You cannot trust these large conglomerate because some of them are hooked in with organized crime and intelligence agencies... and yes, that includes the ones YOU use.

What if somebody wanted to shut down 90% of the worlds computers? Who do you think they would try and subvert using 'update servers' or using corrupt DNS entries in order to redirect traffic to criminals who operate illegal/criminal servers prepared to deliver millions of viruses, rootkits and other malware to the unsuspecting using periodic non-user prompted 'updates'?

But there are still plenty of unanswered questions about the error -- what exactly went wrong in McAfee's quality assurance testing process, why McAfee wasn't testing sufficiently for the pervasive XP SP3 configuration, and what happens to XP SP3 machines that haven't yet been affected by the bad update, but could be later.

"It could have been anything from sabotage to just carelessness," says security expert Lucas Lundgren. "What scares me a little is haven't they tried this in a test environment before launching? And if they did, they have a serious problem on how they test their products."

Amrit Williams, CTO at BigFix and the former director of engineering at McAfee who helped develop the AV company's DAT testing process, says the incident is a major failure of McAfee's internal quality control process. "It's completely unacceptable," Williams says. "The fact that this got through indicates it was either malicious or negligent." - Dark Reading

Like I said, you may do what you want. My XP box is up and running fine... no problems. Why? I don't trust anyone to update my computer without my express permission on each and every instance. Today, fewer and fewer software makers are allowing people that option. They poll update servers without your permission and make it nearly impossible to stop them from doing so.

So what happened to all of the poor suckers who trusted 'update servers' on their XP boxes?

"...their Windows XP SP3 machines (suffer) from crashes or repeated reboots..."

Word to the wise. In the world of software, 'trust is the occupation of fools and its wages are identity theft'.

You Don't Have to Like it but it's the Truth.
Posted: Sunday, April 25, 2010
- written by jerry golden

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Jim Searcy has put out the following, if you have the stomach to view this video I suggest you get prayed up first. The facts that follow are undisputable, they are simply what the Koran teaches and the many verses you should be aware of. As Islam spreads like wild-fire thought out Europe and the world the possibility of this happening to you and your family draws more possible every day. We here in Israel know what we are up against, but it seems the people of the free world mostly the USA are living in denial, and when reality catches up with them, it will be to late.

God is speaking very loudly to those who come against Israel, on the very day England made the statement that the Temple Mount and the Western Wall are not part of the Land of Israel, the Iceland volcano cover England with ash. All flights were stopped costing Europe billions of dollars. It is also interesting to note that on the very day Jews mourned for the 6,000,000 who were murdered in the Holocaust ash covered England and much of Europe.

It is no longer an unknown secret that Obama wants to see Israel destroyed, that he makes friends with all the Islamic enemies of Israel and enemies of those who love democracy and freedom in the Middle East. It is also no secret that God said He would bless those who blessed Israel and curse those who curse Israel. And anyone with eyes to see can see God's judgment falling on the USA today and the worse hasn't even begun yet.

Read and watch what Jim Searcy has sent out, it is very strong and may be hard for you to sit through to the end, but you need to.

Shalom, jerry golden
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Islam & What The Koran REALLY Teaches

Dear Friends -

In the early hours of 7 March, armed Fulani MUSLIMS killed up to 500 villagers in Plateau State Nigeria. The Christians were KILLED just because they were NOT Muslims.

The Christians were mostly women and children who were defenseless and unprotected. The attackers were MUSLIMS who were religiously following the teaching of the Allah god of Islam, who is Lucifer, Satan, the devil, who comes only to steal, KILL, and destroy. The Muslim attackers believe the teaching of the Satanic Q'uran, or Koran, which teaches that Christians, and all Non-Muslim people, do not deserve to live, and the Muslim religious duty is to kill or enslave them. Yes indeed, that is what MUST be done according to the teaching of the Koran, as you will see at the end of this article.

The heavily armed Muslims hacked down the Christian women as they tried to cover and protect their children with their bodies. Little babies were taken from their mothers and thrown into the large fire, which the Muslim attackers had set.

