Muslim model to be caned for drinking beer

29/09 | A MALAYSIAN religious court has ordered that a caning sentence handed to a Muslim model for drinking beer will go ahead, after a review triggered by a furore over the case.

Kartika Sari Dewi Shukarno, 32, was sentenced by a religious court last month to six strokes, making her the first woman to face caning under Islamic law in Malaysia, a moderate Muslim-majority country.

But she won a surprise reprieve in late August when she was detained and then abruptly released by religious officials who had planned to take her to a jail where she was to undergo the thrashing.

Address by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to the United Nations General Assembly General Debate - 64th Session
United Nations, New York

24 September 2009 | Nearly 62 years ago, the United Nations recognized the right of the Jews, an ancient people 3,500 years-old, to a state of their own in their ancestral homeland.  
 
I stand here today as the Prime Minister of Israel, the Jewish state, and I speak to you on behalf of my country and my people.

The United Nations was founded after the carnage of World War II and the horrors of the Holocaust. It was charged with preventing the recurrence of such horrendous events.

Nothing has undermined that central mission more than the systematic assault on the truth. Yesterday the President of Iran stood at this very podium, spewing his latest anti-Semitic rants. Just a few days earlier, he again claimed that the Holocaust is a lie.   

Last month, I went to a villa in a suburb of Berlin called Wannsee. There, on January 20, 1942, after a hearty meal, senior Nazi officials met and decided how to exterminate the Jewish people. The detailed minutes of that meeting have been preserved by successive German governments. Here is a copy of those minutes, in which the Nazis issued precise instructions on how to carry out the extermination of the Jews.  Is this a lie?

A day before I was in Wannsee, I was given in Berlin the original construction plans for the Auschwitz-Birkenau concentration camp. Those plans are signed by Hitler’s deputy, Heinrich Himmler himself. Here is a copy of the plans for Auschwitz-Birkenau, where one million Jews were murdered. Is this too a lie?

This June, President Obama visited the Buchenwald concentration camp. Did President Obama pay tribute to a lie?

ECLJ Assists Christian Convert Couple Win Asylum in United Kingdom

European Centre for Law & Justice | The European Centre for Law and Justice (ECLJ), the international affiliate of the American Center for Law and Justice (ACLJ), has assisted in providing a critical victory in the United Kingdom – clearing the way for a Pakistani Christian who married a Muslim woman who converted to Christianity to secure asylum in the U.K.

... The couple faced persecution from the woman's family because of their marriage and Christian faith.  The woman's uncle, who is Muslim, attacked the couple in their home.  Then he detained them in his house for several months, beat them, and forced them to recant their faith.  The uncle also sought the services of a Muslim cleric to teach the couple about Islam.
 
Although current Pakistani law neither prohibits nor allows religious conversion, conversion from Islam to Christianity subjects converts to Pakistan's notorious blasphemy laws which often results in beatings and even death.

“RELIGIOUS FREEDOM ACTS”: ANTI-CONVERSION LAWS IN INDIA

American Centre for Law & Justice | The newly elected Indian government is considering repealing the so-called “Freedom of Religion” laws.1 Starting in the 1950s, various States in India began to create tensions between Hindus and Christians through the enactment of “freedom of religion” legislation. These laws have not only restricted the practice of Christianity and other non-Hindu religions, but have also led to an upsurge of violence against such minority religions in India. In effect, the Freedom of Religion Acts are direct Hindu attempts to use state power to prevent conversion; thus, they violate the freedom of religion espoused by the Constitution of India.

The Indian government has enacted such laws for six decades for the ostensible purpose of protecting minority religions from violence and censure and to ensure religious freedom for all.

New York Post - A Drive to Create 'Israeli War Crimes'

21/09 Jay Sekulow & Brett Joshpe | It's September -- prime time for Israel-bashing as world leaders and dignitar ies convene at the United Nations. This year, Israel's antagonists have intensified their efforts to smear the Jewish state over its operations against Hamas terrorists in Gaza in December and January.

The Obama administration is doing nothing to combat that campaign -- even though it could wind up facilitating international "war crimes" prosecutions of American troops.

Last week, UN-appointed "fact finder" Richard Goldstone released his report on the Gaza conflict. The UN Human Rights Council initially authorized his mission to investigate only alleged criminal acts committed by Israelis; though the mandate was later expanded to include Hamas' atrocities, the final report still manages to reach the predetermined conclusions.

