He said people were not yet prepared for a system of presumed consent - MEANING PEOPLE WOULD HAVE TO REGISTER THEIR OBJECTION TO BEING A DONOR WHEN THEY DIE, RATHER THAN THE CURRENT SYSTEM OF OPTING IN.

His comments came as Sir Liam Donaldson, England's chief medical officer, said that presumed consent was the only way to combat Britain's transplant crisis, where many die on the waiting list for an organ. Sir Liam said the NHS needed three times the number of organ donors on its register.

After Rajan Zed sprinkled ritual water from the Ganges River around the Senate rostrum, he proclaimed, "We meditate on the transcendental glory of the Deity Supreme, who is inside the heart of the Earth, inside the life of the sky, and inside the soul of the heaven." Hindus believe not just in a god that is one with the universe and with nature but in many gods, BELIEFS THAT ARE COMPLETELY INCONSISTENT WITH A BELIEF IN THE CREATOR GOD OF THE HOLY SCRIPTURES and the Christian faith upon which our nation is founded.

OUR FOUNDING FATHERS KNEW BETTER - AND SO SHOULD OUR SENATORS.
Franklin knew what some of our senators have forgotten: that it was the God of the Bible and not Allah, Buddha or one of the many gods of the Hindu faith who provided and sustained us during our formative years.

On March 3, 1863, during the bloody Civil War, the Senate passed a resolution asking the president to declare a national day of "prayer and humiliation," noting that the Senate "devoutly recognized the supreme authority and just government of Almighty God in all the affairs of men and of nations, and sincerely believed that no people, however great in number, or however strong in the justice of their cause, can prosper without His favor."

But too often today, the public recognition of God is under attack. "One Nation Under God" in our Pledge has been declared unconstitutional by a federal court in California, while our national motto, "In God We Trust," is under scrutiny by another federal court in that state. Sadly, those references to God that courts do allow are permitted only as "ceremonial deism" - that is, a historical tradition that, the courts say, through repetition has lost its "religious significance" and does not really address or recognize the sovereign God. THUS, PUBLIC PRAYERS IN STATE AND LOCAL LEGISLATURES AND IN THE MILITARY ARE APPROVED IF THEY ARE "NONSECTARIAN" IN NATURE AND DO NOT ADDRESS OR NAME A PARTICULAR GOD.

Benjamin Franklin could ask of this country and our Senate what he asked at the Constitutional Convention: "And have we now forgotten that powerful Friend? Or do we imagine that we no longer need His assistance?" Franklin then reminded the Convention of Psalm 127: "We have been assured, sir, in the sacred writings, -THAT EXCEPT THE LORD BUILD THE HOUSE, THEY LABOR IN VAIN THAT BUILD IT."

The surest way for our senators to "labor in vain" and incur the Lord's judgment is to continue the rejection and denial of God at the start of their daily business. Deuteronomy 8:19 warns, "AND IT SHALL BE, IF THOU DO AT ALL FORGET THE LORD THY GOD, AND WALK AFTER OTHER GODS, AND SERVE THEM, AND WORSHIP THEM - YE SHALL SURELY PERISH."

Ironically, on the walls of the chamber in which Mr. Zed gave his Hindu prayer are inscribed the phrases "IN GOD WE TRUST" AND "ANNUIT COEPTIS," LATIN FOR "GOD HAS FAVORED OUR UNDERTAKINGS."
Our senators must acknowledge that one, true God in Whom America has trusted. THE HANDWRITING IS, LITERALLY, ON THEIR WALL.

The last significant quake to strike the region hit in the northern Dead Sea area on July 11, 1927, and left almost 300 people dead.

"The 80-year birthday of the last earthquake brings us into a new period called 'the range of statistical error,'" he said in an interview with the Jerusalem Post. "[From] what we know regarding the previous destructive earthquake, the time that another destructive earthquake will return, like what occurred in 1927, is about 100 years."

The last major quake hit 6.25 on the Richter scale, and killed victims both inside what now is Israel and across the Jordan River. Officials report the three most destructive earthquakes in Israel since the 18th century happened in 1759, 1837 and 1927. The 1837 event "obliterated" Safed and caused more than 5,000 fatalities, officials said.