Christians in three villages were shot and butchered by the Muslims in cold blood at about 3am, Sunday, March 7, 2010. The Muslims from Fulani were doing what their Satanic religion duty requires. Muslim duty, according to the Koran, is to KILL Christians and all Non-Muslims, simply because they are Non-Muslims, which the Muslim religion requires to be KILLED or enslaved.

This is the TRUTH regarding the religion of Islam, or bondage to Satan. The only section of the Koran, which tells the true core beliefs of Satan's largest religion, is SURA NUMBER NINE. All other suras abrogate to that sura and nothing of sura nine can be abrogated away, because it is the last of them all. In Islam, the Allah god of the Koran gave BETTER verses LATER, which supercede and nullify earlier verses. Muslims call that basis of LIES, situational ethics, and deception, ABROGATION. All of the other suras provide plausible deniability to the LIE that Islam can possibly be considered to be a peaceful religion.

Maybe that is why politicians like Popes, the Princes, and Presidents favor Satan's religion of Islam so much. If you find this hard to believe, you can click up this video and see the proof that this account is true:

http://www.youtube.com/user/Merciful1Nigeria#p/a/u/1/KownXxNaxaM

Then 10 days later, the MUSLIMS struck again at about 1:00 am, Wednesday morning, March 17, 2010. A band of MUSLIM men, identified by the victims as Hausas and Fulani MUSLIMS attacked the village. The attackers spoke in Fulfulde, Hausa, and English during the attack as they directed one another during the two deadly hours. All in all 14 people laid dead by 3:00 am, among them were 6 women, four children and two men. Four other victims are in the Vom Christian Hospital. Among the four women killed, two of them were pregnant. The MUSLIM attackers slashed and took out the tongues of two of the victims.

Once more, villagers are left traumatized and the entire community is in mourning. The Churches in the area are calling for prayers for Plateau State, Nigeria. The people are fast loosing confidence in the soldiers sent to protect them. Prayers are requested by the Churches that the people of Plateau State do not begin to take alternative measures to defend themselves and their families. The Christians in Plateau State are united in prayer that there will not be retaliations, and that God will give all involved the Spirit of Forgiveness.

So that you KNOW, the following is the core teaching of the Muslim inspired books, and the prophet of the moon god. It is sura number nine, called IMMUNITY. You will see the religion of the Muslim is to KILL all Non-Muslims, and the sura is called IMMUNITY, because the Muslims are IMMUNE from any normal morality toward Non-Muslims. IF YOU KNOW WHAT FOLLOWS IN SURA NINE THEN YOU KNOW THE TRUE REAL TEACHING OF THE KORAN, AS ALL SURAS MUST ABROGATE TO THIS IMMUNITY SURA NINE, AND NOTHING FROM SURA NINE CAN BE ABROGATED OR CHANGED, FOR IT REPRESENTS THE ABSOLUTE FINAL REAL TRUTH OF THE KORAN. Everyone should clearly see from such IMMUNITY that Allah is Satan, the devil, the father or LIES. If you will read this one Sura Nine, then you can in fact, and in truth, say you know the teaching of the Koran better than 99% of the teachers of Islam.

If you know what the IMMUNITY Sura Nine, to which everything else in the Koran abrogates to, then you know:

1 - The god of Islam is pleased when the Muslim deceives the Non-Muslim.

2 - The god of Islam is pleased when the Muslim steals from the Non-Muslim.

3 - The god of Islam is pleased when the Muslim enslaves the Non-Muslim.

4 - The god of Islam is pleased when the Muslim kills the Non-Muslim.

The teaching of the Koran is that the Muslim has total IMMUNITY from any normal morality or human decency toward Non-Muslims. The more the Muslim can LIE, DECEIVE, MISTREAT, STEAL, ENSLAVE, TORTURE, and KILL Non-Muslims, ESPECIALLY Christians and Jews, (people of the Book), the more pleased the god of Islam is with the Muslim. Muslims by such demonic inhumanity proves his devotion to the god of Islam. The more demonic the Muslim can behave regarding the people of the Book in particular, and all Non-Muslims in general, the better the god of Islam likes it. It should be clear that the god of Islam is Lucifer, Satan, the devil.