Goldstone summed it up in a New York Times op-ed last Thursday, claiming blithely that Israeli investigations of alleged Israeli wrongdoing "are unlikely to be serious and objective" and that "if justice for civilian victims cannot be obtained through local authorities, then foreign governments must act."

USA: Capitol Hill gathering to inspire Muslim aggression?

OneNewsNow.com | ... Robert Knight is a senior fellow at the American Civil Rights Union and a senior writer for Coral Ridge Ministries. He says having 50,000 Muslims on Capitol Hill paints a very potent picture for Muslims around the world.
 
"It's adding up to a picture that the United States may not want to paint because there are a lot of Muslims who will be inspired, perhaps, to get more militant if they think the United States is falling into Muslim hands, basically," he points out.
 
According to Knight, many Muslims believe they have a sympathetic ear in President Barack Obama. "Obama held no National Day of Prayer events at the White House this year, but gave a very positive eloquent speech about Ramadan," he recalls. "And he also has said some very interesting things overseas about the emergence of Islam."

Obama, Netanyahu, Abbas“ - A Three-Ring Circus” Almost!

Ron Ross | President Obama met with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas. The trio met in New York as international leaders arrived for the UN General Assembly.

Some suggest this Middle East conflict is the major motivation for terrorism worldwide but in fact it may well be a serious test on the determination of world leaders to defend democratic rights.

Many observers were disappointed that the only proposal to come from the ‘summit’ was a plan to have ‘more talks.’ As Netanyahu told TV reporters “Time for talk must be over, steps should be implemented.”

60,000 pray in Times Square! - But media fail to notice this most unusual event

WorldNetDaily | You can see most anything at Times Square in Manhattan. But 60,000 people praying? That's an unusual sight in the heart of Broadway. Yet, that's just what happened there yesterday for one hour – from 3 p.m. to 4 p.m. in a Christian rally called Prayer in the Square.

Event organizers from Time Square Church had expected some 15,000. But their expectations were far exceeded at the third event of its kind in the last three years.

World Net Daily Link

Prayer in the Square info link

Religious Freedom and Persecution in Egypt

American Centre for Law & Justice | Egypt is notorious for persecution of and discrimination against religious minorities, including Christians and Baha’is. Sectarian attacks on Coptic Christians are on the rise. Converts from Islam to any other religion are persecuted by both the government and private actors.

The Constitution provides for freedom of belief and the practice of religious rites, but the Government restricts those rights in practice. Islam is the official state religion, and Shari’a law is the primary source of legislation. Despite international disapproval, “[t]he Egyptian
government continues to deny Copts basic rights such as judicial and police protection from persecution, [and] freedom of religious expression and worship . . . .” Egypt’s own National Council of Human Rights has recognized that Coptic Christians’ demands for basic civil rights “are not met expeditiously for fear of inciting sensitivities among the Muslim majority that may in turn lead to eruption of uncontrollable tension.”

School Officials Cleared of Criminal Contempt Charges in Case Involving Prayer!

17/09 Liberty Council | Today Liberty Counsel successfully cleared Pace High School Principal Frank Lay and Athletic Director Robert Freeman of criminal contempt charges that arose out of a simple blessing of a meal. The criminal contempt hearing began when the ACLU asked that Lay and Freeman be held in contempt for offering a prayer over a meal at a luncheon where they honored donors to the athletic Field House project.

The federal courtroom in Pensacola, Florida, was packed with people supporting Lay and Freeman. The Pace High School students made T-shirts with the image of a potato chip that read: “Lay’s Supportive Patriots.” Busloads of people jammed the steps of the courthouse to cheer and show their support.

Members of Congress made speeches on the House floor in support of Lay and Freeman, including Cong. Randy Forbes, the Chair of the bipartisan Congressional Prayer Caucus. In his speech Forbes warned that this case represents what might be coming as result of the ACLU’s agenda: “Make no mistake, there will come a day when the speaker of this house will be hauled into federal court and threatened with jail because she dares to stand at that podium where you stand tonight and ask the chaplain to start our day with the prayer.”

Sex Degrees of Separation Calculator

Lloyds Pharmacy | You may have heard of Six Degrees of Separation. It's the idea that we're all just six connections away from everyone else on the planet. This is the inspiration for Sex Degrees of Separation. By answering the questionnaire below we will be able to calculate the number of indirect (and direct) sexual partners you have had, going back six degrees of separation.

The calculator is not a diagnostic tool but does highlight how exposed you can be to STIs if you do not practice safe sex

UK: How many people have you slept with? 2.8 million?

