It quotes Commission President Jose Barroso warning: "If there was a no in Ireland, it would have a very negative effect for the EU. We will all pay a price for it, Ireland included." A leaked memo revealed how IRELAND'S FOREIGN MINISTER DERMOT AHERN HAD BEEN ASSURED THAT THE EUROPEAN COMMISSION WOULD 'TONE DOWN OR DELAY' ANY ANNOUNCEMENTS 'THAT MIGHT BE UNHELPFUL'.

These issues include defence, farm subsidies, and harmonising company tax. Neil O'Brien is quoted saying, "THIS IS CLASSIC BRUSSELS TACTICS. Stage one is to TRY TO COVER UP WHAT THE GRAND PROJECT REALLY MEANS, THEN BULLY VOTERS INTO ACCEPTING IT."

In the ceremony, the authorities said in a statement, the terms husband and wife will be replaced by "party A" and "party B." The union, in all its effects, WILL IN NO OTHER WAY DIFFER FROM A NORMAL CIVILIAN MARRIAGE OFFICIATED BY STATE AUTHORITIES. In an opinion that could have nationwide implications, the California Supreme Court on May 15 voted 4-3 in favor of plaintiffs who argued that restricting marriage to men and women was discriminatory.

The ruling added that all California couples had a "basic civil right" to marry "without regard to their sexual orientation." California is now only the second US state after Massachusetts to legalize unions between homosexuals. Supreme Court rulings go into effect 30 days after publication, but state authorities set June 17 as the date for the first marriages to be officiated, since the ruling can be appealed up to June 16.

Wednesday's ruling coincided with a Field opinion survey that found Californians in favor of gay marriage OUTNUMBERING THOSE AGAINST BY A 52-41 PERCENT MARGIN, in stark contrast with the 59-28 percent advantage gay marriage opposers had in the first survey the group took on the issue in 1977.

The Bishop of Rochester, the Rt Rev Michael Nazir-Ali, claimed the "social and sexual" revolution of the 1960s had led to a steep decline in the influence of Christianity over society which church leaders had failed to resist. He said that in its place, Britain had become gripped by the doctrine of "ENDLESS SELF-INDULGENCE" which had led to the destruction of family life, rising levels of drug abuse and drunkenness and mindless violence on the streets.

The bishop warns that the modern politicians' catchphrases of respect and tolerance will not be strong enough to prevent this collapse of traditional virtues, and said radical Islam is now moving in to fill the void created by the decline of Christianity. Dr Nazir-Ali claims in the new article that Britain, previously a "rabble of mutually hostile tribes", WOULD NEVER HAVE BECOME A GLOBAL EMPIRE WITHOUT THE ARRIVAL OF CHRISTIANITY.

BUT HE SAID THE CHURCH'S INFLUENCE BEGAN TO WANE DURING THE 1960S, and quotes an academic who blames the loss of "faith and piety among women" for the steep decline in Christian worship. He says Marxist students encouraged a "social and sexual revolution" to which liberal theologians and Church leaders "all but capitulated".

"It is this situation that has created the moral and spiritual vacuum in which we now find ourselves. While the Christian consensus was dissolved, nothing else, except perhaps endless self-indulgence, was put in its place." He said that the Church of England must retain its importance in public life even if it does not remain privileged as the established church. "It is necessary to understand where we have come from, to guide us to where we are going, AND TO BRING US BACK WHEN WE WANDER TOO FAR FROM THE PATH OF NATIONAL DESTINY."

THE VATICAN WELCOMED IT and the Tel Aviv newspaper Yedioth Ahronot reported that Saudi muftis were sending out feelers to Israeli rabbis about attending such talks, a report which was swiftly denied in Riyadh. FaithWorld's take on it at the time was sceptical. As Andrew Hammond in Riyadh wrote: "THE KING IS SEEN IN SAUDI ARABIA AS A REFORMER BUT ONE WHO HAS BEEN OUTMANEUVERED BY THE POWERFUL RELIGIOUS ESTABLISHMENT AND THEIR ALLIES IN THE ROYAL FAMILY. The interfaith conference call may be a kind of trial balloon launched to see what kind of reaction it gets in a country where liberals and religious conservatives are engaged in an ideological struggle for the future of Saudi Arabia."