Brethren, these poor people bound in Satan’s largest religion. NEED the Gospel. If you were born in Saudi Arabia, Indonesia, Pakistan, Afghanistan, Iraq, Iran, Bangladesh, or any other Muslim country – the following REAL teaching of Satan’s largest religion would be all you would be allowed to know about religion.

SURA NINE – THE IMMUNITY

[9.1] (This is a declaration of) immunity by Allah and His Apostle towards those of the idolaters with whom you made an agreement.

[9.2] So go about in the land for four months and know that you cannot weaken Allah and that Allah will bring disgrace to the unbelievers.

[9.3] And an announcement from Allah and His Apostle to the people on the day of the greater pilgrimage that Allah and His Apostle are free from liability to the idolaters; therefore if you repent, it will be better for you, and if you turn back, then know that you will not weaken Allah; and announce painful punishment to those who disbelieve.

[9.4] Except those of the idolaters with whom you made an agreement, then they have not failed you in anything and have not backed up any one against you, so fulfill their agreement to the end of their term; surely Allah loves those who are careful (of their duty).

[9.5] So when the sacred months have passed away, then slay the idolaters wherever you find them, and take them captives and besiege them and lie in wait for them in every ambush, then if they repent and keep up prayer and pay the poor-rate, leave their way free to them; surely Allah is Forgiving, Merciful.

[9.6] And if one of the idolaters seek protection from you, grant him protection till he hears the word of Allah, then make him attain his place of safety; this is because they are a people who do not know.

[9.7] How can there be an agreement for the idolaters with Allah and with His Apostle; except those with whom you made an agreement at the Sapcred Mosque? So as long as they are true to you, be true to them; surely Allah loves those who are careful (of their duty).

[9.8] How (can it be)! while if they prevail against you, they would not pay regard in your case to ties of relationship, nor those of covenant; they please you with their mouths while their hearts do not consent; and most of them are transgressors.

[9.9] They have taken a small price for the communications of Allah, so they turn away from His way; surely evil is it that they do.

[9.10] They do not pay regard to ties of relationship nor those of covenant in the case of a believer; and these are they who go beyond the limits.

[9.11] But if they repent and keep up prayer and pay the poor-rate, they are your brethren in faith; and We make the communications clear for a people who know.

[9.12] And if they break their oaths after their agreement and (openly) revile your religion, then fight the leaders of unbelief-- surely their oaths are nothing-- so that they may desist.

[9.13] What! will you not fight a people who broke their oaths and aimed at the expulsion of the Apostle, and they attacked you first; do you fear them? But Allah is most deserving that you should fear Him, if you are believers.

[9.14] Fight them, Allah will punish them by your hands and bring them to disgrace, and assist you against them and heal the hearts of a believing people.

[9.15] And remove the rage of their hearts; and Allah turns (mercifully) to whom He pleases, and Allah is Knowing, Wise.

[9.16] What! do you think that you will be left alone while Allah has not yet known those of you who have struggled hard and have not taken any one as an adherent besides Allah and His Apostle and the believers; and Allah is aware of what you do.

[9.17] The idolaters have no right to visit the mosques of Allah while bearing witness to unbelief against themselves, these it is whose doings are null, and in the fire shall they abide.

[9.18] Only he shall visit the mosques of Allah who believes in Allah and the latter day, and keeps up prayer and pays the poor-rate and fears none but Allah; so (as for) these, it may be that they are of the followers of the right course.

[9.19] What! do you make (one who undertakes) the giving of drink to the pilgrims and the guarding of the Sacred Mosque like him who believes in Allah and the latter day and strives hard in Allah's way? They are not equal with Allah; and Allah does not guide the unjust people.

[9.20] Those who believed and fled (their homes), and strove hard in Allah's way with their property and their souls, are much higher in rank with Allah; and those are they who are the achievers (of their objects).