SMH.com.au | The average British man or woman has slept with 2.8 million people, albeit indirectly, a British pharmacy chain says. In a bid to promote sexual health awareness, Lloyds Pharmacy has launched an online calculator that helps one work out how many partners one has had.

... The average British man claims to have had sex with nine people, while women put the figure at 6.3, giving an average of 7.65. "When we sleep with someone, we are, in effect, not only sleeping with them, but also their previous partners and their partners' previous partners and so on," said Clare Kerr, head of sexual health at Lloyds Pharmacy.

UN Considers ONE WORLD CURRENCY!

Ron Ross | This week (September 7, 2009) the UN Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) has been about fixing the problems with the world monetary system. They are proposing a major overhaul for global currency. Their solution includes the demise of the US dollar and the introduction of a one-world currency.

This is not a new proposal. In the past China and Russia have called for the US dollar to be replaced as the world’s reserve currency. China owns a large portion of the US debt and is being increasingly assertive particularly promoting an overhaul to address the world financial crisis.

UK: Rape Victim says God Granted a "Rush of Love" for her Unborn Child Moments before Abortion

LifeSiteNews.com | British policewoman and born-again Christian says it was a sudden and unexpected "rush of love" that in her mind transformed her unborn child, conceived in a date-rape, from "an alien" to a beloved daughter on the day of her scheduled abortion. Miriam Virgo credits God with stepping in to save her daughter's life.

Now 27, Virgo told her story in an autobiographical piece in Britain's Daily Mail yesterday, saying that, having come from a devout Christian family, she had never expected to find herself a single mother at 19. In 2001, she had attended a party with co-workers at which she believes her single glass of wine was spiked with a date-rape drug. After the attack and with no memory of that night, Virgo was shocked to find herself pregnant and considered obtaining an abortion.

"Coming from such a Christian family," she said, "I've never believed in abortion, but suddenly finding myself pregnant with a rapist's baby, I looked at it differently." She continued, "I just couldn't face the thought of the baby being born and looking like Rob [her alleged rapist] - it would be a constant reminder of what had happened."

After "counselling," Virgo said, she was ready for an abortion; but when the moment came, and she was already dressed in the hospital gown, she changed her mind after what she describes as a moment of help from God.

Criminal Contempt Case Over a Meal Prayer Goes to Trial on National Constitution Day

16/09 Liberty Council | Tomorrow, Liberty Counsel will be in federal District Court in Pensacola representing the Principal of Pace High School, Frank Lay and Athletic Director Robert Freeman as they face criminal contempt charges for a prayer over a meal. Ironically, tomorrow is National Constitution Day.

During a luncheon to honor those who contributed toward the school’s athletic Field House, Principal Lay asked Mr. Freeman to offer a blessing for the meal. Students were not present at the time of the blessing. Lay and Freeman thought nothing of the matter nor did those being honored. But the ACLU ran to court, claiming both men should be held in criminal contempt. Lay and Freeman have a combined 70 years of public school service. If convicted, they face up to $5,000 in fines, six months in jail, and they may lose their retirement benefits.

Tomorrow’s trial comes on the heels of the trial of Michelle Winkler, a receptionist, who asked her husband, who is not a school employee, to bless the evening meal at a separate, privately sponsored event held off campus after school to honor noninstructional staff. The ACLU urged the court to hold Winkler in contempt, but after a 7½ hour trial, the judge sided with Liberty Counsel.

CANADA: Over 100 Quebec Doctors Say No To Euthanasia

LifeSiteNews.com | A group of Quebec doctors has submitted a document to the Quebec College of Physicians opposing the proposed legalization of euthanasia, and is asking fellow doctors to endorse the arguments against euthanasia by adding their names to the brief.

In July, the Quebec College of Physicians announced plans to recommend the decriminalization of euthanasia, "as part of the appropriate care in certain particular circumstances," in order to pressure the federal government to amend the Criminal Code.

The document, titled "Say No to Euthanasia and Assisted Suicide: No Special Circumstance Can Justify Them" and co-authored by Quebec doctors Joseph Ayoub, André Bourque, Catherine Ferrier, François Lehmann, and Josée Morais, has so far garnered over 100 signatures from physicians from Quebec and around the country, according to press release from Quebec Life Coalition.