According to a report from the Jewish Telegraphic Agency at the time of the 1927 quake, there was "not a house in Jerusalem or Hebron" that did not sustain some damage. "Two synagogues, one in Jerusalem, the other in Tiberias, were destroyed," the report said. "In several Palestinian towns the Muslim mosques and the government office buildings were damaged. The house of the British representative in Amman, Transjordania, was totally destroyed. The Church of the Holy Sepulchre, as well as the Greek Choir Chapel and two large domes are damaged."

The damage was estimated at $1.25 million, in 1927 dollars. Earthquakes damaged or destroyed the Al-Aqsa Mosque in Jerusalem in 746 A.D., 1033 A.D., 1546 A.D. and in the 1927 event.

BROWN ACCIDENTALLY ADMITS IT IS "THE CONSTITUTION"; but says there is no need for a referendum
The TELEGRAPH notes that Gordon Brown yesterday made a slip when he said he had discussed the "European Constitution" with Bertie Ahern, the Irish Prime Minister, when they met at Stormont. Mark Francois, Shadow Europe Minister said, "Gordon Brown in a Freudian slip referred to the EU constitution yesterday - even our own Prime Minister can no longer keep up the pretence".

THE INDEPENDENT REPORTS that the choice of destination for Brown's first foreign trip has been seen as a clear sign that Brown is reacting to growing public opposition to the war by SEEKING STRONGER TIES WITH EUROPEAN ALLIES, IN PARTICULAR FRANCE AND GERMANY.

MAJORITY OF DANES WANT A REFERENDUM ON NEW EU TREATY, even if government's 'red lines' are met
Danish daily POLITIKEN reports that a new opinion poll shows that 53% of the Danish people want to see a referendum on the EU's Constitutional Treaty, even if the treaty does not involve a sovereignty transfer, as set out by the Danish government's "nine points" (their version of the 'red lines'). 33% want to avoid a referendum.

GRAIN CRISIS TO FORCE COMMISSION TO SCRAP SET-ASIDE RULES FOR FARMERS?
The TIMES looks at the global shortage of grain, which has forced EU Agriculture Commissioner Marianne Fischer Boel to propose scrapping the EU's "set-aside" rule, which prevents farmers from planting crops on one tenth of their land. It is reported that Brussels is becoming seriously concerned about soaring wheat prices and predictions of a weak EU cereal harvest. The EU's 10% biofuel target could become a millstone for the union. The science and economics of biofuels are increasingly being challenged - but like a supertanker the EU is unlikely to change course any time soon.
Times

ITALIAN GOVERNMENT CALLS FOR "EUROPEAN POLICE" FOR PAEDOPHILES
In an interview with LA REPUBBLICA, Italian Communications Minister Paolo Gentiloni calls for a "European police" dedicated to fighting paedophilia as well as Europe-wide black lists of child sex offenders. He said he would discuss the suggestions with EU Commissioner Franco Frattini.
La Repubblica.

Speaking at a Monday conference at the Institute for National Security Studies in Tel Aviv, Gen. (res.) Eyal Ben-Reuven said the IDF is learning the mistakes of last summer's war and is preparing for a comprehensive war. Ben-Reuven said the war in Lebanon was justified, but turned out "bad" for Israel both militarily and politically. "It is not good that we failed," he said.

"The year 2000 is when the problems started," Ben-Reuven said. Israel hurriedly withdrew its forces from Lebanon that year, and Ben-Reuven feels that Israel then began to concentrate mainly on the terrorist threat, as opposed to all-out war. This led, he said, to a wrong deployment of forces for the war with Hizbullah.

"We can deal with Palestinian terrorism in the course of preparing for all-out war," he said, "but we can't prepare for war while dealing only with terrorism. Until now, we thought that our readiness in the campaign against terrorism would help us in all-out war as well, but this is not the case."

"We were not defeated last year," the general said, "but we failed to utilize our strength and meet our objectives, due to faulty leadership... The war gave us a ringing smack, reminding us of the mistake we made in 2000."

Speaking at a meeting of the Centre for European Reform in London on Thursday (12 July) former Italian prime minister Giuliano Amato said: "THEY [EU LEADERS] DECIDED THAT THE DOCUMENT SHOULD BE UNREADABLE. IF IT IS UNREADABLE, IT IS NOT CONSTITUTIONAL, THAT WAS THE SORT OF PERCEPTION".