[9.21] Their Lord gives them good news of mercy from Himself and (His) good pleasure and gardens, wherein lasting blessings shall be theirs;

[9.22] Abiding therein for ever; surely Allah has a Mighty reward with Him.

[9.23] O you who believe! do not take your fathers and your brothers for guardians if they love unbelief more than belief; and whoever of you takes them for a guardian, these it is that are the unjust.

[9.24] Say: If your fathers and your sons and your brethren and your mates and your kinsfolk and property which you have acquired, and the slackness of trade which you fear and dwellings which you like, are dearer to you than Allah and His Apostle and striving in His way, then wait till Allah brings about His command: and Allah does not guide the transgressing people.

[9.25] Certainly Allah helped you in many battlefields and on the day of Hunain, when your great numbers made you vain, but they availed you nothing and the earth became strait to you notwithstanding its spaciousness, then you turned back retreating.

[9.26] Then Allah sent down His tranquillity upon His Apostle and upon the believers, and sent down hosts which you did not see, and chastised those who disbelieved, and that is the reward of the unbelievers.

[9.27] Then will Allah after this turn (mercifully) to whom He pleases, and Allah is Forgiving, Merciful.

[9.28] O you who believe! the idolaters are nothing but unclean, so they shall not approach the Sacred Mosque after this year; and if you fear poverty then Allah will enrich you out of His grace if He please; surely Allah is Knowing Wise.

[9.29] Fight those who do not believe in Allah, nor in the latter day, nor do they prohibit what Allah and His Apostle have prohibited, nor follow the religion of truth, out of those who have been given the Book, until they pay the tax in acknowledgment of superiority and they are in a state of subjection.

[9.30] And the Jews say: Uzair is the son of Allah; and the Christians say: The Messiah is the son of Allah; these are the words of their mouths; they imitate the saying of those who disbelieved before; may Allah destroy them; how they are turned away!

[9.31] They have taken their doctors of law and their monks for lords besides Allah, and (also) the Messiah son of Marium and they were enjoined that they should serve one God only, there is no god but He; far from His glory be what they set up (with Him).

[9.32] They desire to put out the light of Allah with their mouths, and Allah will not consent save to perfect His light, though the unbelievers are averse.

[9.33] He it is Who sent His Apostle with guidance and the religion of truth, that He might cause it to prevail over all religions, though the polytheists may be averse.

[9.34] O you who believe! most surely many of the doctors of law and the monks eat away the property of men falsely, and turn (them) from Allah's way; and (as for) those who hoard up gold and silver and do not spend it in Allah's way, announce to them a painful chastisement,

[9.35] On the day when it shall be heated in the fire of hell, then their foreheads and their sides and their backs shall be branded with it; this is what you hoarded up for yourselves, therefore taste what you hoarded.

[9.36] Surely the number of months with Allah is twelve months in Allah's ordinance since the day when He created the heavens and the earth, of these four being sacred; that is the right reckoning; therefore be not unjust to yourselves regarding them, and fight the polytheists all together as they fight you all together; and know that Allah is with those who guard (against evil).

[9.37] Postponing (of the sacred month) is only an addition in unbelief, wherewith those who disbelieve are led astray, violating it one year and keeping it sacred another, that they may agree in the number (of months) that Allah has made sacred, and thus violate what Allah has made sacred; the evil of their doings is made fairseeming to them; and Allah does not guide the unbelieving people.

[9.38] O you who believe! What (excuse) have you that when it is said to you: Go forth in Allah's way, you should incline heavily to earth; are you contented with this world's life instead of the hereafter? But the provision of this world's life compared with the hereafter is but little.

[9.39] If you do not go forth, He will chastise you with a painful chastisement and bring in your place a people other than you, and you will do Him no harm; and Allah has power over all things.

[9.40] If you will not aid him, Allah certainly aided him when those who disbelieved expelled him, he being the second of the two, when they were both in the cave, when he said to his companion: Grieve not, surely Allah is with us. So Allah sent down His tranquillity upon him and strengthened him with hosts which you did not see, and made lowest the word of those who disbelieved; and the word of Allah, that is the highest; and Allah is Mighty, Wise.