UK: Christian Nurse Ordered to Remove Confirmation Cross from her Neck after nearly 30 Years of Service

Christian Legal Centre | A Christian nurse from Exeter, with nearly 30 years of service, and just eight months to go to her retirement, is being threatened with disciplinary action after refusing to remove a necklace bearing a Cross—a symbol of her deeply felt Christian faith. NHS bosses insist that the Cross must be removed from sight.

 Shirley Chaplin, aged 54, has worked in the NHS all her life. Ever since studying to be a nurse she has worn this necklace and Cross with her uniform. But now NHS bosses have ordered her to remove the personal item, deeming it a breach of uniform policy and a health risk to her and to patients.

Iran-Israel and Prayer Power

Ron Ross | Israel has been preparing for the worse-case scenario for several years now. Under Prime Minister Ariel Sharon the “Samson Option’ was created. Samson was to be implemented only after Israel was attacked.

A second strategy “Project Daniel” has been studied and considered for the past six years. It was tabled in detail at the Herzliya Conference February, 2009.

This strategy comes into play if an enemy state acquires nuclear capabilities and threatens to attack Israel. Though Project Daniel proponents insist a nuclear campaign initiated by Israel would be a decision of last resort, it remains possible.

Gluing together expertise to help save lives

15/09 Abigail Klein Leichman, Israel21c | A veteran and an immigrant Israeli combine their talents to help save victims of conflict with LifeBond - a sticky new sealant that closes wounds and stops bleeding.

Living in Haifa during the 2006 Israel-Hezbollah war, entrepreneurial biomedical engineers Ishay Attar and Orahn Preiss-Bloom were horrified by the rockets landing nearby and the television images of bleeding victims. It seemed to them that existing methods for "sealing" injuries were inadequate to cope with complex shrapnel wounds.

Market research confirmed their initial hunch says Attar, previously vice president of Misgav Venture Accelerator. One year later, he and Preiss-Bloom launched LifeBond, an innovative sealant made of biocompatible substances that can close wounds.

"Surgical teams are actively seeking innovative wound-closure products with improved performance and ease-of-use to seal surgical staple lines and stop severe bleeding,"

UK: Registrar demoted because of her faith in talks with Islington Borough Council

Christian Legal Centre | On 16th September 2009, Theresa Davies, Deputy Registrar with Islington Borough Council, was interviewed in an internal grievance procedure where her demotion because of her refusal to preside over same sex civil partnership ceremonies.

 A fundamental issue was raised in this case as to whether Christian faith presents a bar to Governmental and numerous private sector employments. In a number of decisions it has been held lawful for an employer to require adherence to an Equal Opportunities Policy, and compel Christians to support the practice of sexual conduct that they believe is sinful. In short, a condition of employment will be the support of practices contrary to their faith.

Yale ripped for kowtowing to Islamic extremism

The Christian Post | A prominent conservative activist and former presidential candidate agrees with the recent criticism, voiced by Yale alumni and professors, that Yale University Press is publishing a book about how cartoons of the prophet Muhammad caused outrage across the Muslim world -- without including the actual cartoons themselves.

Yale University Press cited fears of violence for its decision to remove caricatures of Islam's prophet from the soon-to-be-released book entitled The Cartoons That Shook the World, by Brandeis University professor Jytte Klausen. The cartoons, originally published in a Danish newspaper in 2005, triggered massive, violent protests from Morocco to Indonesia.

KURDISTAN: Kurdish leader describes the 'gassing of Halabja'

Assist News | It was hard for Dr. Saman Shali to fight back the tears as we stood in a cemetery in Halabja, Kurdistan, where many of the victims of Saddam Hussein's use of biological weapons against the Kurds of this city were buried.

Dr. Shali, who was born in the city of Sulaimaniya in the east of Iraqi Kurdistan, and co-founder of a group called World's Women for Life, had brought a delegation of Christians, Jews and Muslims, from the United States and Australia, to the scene of one of the worst atrocities of the Saddam Hussein regime.

As we stood in the cemetery, I asked Dr. Shali, a member of Kurdish National Congress of North America, to describe the terrible events that had taken place in Halabja, which is close to the Iranian border.

50,000 Moslems Plan Giant Mosque on Capitol Hill, USA

Ron Ross | The name of the website is islamoncapitolhill.com. It forecasts 50,000 Moslems will assemble in the same location where US presidents swear on the Bible and are inaugurated. The website declares ‘Our Time Has Come!”

The host mosque is in Elizabeth, Dar-ul-Islam. They are billing the prayer gathering as the first event of its kind. A permit was granted by Capitol Hill police on July 28.