The World Jewish Congress, after it's latest meeting, issued a statement on Monday welcoming the king's proposal. It quoted WJC President Ronald Lauder as saying many obstacles still stood in the way but "King Abdullah's initiative is a laudable step forward. We hope that other religious and political leaders throughout the world will be encouraged to join." WJC Governing Board Chairman Matthew Bronfman added: "The World Jewish Congress is ready to participate in any serious inter-faith talks that are based on mutual respect."

The idea that Saudi Arabia would invite Christians and Jews to Islam's heartland for "conferences between the religions to protect humanity from folly," as Abdullah put it, is clearly too tempting for the Tel Aviv newspapers to ignore. BUT IS IT REALISTIC TO EXPECT THE SAUDIS TO HOST SUCH TALKS?

Eight farms were infected with the disease and farmers lost millions due to livestock movement restrictions. Investigators concluded the virus had probably escaped from a drain at the government's Pirbright labs in Surrey. But the council says it is impossible to tell which of the bodies using the site was responsible for the leak.

A series of probes found the source was probably a damaged drain shared by the Institute of Animal Health and drug company Merial. But there is no clear evidence of exactly how the leak happened or which organisation was the exact source.

A spokesman for The National Union of Farmers said: "The foot and mouth outbreak had a massive effect on the local and national economy. The NFU is considering the potential civil liability of the two laboratories." He criticised the "creeping degradation of standards" at the site, which he labelled "shabby and dilapidated".

A White House reporter asked deputy press secretary Dana Perino: "WorldNetDaily reports that more than 31,000 U.S. scientists, including 9,000 PhDs, now signed a petition rejecting global warming, the assumption that human production of greenhouse gases is damaging the Earth's climate. My question: What is the White House reaction to these 31,000 scientists?" Perino dismissed the question with an abrupt, "I WOULD SAY THAT EVERYONE IS ENTITLED TO THEIR OPINION. WHAT'S YOUR NEXT QUESTION?"

Although dispute exists over whether there is, in fact, an actual consensus within the IPCC, head counts of scientists seem to be the name of the global warming game. Since that is the case, the 31,000 scientist signatories assembled by the Oregon Institute of Science and Medicine would seem to trump THE 600 OR SO IN THE ALLEGED IPCC CONSENSUS. Sadly, the White House has taken such a beating over the years on climate that FACTS NO LONGER MATTER.

As further evidence of its shell-shocked state of fact avoidance, just last week the Bush administration announced that it was LISTING THE POLAR BEAR AS "THREATENED" under the Endangered Species Act - even though THERE ARE MANY MORE POLAR BEARS TODAY THAN 40 YEARS AGO AND PREDICTIONS OF THE BEAR'S DEMISE ARE ENTIRELY BASED ON POLITICALLY INSPIRED SPECULATION.

Opec's sole member in South East Asia, Indonesia became a net importer of oil in recent times after production fell and it struggled to find new reserves. Soaring oil prices have pushed up inflation in Indonesia and a recent cut to fuel subsidies prompted protests. Indonesia will leave the 13-member organisation when its membership expires later this year. Opec has yet to comment on the development.

The other OPEC nations are - Iran, Iraq, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, Venezuela, Qatar, Libya, UAE, Algeria, Nigeria, Ecuador, Angola.

Kuomintang (Nationalist Party) Chairman Wu Poh-hsiung is in China for a six-day landmark visit to discuss cross-strait transport links. The trip is being seen as another sign of warming ties between the two sides.

Taiwan's new president, Ma Ying-jeou, has called for a new "chapter of peace" to be opened.