[9.41] Go forth light and heavy, and strive hard in Allah's way with your property and your persons; this is better for you, if you know.

[9.42] Had it been a near advantage and a short journey, they would certainly have followed you, but the tedious journey was too long for them; and they swear by Allah: If we had been able, we would certainly have gone forth with you; they cause their own souls to perish, and Allah knows that they are most surely

[9.43] Allah pardon you! Why did you give them leave until those who spoke the truth had become manifest to you and you had known the liars?

[9.44] They do not ask leave of you who believe in Allah and the latter day (to stay away) from striving hard with their property and their persons, and Allah knows those who guard (against evil).

[9.45] They only ask leave of you who do not believe in Allah and the latter day and their hearts are in doubt, so in their doubt do they waver.

[9.46] And if they had intended to go forth, they would certainly have provided equipment for it, but Allah did not like their going forth, so He withheld them, and it was said (to them): Hold back with those who hold back.

[9.47] Had they gone forth with you, they would not have added to you aught save corruption, and they would certainly have hurried about among you seeking (to sow) dissension among you, and among you there are those who hearken for their sake; and Allah knows the unjust.

[9.48] Certainly they sought (to sow) dissension before, and they meditated plots against you until the truth came, and Allah's commandment prevailed although they were averse (from it).

[9.49] And among them there is he who says: Allow me and do not try me. Surely into trial have they already tumbled down, and most surely hell encompasses the unbelievers.

[9.50] If good befalls you, it grieves them, and if hardship afflicts you, they say: Indeed we had taken care of our affair before; and they turn back and are glad.

[9.51] Say: Nothing will afflict us save what Allah has ordained for us; He is our.Patron; and on Allah let the believers rely.

[9.52] Say: Do you await for us but one of two most excellent things? And we await for you that Allah will afflict you with punishment from Himself or by our hands. So wait; we too will wait with you.

[9.53] Say: Spend willingly or unwillingly, it shall not be accepted from you; surely you are a transgressing people.

[9.54] And nothing hinders their spendings being accepted from them, except that they disbelieve in Allah and in His Apostle and they do not come to prayer but while they are sluggish, and they do not spend but while they are unwilling.

[9.55] Let not then their property and their children excite your admiration; Allah only wishes to chastise them with these in this world's life and (that) their souls may depart while they are unbelievers.

[9.56] And they swear by Allah that they are most surely of you, and they are not of you, but they are a people who are afraid (of you).

[9.57] If they could find a refuge or cave or a place to enter into, they would certainly have turned thereto, running away in all haste.

[9.58] And of them there are those who blame you with respect to the alms; so if they are given from it they are pleased, and if they are not given from it, lo! they are full of rage.

[9.59] And if they were content with what Allah and His Apostle gave them, and had said: Allah is sufficient for us; Allah will soon give us (more) out of His grace and His Apostle too; surely to Allah do we make our petition.

[9.60] Alms are only for the poor and the needy, and the officials (appointed) over them, and those whose hearts are made to incline (to truth) and the (ransoming of) captives and those in debts and in the way of Allah and the wayfarer; an ordinance from Allah; and Allah is knowing, Wise.

[9.61] And there are some of them who molest the Prophet and say: He is one who believes every thing that he hears; say: A hearer of good for you (who) believes in Allah and believes the faithful and a mercy for those of you who believe; and (as for) those who molest the Apostle of Allah, they shall have a painful punishment.

[9.62] They swear to you by Allah that they might please you and, Allah, as well as His Apostle, has a greater right that they should please Him, if they are believers.

[9.63] Do they not know that whoever acts in opposition to Allah and His Apostle, he shall surely have the fire of hell to abide in it? That is the grievous abasement.

[9.64] The hypocrites fear lest a chapter should be sent down to them telling them plainly of what is in their hearts. Say: Go on mocking, surely Allah will bring forth what you fear.

[9.65] And if you should question them, they would certainly say: We were only idly discoursing and sporting. Say: Was it at Allah and His communications and His Apostle that you mocked?