"Where they got this perception from is a mystery to me. In order to make our citizens happy, to produce a document that they will never understand!" "But, there is some truth [in it]. Because if this is the kind of document that the IGC [intergovernmental conference] will produce, any Prime Minister - imagine the UK Prime Minister - can go to the Commons and say 'look, you see, it's absolutely unreadable, it's the typical Brussels treaty, nothing new, no need for a referendum."

"Nothing [will be] directly produced by the prime ministers because they feel safer with the unreadable thing. They can present it better in order to avoid dangerous referendums". "This is an extraordinary admission from someone who has been close to the negotiations on the EU treaty", said Open Europe director Neil O'Brien.

"THE IDEA OF JUST CHANGING THE NAME OF THE CONSTITUTION AND PRETENDING THAT IT IS JUST ANOTHER COMPLEX TREATY SHOWS A TOTAL CONTEMPT FOR VOTERS."

Brussels argues the product is safe despite some NGOs claiming the opposite. EU farm ministers failed on Monday (14 July) to agree on the large-scale cultivation of GM potato Amflora, developed by German chemicals giant BASF. Germany, UK and Sweden reportedly supported the authorisation while Austria, Ireland and Italy led the camp of its opponents. Several countries, including France, abstained.

The split among the countries and their incapability to reach a qualified majority means the decision will be passed on to the European Commission. Barbara Helfferich, the commission's spokeswoman for environment, said on Monday the EU executive would support the go-ahead for the controversial potato with the formal approval likely in the "coming months".

"It has been analyzed and it is safe," she insisted, referring to the opinion of the European Food Safety Authority which had stated the GM potato is safe for cultivation. The product is intended for use in industrial processes, such as making paper. But its producer also called for the approval to use it in food and animal feed.

Environment groups such as Greenpeace and Friends of the Earth argue that it could contaminate the food chain and future crops, highlighting that the potato contains a gene which can convey resistance to antibiotics.
If approved by the Commission, the Amflora potato would be the first GMO crop allowed in Europe since 1998 following an EU moratorium on such authorizations. Brussels formally ended the blockade in 2004.

European farmers, industrial food and chemical producers complained that the bloc's stringent position against the GMOs created a disadvantage for them against their foreign competitors. In 2006, the World Trade Organisation ruled that the EU was unfairly blocking GMOs from entering its markets.

According to Italian researchers, both red and white wine may have previously unrecognised health benefits at the very start of their journey into the body, according to a study that confirms something that has been known since antiquity, when wine was used to treat wounds.

Prof Gabriella Gazzani and colleagues at the University of Pavia in Italy point out in the Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry that previous studies suggested that moderate wine consumption has health benefits after reaching the stomach and digestion - in protecting against heart disease and cancer. But relatively little has been done to study its antibacterial activity, which was exploited in ancient times, and none had studied whether wine could combat harmful oral bacteria.

The team showed that red and white wine were effective in inhibiting the growth of several strains of streptococci bacteria that are involved in tooth decay, and some cases of sore throat. The compounds responsible for the antimicrobial activity were wine acids, notably succinic, malic, lactic, tartaric, citric, and acetic acids. "Overall, our findings seem to indicate that wine can act as an effective antimicrobial agent against the tested pathogenic oral streptococci and might be active in caries and upper respiratory tract pathologies prevention," the study states.

"Red wine resulted to be more active as an antibacterial agent then white wine", said Prof Gazzani, who is now investigating about the mechanisms by which wine can interfere with tooth decay and the possibility it offers advantages over standard mouthwashes.

Brent crude oil, seen as the best gauge of the global oil market, rose to an intra-day high of $78.40 a barrel, just below last August's all-time high of $78.65.Profit-taking later pushed it back down to $77.32 a barrel.Crude prices have risen by 51 per cent since hitting a year-low in January.

Goldman Sachs, the US bank, warned prices could surge to $95 a barrel within six months without increased production from the Organisation of the Petroleum Exporting Countries.

- UK parents work the longest hours in Europe

- 66pc can't devote enough time to children

- Youngsters 'feel abandoned' as divorce rises

Family life is under threat from rising divorce rates and the longest working hours in Europe, the Children's Society has warned.

