News, Prophecy and other

[Soldier4Christ]

What is wrong with these 2 pastors? First off the only thing I think should be printed on the Bible should be Holy Bible, and some people might have their name on it. God loves all humans, that is why He sent His Son. These 2 pastors are trying to imply that it's ok to be a porn star because Jesus loves them, they will undoubtedly take it as a license to continue to promote porn.

That was my exact thoughts and it is the ideology behind those that promote homosexuality in the churches.

[Soldier4Christ]

'20th hijacker' eligible
for capital punishment


Zacarias Moussaoui is eligible for the death penalty for his role in the 9-11 terrorist attacks, a jury ruled today in Alexandria, Va.

The jurors decided he can be executed on all three convictions, conspiracy to commit terrorism, conspiracy to destroy aircraft and conspiracy to use weapons of mass destruction.

The trial of the so-called "20th hijacker" now moves to the second phase to determine whether he deserves capital punishment. Moussaoui is the only person to face charges in the U.S. in connection with the 9-11 attacks.

The jury, which began deliberating last Wednesday, asked a question about only about one of the convictions, conspiracy to use weapons of mass destruction. The jurors were told that a plane used as a missile meets the definition of a WMD.

Last April, the 37-year-old Frenchman pleaded guilty to conspiring with al-Qaida on the plot.

The jury was required to find Moussaoui responsible for at least one death on 9-11 for him to be eligible for execution.

Prosecutors argued that although Moussaoui was in custody at the time of the attacks, he could have changed the outcome by revealing his knowledge of the plot and his ties to al-Qaida.

An FBI agent who testifying at the death penalty trial said he warned senior officials about 70 times of fears that the confessed al-Qaida plotter planned to hijack an airliner.

Harry Samit, the agent who arrested Moussaoui, said he accused his superiors of "criminal negligence" and "careerism" when questioned during a U.S. government inquiry on Moussaoui's role in the 9-11 plot.

The agent's testimony, March 20, came as the death penalty trial resumed one week after Judge Leonie Brinkema threatened to throw out the prosecution's case over witness tampering. Brinkema agreed to continue if prosecution lawyers use only uncontaminated witnesses.

The defense insisted the government had known much more about the 9-11 plot than Moussaoui but failed to take action to stop it.

In a memo presented by the defense during testimony, Samit warned that Moussaoui was an Islamic fundamentalist who believed in martyrdom, was learning how to fly a 747 jet and had a portable GPS navigation system, AFP reported. He also, the agent pointed out, was armed with small knives and learning martial arts.

[Shammu]

Now heres a shocker!

Australia, China Approve Uranium Agreement

By ROD McGUIRK, Associated Press Writer 1 hour, 1 minute ago

CANBERRA, Australia - Australia agreed Monday to sell China uranium for nuclear power stations despite concerns that Beijing could divert the material to atomic weapons.

The countries' foreign ministers signed two agreements containing assurances that China will not build bombs with uranium from Australia, which has 40 percent of the world's known deposits. No official estimates were available Monday but the deal is expected to generate billions of dollars in annual sales.

"These agreements establish strict safeguards, arrangements and conditions to ensure Australian uranium supplied to China, and any collaborative programs in applications of nuclear technology, is used exclusively for peaceful purposes," said Australian Foreign Minister Alexander Downer, who signed the Nuclear Transfer Agreement and Nuclear Cooperation Agreement with his Chinese counterpart, Li Zhaoxing.

China is Australia's third-largest trading partner, with trade worth about $21.4 billion a year, supplying the communist nation with key resources such as iron ore and coal that are fueling its rapid industrial expansion.

The Australian Conservation Foundation, a leading environmental group, warned that the deal would jeopardize international nuclear safeguards by allowing China to divert uranium to its weapons program.

But Downer dismissed that argument.

"China has a nuclear weapons program whether we like it or not," Downer told Australian Broadcasting Corp. radio Monday. "It's not going to make the slightest difference whether we have this agreement with China or whether we don't to their nuclear weapons program."

The United States has no objection to the deal, the State Department said Monday.