[9.66] Do not make excuses; you have denied indeed after you had believed; if We pardon a party of you, We will chastise (another) party because they are guilty.

[9.67] The hypocritical men and the hypocritical women are all alike; they enjoin evil and forbid good and withhold their hands; they have forsaken Allah, so He has forsaken them; surely the hypocrites are the transgressors.

[9.68] Allah has promised the hypocritical men and the hypocritical women and the unbelievers the fire of hell to abide therein; it is enough for them; and Allah has cursed them and they shall have lasting punishment.

[9.69] Like those before you; they were stronger than you in power and more abundant in wealth and children, so they enjoyed their portion; thus have you enjoyed your portion as those before you enjoyed their portion; and you entered into vain discourses like the vain discourses in which entered those before you. These are they whose works are null in this world and the hereafter, and these are they who are the losers.

[9.70] Has not the news of those before them come to them; of the people of Nuh and Ad and Samood, and the people of Ibrahim and the dwellers of Madyan and the overthrown cities; their apostles came to them with clear arguments; so it was not Allah Who should do them injustice, but they were unjust to themselves.

[9.71] And (as for) the believing men and the believing women, they are guardians of each other; they enjoin good and forbid evil and keep up prayer and pay the poor-rate, and obey Allah and His Apostle; (as for) these, Allah will show mercy to them; surely Allah is Mighty, Wise.

[9.72] Allah has promised to the believing men and the believing women gardens, beneath which rivers flow, to abide in them, and goodly dwellings in gardens of perpetual abode; and best of all is Allah's goodly pleasure; that is the grand achievement.

[9.73] O Prophet! strive hard against the unbelievers and the hypocrites and be unyielding to them; and their abode is hell, and evil is the destination.

[9.74] They swear by Allah that they did not speak, and certainly they did speak, the word of unbelief, and disbelieved after their Islam, and they had determined upon what they have not been able to effect, and they did not find fault except because Allah and His Apostle enriched them out of His grace; therefore if they repent, it will be good for them; and if they turn back, Allah will chastise them with a painful chastisement in this world and the hereafter, and they shall not have in the land any guardian or a helper.

[9.75] And there are those of them who made a covenant with Allah: If He give us out of His grace, we will certainly give alms and we will certainly be of the good.

[9.76] But when He gave them out of His grace, they became niggardly of it and they turned back and they withdrew.

[9.77] So He made hypocrisy to follow as a consequence into their hearts till the day when they shall meet Him because they failed to perform towards Allah what they had promised with Him and because they told lies.

[9.78] Do they not know that Allah knows their hidden thoughts and their secret counsels, and that Allah is the great Knower of the unseen things?

[9.79] They who taunt those of the faithful who give their alms freely, and those who give to the extent of their earnings and scoff at them; Allah will pay them back their scoffing, and they shall have a painful chastisement.

[9.80] Ask forgiveness for them or do not ask forgiveness for them; even if you ask forgiveness for them seventy times, Allah will not forgive them; this is because they disbelieve in Allah and His Apostle, and Allah does not guide the transgressing people.

[9.81] Those who were left behind were glad on account of their sitting behind Allah's Apostle and they were averse from striving m Allah's way with their property and their persons, and said: Do not go forth in the heat. Say: The fire of hell is much severe in heat. Would that they understood (it).

[9.82] Therefore they shall laugh little and weep much as a recompense for what they earned.

[9.83] Therefore if Allah brings you back to a party of them and then they ask your permission to go forth, say: By no means shall you ever go forth with me and by no means shall you fight an enemy with me; surely you chose to sit the first time, therefore sit (now) with those who remain behind.

[9.84] And never offer prayer for any one of them who dies and do not stand by his grave; surely they disbelieve in Allah and His Apostle and they shall die in transgression.

[9.85] And let not their property and their children excite your admlration; Allah only wishes to chastise them with these in this world and (that) their souls may depart while they are unbelievers

[9.86] And whenever a chapter is revealed, saying: Believe in Allah and strive hard along with His Apostle, those having ampleness of means ask permission of you and say: Leave us (behind), that we may be with those who sit.