The charity says 21st century life is 'pulling families apart' and risking the development and well-being of future generations. It claims childhoods are being damaged by parental break-ups and growing pressure on mothers to return to work. Research for the society found that almost twothirds of parents are not able to spend enough time with their children and half feel forced to put their career before family life.

They are increasingly turning to day care while their offspring are still young even though more than a third believe pre-school children suffer if their mothers work. More than a third of parents find it difficult to meet their family responsibilities because of the time they spend at work.

One child surveyed reported feeling 'lonely' and having nothing to do but play on the computer and watch TV because their parents were either arguing or working.

The Kremlin warned of "the most serious consequences" in a rapidly escalating crisis that left relations between the two countries at their worst since the Cold War. There were fears that President Vladimir Putin could target some of the UK companies with huge investments in his country.

After less than a month in office, Prime Minister Gordon Brown now faces a highstakes confrontation with the Russian hard man, who has made no secret of his contempt for the British Government. Russia says its constitution will not permit the extradition of Andrei Lugovoy, the prime suspect in the murder of his former KGB colleague Alexander Litvinenko with radioactive polonium 210 last year.

Mr Brown is furious that the Kremlin apparently allowed a hit squad to travel to London to assassinate Mr Litvinenko, who had fled Russia to become an exiled dissident and a British citizen. Speaking in Berlin on his first foreign visit as Premier, a defiant Mr Brown said last night he had "no apology to make" for applying sanctions.

He said the decision served notice to other countries that he will not tolerate seeing the streets of London descend into a "form of lawlessness".

Rats had been doing a roaring trade thanks to strong supply over the last two weeks, the China News Service quoted vendors as saying."Recently there have been a lot of rats - a reported 2 billion rodents displaced by a flooded lake Guangzhou. People are rich and like to eat exotic things, so business is very good," it quoted a vendor as saying, referring to the capital of Guangdong province, where people are reputed to eat anything that moves.

Some vendors, who declined to reveal their names, had asked people from a village in Hunan province, near Dongting Lake, to sell them live rats, the Beijing News said Monday. Local governments in Hunan have been grappling with the rats, which had already destroyed 1.6 million hectares (6,200 sq miles) of crops and could spread disease, according to media reports.

A lack of snakes, also a popular dish in the south, and owls, a traditional Chinese medicine, was held partly responsible. Scientists have also blamed China's massive Three Gorges Dam project and climate change for the Hunan rodents' flight to dry land.

As the world prepares for the Academy Awards, NewsMax Magazine in a special cover report asks: Why can't the USA get a fair shake from Hollywood?

NewsMax reveals why films like Michael Moore's Bush-bashing documentary "Fahrenheit 9/11" raked in a docu-record $119 million, and last year Al Gore's global-warming pic "An Inconvenient Truth" took in more than $23 million.

We go inside Hollywood and tell you show how agenda-driven politics - not markets and simple entertainment - drive documentary making and promotion. THESE DOCUMENTARIES AND MANY OTHERS HAVE ONE THING IN COMMON: A DECIDED TILT TO THE LEFT.

But as NewsMax Magazine's special report "Oscar's Bias" reveals, these documentaries and many others have one thing in common: a decided tilt to the left.

Documentaries have ignited political and cultural debates and have even influenced the course of presidential elections. But when the Oscars are awarded on Feb. 25, THERE IS ABSOLUTELY ZERO CHANCE THAT A DOCUMENTARY PROMOTING TRADITIONAL AMERICAN VALUES AND BELIEFS WILL GET THE NOD.

Now Jonathan Miller, a knighted neurologist, humorist, and scholar, has launched a cinematic attack on the religious beliefs of Americans. Miller's three-part documentary, "A Brief History of Disbelief," aired in the U.K. in 2004 and is coming to PBS stations in the U.S. this summer.

"When we first made it, it was inconceivable that it would be broadcast in the United States," Miller told TVGuide.com. "I think the success of Christopher Hitchens' 'God. I DON'T KNOW WHY, BUT SOMETHING HAS HAPPENED TO USHER IN A CERTAIN HOSPITALITY TO CONTROVERSY ON THIS SUBJECT."
Apparently, sections of the documentary try to make the case that our nation's founders, including George Washington and James Madison, were anti-religious agnostics who created the much-lauded secular progressive notion of "Separation of Church and State" (which, incidentally, is not contained in the Constitution) because they viewed the world as Miller does.