The organizers believe they can create a giant outdoor mosque. The Jummah service – weekly Friday prayers – will be the feature.

“Thousands of Muslims from all races, creeds, colors and ethnicities will gather for the sole purpose of prayer,” the organizers’ website states, and “the peace, beauty and solidarity of Islam will shine through America's capitol.”

Europe: EU Equal Treatment Directive will lead to Oppression and Censorship

Christian Legal Centre | The proposed EU Equal Treatment Directive has the potential to be used as an instrument of cultural genocide. Its provisions are likely to restrict Christian freedoms to the extent that, in certain cases, we would be silenced and prevented from providing goods or services to the public without violating our consciences, particularly if required to promote other religions or the practice of homosexuality.

The Directive ignores the necessity of providing protection in connection with conflicts inevitably arising out of:

•  Differences between those expressing religious tenets of one religion and the doctrines of another religion; or

• Differences between those expressing religious tenets on sexual conduct and those professing a homosexual orientation.

 The Directive purports to eliminate discrimination on the grounds of (amongst other things) “religion or belief” and “sexual orientation” from the provision of goods and services in every European Union country. That means that when providing a service (such as a hotel room) or selling goods (such as books) in the EU, businesses and their employees will have to provide them or risk being sued, irrespective of whether they find themselves facilitating sexual ethics contrary to their religious beliefs, or helping to promote another religion.

UK: Children as young as five should be taught about abortion, explicit sex acts and homosexuality, says United Nations new plan

Christian Concern for the Nation CCFON | The draft report on sex education, drawn up by the United Nations Educational Scientific and Cultural Organization, says that children as young as five should be taught about explicit sex acts, abortion, homosexuality and sexually transmitted diseases.

 The new guidelines, which were worked out by UNESCO, the World Health Organization and UNICEF during the last two years and cost over £200,000, are supposedly designed to curb the spread of HIV/AIDS, improve sexual health and reduce the number of illegal abortions through sex education. .

USA: Latest from Susan B. Anthony Website

09/09 Susan B Anthony |The debate over the abortion mandate between President Obama and his pro-life opposition reached new heights last Wednesday.

Though the President set out to make his position on abortion in health care clearer via a nationwide conference call to America’s faith community, he stirred up quite a bit of controversy. Besides claiming that “there are some folks out there who are frankly bearing false witness,” Obama went on to add: “You’ve heard that this is all going to mean government funding of abortion. Not true.”

UK: NHS scheme helps patients with terminal illnesses end their lives prematurely, warn leading doctors

Christian Concern for the Nation CCFON | Official guidelines of the NHS used in UK hospitals are sentencing terminally ill patients to a premature death, leading medical experts have warned.

 A group of experts who care for the terminally ill patients wrote a letter to The Daily Telegraph saying that some NHS patients are being wrongly judged as close to death. Under NHS guidance, introduced across England and designed to reduce patient suffering in their final hours, doctors and medical staff can withdraw fluid and drugs from terminally ill patients and put them on continuous sedation until they pass away.

 The letter has been signed by palliative care experts including Professor Peter Millard, Emeritus Professor of Geriatrics, University of London, Dr Peter Hargreaves, a consultant in Palliative Medicine at St Luke’s cancer centre in Guildford, and four other experts. It says the new treatment pattern of palliative care, based on experience at a Liverpool hospice is being rolled out into hospitals and nursing homes.

Under the scheme, known as the Liverpool Care Pathway, the medical team look for signs that a patient is approaching their final hours, which can include losing consciousness or having difficulty swallowing medication.

UK: 'They won't come and help, sweetie. Make the best of the time you have with him,' says a midwife to a devastated mother

Christian Concern for the Nation CCFON | A devastated mother, who watched her premature baby die when doctors refused to help him because he was born two days early, has condemned medical guidelines which said the baby should not be saved.

 Sarah Capewell, 23, from Great Yarmouth, gave birth to a baby son when she was 21 weeks and 5 days into her pregnancy and pleaded with doctors and midwives at James Paget Hospital, in Gorleston, Norfolk to admit the newborn infant to a special care baby unit.

USA: Susan B. Anthony List Announces Results of New Nationwide Poll:
Majority of Americans Oppose Government Funding of Abortion in Health Care Reform

“The bottom line is this: including government funds for abortion on-demand in health care reform is unappealing to American voters nationwide, women and men alike,” said Marjorie Dannenfelser, President of the Susan B. Anthony List. 