[9.87] They preferred to be with those who remained behind, and a seal is set on their hearts so they do not understand.

[9.88] But the Apostle and those who believe with him strive hard with their property and their persons; and these it is who shall have the good things and these it is who shall be successful.

[9.89] Allah has prepared for them gardens beneath which rivers flow, to abide in them; that is the great achievement. And the defaulters from among the dwellers of the desert came that permission may be given to them and they sat (at home) who lied to Allah and His Apostle; a painful chastisement shall afflict those of them who disbelieved.

[9.91] It shall be no crime in the weak, nor in the sick, nor in those who do not find what they should spend (to stay behind), so long as they are sincere to Allah and His Apostle; there is no way (to blame) against the doers of good; and Allah is Forgiving, Merciful;

[9.92] Nor in those who when they came to you that you might carry them, you said: I cannot find that on which to carry you; they went back while their eyes overflowed with tears on account of grief for not finding that which they should spend.

[9.93] The way (to blame) is only against those who ask permission of you though they are rich; they have chosen to be with those who remained behind, and Allah has set a seal upon their hearts so they do not know.

[9.94] They will excuse themselves to you when you go back to them. Say: Urge no excuse, by no means will we believe you; indeed Allah has informed us of matters relating to you; and now Allah and His Apostle will see your doings, then you shall be brought back to the Knower of the unseen and the seen, then He will inform you of what you did.

[9.95] They will swear to you by Allah when you return to them so that you may turn aside from them; so do turn aside from them; surely they are unclean and their abode is hell; a recompense for what they earned.

[9.96] They will swear to you that you may be pleased with them; but if you are pleased with them, yet surely Allah is not pleased with the transgressing people.

[9.97] The dwellers of the desert are very hard in unbelief and hypocrisy, and more disposed not to know the limits of what Allah has revealed to His Apostle; and Allah is Knowing, Wise.

[9.98] And of the dwellers of the desert are those who take what they spend to be a fine, and they wait (the befalling of) calamities to you; on them (will be) the evil calamity; and Allah is Hearing, Knowing.

[9.99] And of the dwellers of the desert are those who believe in Allah and the latter day and take what they spend to be (means of) the nearness of Allah and the Apostle's prayers; surely it shall be means of nearness for them; Allah will make them enter into His mercy; surely Allah is Forgiving, Merciful.

[9.100] And (as for) the foremost, the first of the Muhajirs and the Ansars, and those who followed them in goodness, Allah is well pleased with them and they are well pleased with Him, and He has prepared for them gardens beneath which rivers flOw, to abide in them for ever; that is the mighty achievement.

[9.101] And from among those who are round about you of the dwellers of the desert there are hypocrites, and from among the people of Medina (also); they are stubborn in hypocrisy; you do not know them; We know them; We will chastise them twice then shall they be turned back to a grievous chastisement

[9.102] And others have confessed their faults, they have mingled a good deed and an evil one; may be Allah will turn to them (mercifully); surely Allah is Forgiving, Merciful.

[9.103] Take alms out of their property, you would cleanse them and purify them thereby, and pray for them; surely your prayer is a relief to them; and Allah is Hearing, Knowing.

[9.104] Do they not know that Allah accepts repentance from His servants and takes the alms, and that Allah is the Oft-returning (to mercy), the Merciful?

[9.105] And say: Work; so Allah will see your work and (so will) His Apostle and the believers; and you shall be brought back to the Knower of the unseen and the seen, then He will inform you of what you did.

[9.106] And others are made to await Allah's command, whether He chastise them or whether He turn to them (mercifully), and Allah is Knowing, Wise.

[9.107] And those who built a masjid to cause harm and for unbelief and to cause disunion among the believers and an ambush to him who made war against Allah and His Apostle before; and they will certainly swear: We did not desire aught but good; and Allah bears witness that they are most surely liars.

[9.108] Never stand in it; certainly a masjid founded on piety from the very first day is more deserving that you should stand in it; in it are men who love that they should be purified; and Allah loves those who purify themselves.