Miller lumps radical Islamists together with evangelical Christians, describing the events of Sept. 11 as "the most powerful expression of religious fanaticism" of our time. "The World Trade Center attacks are one of the reasons I thought it was important to do it [the documentary]," Miller said.

"I just thought it was a good place to begin, because of the impact fanatical religion has on our world. I suppose the most dangerous right now is Islam, but fanatic Christianity has also done a great deal of damage to people," Miller added. "Not to mention the current war in Iraq and Afghanistan and the idea of bringing democracy to these countries has this sort of Christian conviction behind it."

THE BASIC PREMISE OF THE UNGODLY BOOKS AND FILMS IS THAT THEISM IS LESS RATIONAL THAN ATHEISM. BUT THE TRUTH IS, IT TAKES A LOT OF FAITH TO BE AN ATHEIST.

- ATHEISTS MUST BELIEVE THAT SOMETHING CAME FROM NOTHING. Atheists accept on faith that in the beginning there was nothing, and then there was something. Even Steven Hawking and friends are convinced that prior to the big bang, there was no time and no space. Nothing. And now there's lots of something.
- ATHEISTS MUST BELIEVE THAT LIFE CAME FROM NON-LIFE. Atheists accept on faith that once, when conditions were just right, something inanimate became animate.
- ATHEISTS MUST BELIEVE THAT HUMAN BEINGS HAVE NO FREE WILL. Atheists accept on faith that by serendipity primordial slime eventually developed into human beings with mental abilities but no free will and who act in accordance with biochemical reactions in their cerebral cortexes.

In the cold atheist universe, there is no way to account for the transcendent ideals that make life worth living ? dignity, steadfastness, courage, love, and hope.

IS THERE A LINK BETWEEN CHILDHOOD VACCINES AND AUTISM? The pendulum keeps swinging in opposite directions as this skin wrenching emotional and scientific national debate continues. In the meantime, we continue to play risky "cocktail" roulette with the health of our children. Generation Rescue commissioned SurveyUSA, an independent opinion research team, to interview parents in nine counties in California and Oregon.

Roll Call, a leading publication for congressional news and information, recently drew attention to this survey that showed vaccinated boys had a 2.5 times higher risk of neurological disorders than unvaccinated boys, and calling for a national study to explore these disturbing results.

Based on interviews of 11,817 households, involving 17,674 children aged 4 - 17, the data showed:
- Vaccinated boys, compared with unvaccinated boys, were 155 percent more likely to have a neurological disorder (relative risk RR 2.55), 224 percent more likely to have ADHD (RR 3.24, and 61 percent more likely to have autism (RR 1.61).
- All vaccinated boys and girls, compared with unvaccinated children, were 120 percent more likely to have asthma (RR 2.20).

Comments J.B. Handley of Generation Rescue, "For less than $200,000, we were able to complete a study that the CDC, with an $8 billion a year budget, has been unable or unwilling to do. WE THINK THE RESULTS OF OUR SURVEY LEND CREDIBILITY TO THE URGENT NEED TO DO A LARGER SCALE STUDY TO COMPARE VACCINATED AND UNVACCINATED CHILDREN FOR NEURO DEVELOPMENTAL OUTCOMES."

HIS ORGANIZATION BELIEVES THAT MERCURY, INCLUDING A TYPE USED FOR DECADES IN ROUTINE CHILDHOOD IMMUNIZATIONS (THE PRESERVATIVE THIOMEROSOL) IS A MAJOR FACTOR IN THE 10-FOLD INCREASE IN REPORTED AUTISM CASES OVER THE PAST 20 YEARS.

The anxiety THAT VACCINES ARE LINKED TO THE RISE OF AUTISM AND OTHER NEURODEVELOPMENTAL DISORDERS HAS BEEN LARGELY DISMISSED BY PUBLIC HEALTH OFFICIALS AND MAINSTREAM MEDICAL GROUPS - especially since a 2004 report by the respected Institute of Medicine found no such evidence - and suggested research money go to more "promising" areas.
Affected parents, some of whom say they watched their children regress into autism immediately following physical reactions to vaccines, have continued to press the issue.

The parents behind Generation Rescue only want information. These parents deserve more than roadblocks; they deserve answers. We can and should move forward in search of those answers."