King Gyanendra has remained silent as it has become apparent that his days as Nepal's monarch were numbered, and the country's leading politicians have in recent days threatened to remove him from the palace by force if he refused to go peacefully. But, in an apparent bid to defuse the potential stand off, Nepal's newly elected Constituent Assembly will give the king 15 days to vacate the 1970s-era concrete palace in central Katmandu after the country is declared a republic, said Bimalendra Nidhi of the centrist Nepali Congress, the second largest party in the assembly.

There was no immediate reaction from the palace, which has rarely commented on political developments in Nepal since King Gyanendra was forced to end his royal dictatorship and restore democracy after widespread protests two years ago. The Maoists then gave up their 10-year fight for a communist Nepal, and the election of the assembly in April marked the culmination of the peace process with the former insurgents.

The move is being widely anticipated by many Nepalis, and thousands of people were already gathering on the streets of Katmandu early Wednesday to celebrate the "republic day." Authorities have deployed 10,000 policemen in Katmandu to head off more violence and banned rallies around the palace and the convention center where the assembly is meeting.

Mr Barak said he would take his Labour Party out of Mr Olmert's governing coalition if he did not step down. "The prime minister needs to disconnect himself from the day-to-day management of the government," Mr Barak said. Mr Olmert denies claims that he took up to $500,000 (£250,000) in bribes or illegal campaign donations.

Mr Olmert, the head of the Kadima Party, admits accepting funds before he became prime minister in 2006. But he insists they were legal contributions towards his campaigns for re-election as Jerusalem mayor and for the leadership of the Likud party.

UPDATE - jpost.com - Prime Minister Ehud Olmert does not intend to step down from his post, as Defense Minister Ehud Barak called on him to do on Wednesday morning. "I have no intention at all of resigning, and I am not going anywhere," said the prime minister on Wednesday night. He also claimed again that he has done nothing wrong, and that the claims of the media are untrue.

The proposal, which is being pushed by Labour MEP Richard Corbett, could prevent the Conservatives from forming a new group, and would probably prevent eurosceptic groups in the Parliament like UKIP from forming a group and receiving funding.

Corbett argues that "It would prevent single issue politicians from being given undue support from the public purse." He said: "WE WANT TO AVOID THE FORMATION OF A FRAGMENTED PARLIAMENT, deeply divided into many small groups and unable to work effectively." Mr Corbett's proposals will also give the President of the Parliament sweeping powers to approve or reject parliamentary questions.

Current rules allow 20 MEPs from a fifth of the EU's member states to form groupings, giving them a say in the Parliament's administration and power structure. Under the changes, the threshold would become 30 MEPs from one quarter of the EU's member states. The Liberal Democrats, Greens, the far Left, Eurosceptics and other groupings have vowed to oppose the plans during a vote scheduled for July 9.

The U.S. government and Federal Reserve already have committed the system to this course through THE EASY POLITICS OF A BOTTOMLESS POCKETBOOK, THE SERVICING OF BIG-MONEYED SPECIAL INTERESTS, AND GROSS MISMANAGEMENT. The U.S. has no way of avoiding a financial Armageddon. Bankrupt sovereign states most commonly use the currency printing press as a solution to not having enough money to cover their obligations. The alternative would be for the U.S. to renege on its existing debt and obligations, a solution for modern sovereign states rarely seen outside of governments overthrown in revolution, and a solution with no happier ending than simply printing the needed money.

WITH THE CREATION OF MASSIVE AMOUNTS OF NEW FIAT (NOT BACKED BY GOLD) DOLLARS WILL COME THE EVENTUAL COMPLETE COLLAPSE OF THE VALUE OF THE U.S. DOLLAR and related dollar-denominated paper assets. The broad outlook has not changed during the last year. More generally, though, developments in the economy and the financial markets have been in line with projections and have tended TO CONFIRM THE UNFOLDING DISASTER.

Specifically, the current inflationary recession has gained much broader recognition, while the STILL-UNFOLDING BANKING SOLVENCY CRISIS has confirmed the Fed's and the U.S. government's willingness to spend whatever money they have to create in order to keep the financial system from imploding. While the dollar has taken a heavy hit - down roughly 20% against key currencies from last year - SELLING OF THE U.S. CURRENCY STILL HAS BEEN FAR SHORT OF THE OUTRIGHT DOLLAR DUMPING that eventually will lead to flight to safety outside of the U.S. dollar. THAT EVENT IS IMPORTANT TO THE SHORTER-TERM TIMING OF THE PENDING HYPERINFLATION.