[9.109] Is he, therefore, better who lays his foundation on fear of Allah and (His) good pleasure, or he who lays his foundation on the edge of a cracking hollowed bank, so it broke down with him into the fire of hell; and Allah does not guide the unjust people.

[9.110] The building which they have built will ever continue to be a source of disquiet in their hearts, except that their hearts get cut into pieces; and Allah is Knowing, Wise.

[9.111] Surely Allah has bought of the believers their persons and their property for this, that they shall have the garden; they fight in Allah's way, so they slay and are slain; a promise which is binding on Him in the Taurat and the Injeel and the Quran; and who is more faithful to his covenant than Allah? Rejoice therefore in the pledge which you have made; and that is the mighty achievement.

[9.112] They who turn (to Allah), who serve (Him), who praise (Him), who fast, who bow down, who prostrate themselves, who enjoin what is good and forbid what is evil, and who keep the limits of Allah; and give good news to the believers.

[9.113] It is not (fit) for the Prophet and those who believe that they should ask forgiveness for the polytheists, even though they should be near relatives, after it has become clear to them that they are inmates of the flaming fire.

[9.114] And Ibrahim asking forgiveness for his sire was only owing to a promise which he had made to him; but when it became clear to him that he was an enemy of Allah, he declared himself to be clear of him; most surely Ibrahim was very tender-hearted forbearing.

[9.115] It is not (attributable to) Allah that He should lead a people astray after He has guided them; He even makes clear to them what they should guard against; surely Allah knows all things.

[9.116] Surely Allah's is the kingdom of the heavens and the earth; He brings to life and causes to die; and there is not for you besides Allah any Guardian or Helper.

[9.117] Certainly Allah has turned (mercifully) to the Prophet and those who fled (their homes) and the helpers who followed him in the hour of straitness after the hearts of a part of them were about to deviate, then He turned to them (mercifully); surely to them He is Compassionate, Merciful.

[9.118] And to the three who were left behind, until the earth became strait to them notwithstanding its spaciousness and their souls were also straitened to them; and they knew it for certain that there was no refuge from Allah but in Him; then He turned to them (mercifully) that they might turn (to Him); surely Allah is the Oft-returning (to mercy), the Merciful.

[9.119] O you who believe! be careful of (your duty to) Allah and be with the true ones.

[9.120] It did not beseem the people of Medina and those round about them of the dwellers of the desert to remain behind the Apostle of Allah, nor should they desire (anything) for themselves in preference to him; this is because there afflicts them not thirst or fatigue or hunger in Allah's way, nor do they tread a path which enrages the unbelievers, nor do they attain from the enemy what they attain, but a good work is written down to them on account of it; surely Allah does not waste the reward of the doers of good;

[9.121] Nor do they spend anything that may be spent, small or great, nor do they traverse a valley, but it is written down to their credit, that Allah may reward them with the best of what they have done.

[9.122] And it does not beseem the believers that they should go forth all together; why should not then a company from every party from among them go forth that they may apply themselves to obtain understanding in religion, and that they may warn their people when they come back to them that they may be cautious?

[9.123] O you who believe! fight those of the unbelievers who are near to you and let them find in you hardness; and know that Allah is with those who guard (against evil).

[9.124] And whenever a chapter is revealed, there are some of them who say: Which of you has it strengthened in faith? Then as for those who believe, it strengthens them in faith and they rejoice.

[9.125] And as for those in whose hearts is a disease, it adds uncleanness to their uncleanness and they die while they are unbelievers.

[9.126] Do they not see that they are tried once or twice in every year, yet they do not turn (to Allah) nor do they mind.

[9.127] And whenever a chapter is revealed, they cast glances at one another: Does any one see you? Then they turn away: Allah has turned away their hearts because they are a people who do not understand.

[9.128] Certainly an Apostle has come to you from among yourselves; grievous to him is your falling into distress, excessively solicitous respecting you; to the believers (he is) compassionate,

[9.129] But if they turn back, say: Allah is sufficient for me, there is no god but He; on Him do I rely, and He is the Lord of mighty power.

--
Shalom & Simcha,
Jim Searcy