Department spokesman Adam Ereli said the agreement, with its provisions to ensure that China does not divert fuel to weapons, "meets every reasonable standard."

China has been negotiating for months to buy uranium from Australia, which has 40 percent of the world's known uranium deposits. The two countries' foreign ministers signed the agreement Monday in Canberra, the Australian capital

The signing came on the third day of a visit to Australia by Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao, the first by a Chinese premier in 18 years.

Wen held talks early Monday in Canberra with Prime Minister John Howard, who paid tribute to the two countries' relations.

"Of all the important relationships that Australia has with other countries, none has been more greatly transformed over the last 10 years than our relationship with China," Howard said after the talks.

Australian uranium is unlikely to head to China until at least 2010, Resources and Industry Minister Ian Macfarlane said.

Wen, who had said he aimed to use his visit to accelerate the pace of free trade agreement talks initiated a year ago, said Monday that China and Australia would work hard to strike a deal within the next two years.

Trade Minister Mark Vaile said he welcomed the target. Neither Canberra nor Beijing had previously set a timeframe for completing negotiations.

"I am very encouraged by Premier Wen's comments today relating to ambitious timeframes," Vaile said in a statement.

About 100 members of the Falun Gong spiritual movement that is outlawed in China protested against Chinese human rights abuses outside Parliament House during Wen's visit. Falun Gong supporters also protested in Sydney.

[Shammu]

Japanese nuclear plant starts tests

Fri Mar 31, 12:06 PM ET

TOKYO (AFP) - Japan's first plant to extract plutonium and uranium from spent nuclear fuel started test runs in hopes of providing much-needed energy despite protests from residents and environmentalists.
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The 17-month test is expected to lead to full-fledged production next year in the northern village of Rokkasho, providing a new form of energy to one of the world's biggest oil importers.

"Everything went smoothly without any obstruction," said Kazuhiko Shimada, a spokesman for the plant's operator, Japan Nuclear Fuel Ltd.

The company raced Friday to sign last-minute agreements with surrounding communities pledging safety before beginning the long-delayed tests.

The plant will eventually produce uranium-plutonium mixed oxide (MOX) fuel, which would boost the electricity generated by existing reactors through recycling. More than 30 MOX reactors now operate in Europe.

Concerned residents and environmentalists of the only country attacked with atomic bombs have held periodic protests against the plant, which theoretically could also process weapons-grade plutonium to produce energy.

About 100 protestors gathered at the front gate Friday to protest the launch of the tests at the Rokkasho plant which lies on the northern tip of Japan's main island of Honshu.

"I really feel frustrated and sad," said Keiko Kikukawa, 57, a local farmer who has protested the project for years.

"I've worked for such a long time to stop this test run, which is not necessary at all," she told AFP by telephone.

Protesters have pointed out that even though the plant would create the new type of fuel, Japan does not yet have any reactors that can operate on it.

The city of Genkai in southern Japan on Sunday accepted a plan by regional power utility Kyushu Electric Power Co. to begin using MOX fuel at one of its reactors.

But the Genkai reactor would not be able to process MOX fuel until the business year to March 2011 at the earliest and lies more than 1,200 kilometers (750 miles) from Rokkasho, in Aomori prefecture, raising further concerns about safety.

The Japanese electric industry has planned to use the plutonium and uranium extraction method since 1997 and had set a plan to operate 16 to 18 nuclear reactors by the year to March 2011. But the goal has been stalled by a series of accidents and scandals.

Construction of the Rokkasho facility began in 1993 but the start of operations was delayed by problems including a design flaw.

"I believe this reprocessing plant will contribute a lot to the nation's energy policies," Aomori governor Shingo Mimura said Tuesday.

Japan counts on nuclear energy for 30 percent of its electricity but is almost entirely dependent on imports for its oil.

Greenpeace complained about the waste that would be generated by the plant and the potential military link.

"Reprocessing is a daily nuclear accident due to the massive discharges of nuclear waste authorized by government agencies, which have no regard for public health or the wider environment," the group's Shaun Burnie said.