A hyperinflationary depression would be extremely disruptive to the lives, businesses and economic welfare of most individuals. Such severe economic pain could lead to extreme political change and/or civil unrest.

But Merkel's left-right government is unlikely to fall because neither party will dare to withdraw from the coalition and risk being blamed for its collapse. Both the Social Democrats (SPD) and the CDU know that German voters would punish the perceived culprit at the ballot box. Nevertheless, THIS GOVERNMENT IS NOW TOO WEAK AND DIVIDED TO TAKE ANY MAJOR DECISIONS IN THE REMAINING 16 MONTHS OF ITS TERM, say commentators.

"The coalition crisis will remain absurd because neither the conservatives nor the SPD will dare to break it up. After all, they haven't got any alternative coalition partners, and an early election can be ruled out because it would undermine the credibility of both parties if they dissolved parliament prematurely yet again. But this grand coalition won't be taking any more major decisions. Or put another way: THIS GOVERNMENT HAS TURNED INTO A NON-GOVERNMENT ORGANIZATION, WITH IMMEDIATE EFFECT. The election campaign has begun, 16 months before the general election."

Meanwhile, few believe SPD leader Kurt Beck's promise that his party won't cooperate with the Left Party after the general election. Schwan's nomination is widely seen as the first step towards an alliance between SPD and the Left Party, vilified by the conservatives because of its roots in the communist party that ruled East Germany. "The conservatives can only interpret this candidacy of Gesine Schwan against incumbent Horst Köhler as meaning one thing: THE RED-RED CAMP OF THE SPD AND LEFT PARTY IS STARTING TO FORM ITSELF."

MANY MONTHS BEFORE THE ACTUAL CHANGING OF THE GUARD IN AMERICA, A POLITICAL SHIFT IS UNDERWAY. Its scope and extent remain unclear, yet the seeds of a new foreign policy have clearly been sown. The neoconservative strategy, which treated diplomacy as a waste of time and saw the military preemptive strike as America's fundamental right, has proven to be ineffective.

Reality has taught America a bitter lesson. Years after the invasions of Iraq and Afghanistan, the wars in those countries are still raging. Bush has become an effective recruitment tool for radical Islam. And in the Middle East, where Syria remains strong and an economically prosperous Iran sees itself destined to become the region's pre-eminent power, war seems closer than peace.

The United States is in a lonely spot, even in the West. When Tony Blair resigned as British Prime Minister, the US lost its last European vassal. In Asia, home to half the world's population, America has many military bases but virtually no friends. To make matters worse, the weak dollar has made oil-rich Moscow and Tehran both strong and impudent.

If there is one encouraging signal coming from Washington in the turbulent days of the election campaign, it is this: THE ZEITGEIST (SPIRIT OF THE TIMES) HAS SHIFTED. America wants to cooperate with the rest of the world again instead of imposing its will on other countries. Even Bush is clearly no longer the man he presents himself to be. Without any presidential fanfare, lower-level talks are underway with the government of Bush's archrival in Tehran. The pistol has returned to its holster.

Ahmadinejad is among the heads of state expected to visit Rome to attend a June 3-5 United Nations summit on global food security, hosted by the U.N. Food and Agriculture Organization. Vatican sources said earlier this week that it was not yet clear if the pope would meet individual heads of state attending the U.N. event or hold a collective audience for them in order to save time.

The Vatican has criticized Ahmadinejad for calling for Israel to be wiped off the map. The Holy See has diplomatic ties with Iran and Pope Benedict has met Iran's Foreign Minister Manouchehr Mottaki. The pontiff has repeatedly encouraged dialogue to resolve differences over Iran's disputed nuclear program, which the West says is aimed at making nuclear bombs.