“This may be surprising to elites, but it is not to the rest of America. Americans realize pro-abortion feminists have dramatically overrepresented a minority position, misstating the centrality and ‘need’ for abortion on-demand

USA: Barack Obama praises Islam at Ramadan dinner

02/09 AFP | US President Barack Obama praised Islam as an integral part of America, as he feted prominent US Muslims at an Iftar dinner marking the holy fasting month of Ramadan.

AFGHANISTAN: West faces losing battle over Afghan poll fraud

01/09 Times Online | Widespread and systematic fraud during the Afghan presidential elections has tarnished the legitimacy of any future government and undermined the Nato campaign there, Western and Afghan officials have admitted.

Two more British soldiers were killed yesterday and the commander of the Nato forces in Afghanistan warned President Obama that the eight-year war was in a “serious” state and that big changes were needed if victory was to be achieved.

General Stanley McChrystal is understood to have recommended in a strategic review that counter-insurgency efforts be focused on protecting civilians rather than fighting militants.

UK: Christian Preacher Wins Right to take Case to European Court of Justice

Christian Concern for the Nation CCFON | A Christian preacher has won the right to have his case referred to the European Court of Justice following an accusation that a state supported radio station aimed at the Asian community discriminated against him because of his Christian beliefs and views.

 Church of Scotland minister, the Reverend Mahboob Masih, was a volunteer presenter on Awaz FM. Rev. Masih’s services were terminated after six years behind the microphone following a debate on air about the uniqueness of Christianity. This led to a phone in discussion that angered the Muslim management of AWAZ, a community radio station.

UK: Britain's longest-lasting marriage ends after 81 years: Frank, 101, passes away holding wife Anita's hand

02/09 Mail Online | One half of the longest married couple in Britain has died after 81 years of wedded bliss. Frank Milford, 101, held the hand of his wife Anita, also 101, as he passed away at the residential home where they lived. The devoted pair met at a YMCA dance in Plymouth in 1926.

They said the secret to their long marriage was 'give and take' and making up after rows with a kiss and a cuddle.

Mr Milford's 76-year-old son, also called Frank, said: 'She's very upset obviously, but she was sitting holding his hand when he passed away.'For the past three weeks or so he hasn't been eating or drinking and I think we all realised he was ready to die. He knew it was his time and I think he simply died of old age.'

The Netherlands: Sharia,: government to act if Dutch law broken

02/09 Muslim News | Attempts to practise aspects of sharia (Islamic) law in the Netherlands which involve compulsion, pressure and a misuse of power will be clamped down hard on by the government, justice minister Ernst Hirsch Ballin told MPs on Tuesday.

The cabinet's job is to ensure that the Netherlands does not develop 'a parallel society in which people take the law into their own hands or maintain their own legal system which operates outside the framework of our own legal system', the minister said.

Some aspects of sharia law, such as the differences between men and women and divorce laws, do conflict with key Dutch values and Dutch law will never allow legal polygamy, he told MPs.

RUSSIA : Putin goes to Poland for war anniversary, but sorry is the hardest word

01/09 Times Online | As dockyard sirens blare out across Gdansk today to mark the outbreak of the Second World War, all eyes will be on one, profoundly unpopular visitor. Will Vladimir Putin, the Russian Prime Minister, apologise for Stalin’s collaboration with Hitler in carving up Poland? Will he signal a new candour about Russian treatment of the Poles? Or will he simply scratch open old wounds between the two countries?

Seventy years ago the war began with the Germans’ early morning bombardment of the Polish Westerplatte fortress from a training cruiser that had moored off the coast on a “friendship visit”. On the same day the Luftwaffe, commanded by General Wolfram Count von Richthofen, who had previously flattened Guernica, attacked the border town of Wielun, killing more than 1,000 civilians

Hitler was on the march. Poland held out for as long as possible in the hope that Britain and France would come quickly to its aid. Instead, just over two weeks later, the Red Army attacked from the east, grabbing land and, in effect, partitioning Poland for the fourth time in its history .

AUSTRALIA: Training tomorrow's leaders

There is a great need in this nation to assist those students and recent graduates who demonstrate a high potential to become influential leaders for Christ across strategic areas of our nation including politics, law, media, science, education, arts and philosophy.
The Compass program, an eight-day course in Christian worldview, aims to address this need.

The inaugural program kicks off this Sunday with 40 students at the University of Queensland. For more information and to register interest for 2009, please go to www.compass.org.au .

Lyle Shelton
National Chief of Staff , Australian Christian Lobby