Japanese nuclear plant starts tests

[Shammu]

Auschwitz escapee, 82, dies in Canada
By JPOST.COM STAFF

Rudolf Vrba, one of five Jews who escaped the Auschwitz death camp during World War II, died Monday in Vancouver, Canada at age 82, Toronto's Globe and Mail reported Friday.

Vrba was born in Slovakia and was sent to the Majdanker extermination camp when he was 18. He was later transferred to Auschwitz and assigned the job of removing from freight trains the bodies of Jews who had not survived the journey. From Auschwitz, Vrba was transferred again to Birkenau, where he befriended Alfred Wetzler, a Hungarian Jewish leader.

Wetzler and Vrba faced being tortured to death if they were caught in an attempt to escape; nevertheless, the two confounded guards by hiding for three days in a space inside a pile of lumber near Birkenau's perimeter fence. In order to keep the camp dogs away, Vrba and Wetzler used a mixture of tobacco and gasoline to disguise their scent.

Once they were sure that the standard three-day search for prisoners who failed to appear for the evening head count was over, the friends made their way to the Sola River and eventually entered Slovakia.

In spring 1944, Vrba and Wetzler provided the Allies with a description of the Nazi killing machine that later became known as the Auschwitz Protocols.

Twenty years after the end of the war, Vrba emigrated to Canada. He became a professor and later professor emeritus of pharmacology at the University of British Columbia.

Vrba is survived by his wife, Robin Vrba, his daughter Zuza, his grandchildren Hannah and Jan and nephews Stefan and Jan.

Auschwitz escapee, 82, dies in Canada

[Shammu]

Apr. 4, 2006 4:01
US civil rights group: Campus anti-Semitism a serious problem
By JTA

Anti-Semitism on campuses is a "serious problem" that merits a campaign to inform Jewish students of their rights, the US Commission on Civil Rights said.

The commission came to its decision Monday after considering testimony last year from the American Jewish Congress, the Zionist Organization of America, the Institute for Jewish and Community Research and other groups.

The commission cited anti-Israeli propaganda appearing on campuses that exploits ancient stereotypes.

It recommended that the Education Department run a campaign to inform Jewish students of their right to be free of harassment and that it should collect data on anti-Semitic and other hate crimes at universities.

The commission also concluded that there is "substantial evidence" that some university departments of Middle East studies "may repress legitimate debate concerning Israel."

US civil rights group: Campus anti-Semitism a serious problem

[Soldier4Christ]

School counselors objected to materials at exhibit


A group that believes people with same-sex attractions can abandon homosexuality was evicted from the Virginia Schools Counselors Association annual convention.

PFOX, Parents and Friends of Ex-gays and Gays, said school counselors at the event in Richmond, Va., last week objected to some of its materials and insisted the group leave.

Blogger Warren Throckmorton said PFOX was registered officially as an exhibitor at the conference, held at the Holiday Inn Select Thursday and Friday.

But the counselors association's current president, Tammy Davis, and past-president, Carol Kaffenberger, requested to meet PFOX Director Regina Griggs and insisted the group and its members had to leave.

Griggs said that after some discussion, the school counselors said two of PFOX's brochures were OK, one on bullying and another on teens. But the group, nevertheless, was told to leave because offering only two brochures would not be worth their time.

At that point, the hotel staff intervened and demanded the PFOX people leave, Throckmorton said.

One of the staff began to dismantle the table and police were called in.

PFOX members said they were willing to remove anything deemed offensive but were ushered out anyway.

One of the books the counselors didn't like was a title by leading reparative-therapy researcher Joseph Nicolosi. Another was a story of a transgendered person who warns against sex-change surgery.

Last year, the National Parent-Teacher Association refused PFOX's request to exhibit at its annual convention while welcoming a pro-homosexual activist organization – even inviting it to present a workshop.

PFOX had its application to exhibit rejected because it supports former homosexuals. The National PTA, however, sought the attendance of Parents, Families and Friends of Gays, a pro-homosexual advocacy group that promotes in same-sex marriage.

The National PTA also has allowed "It's Elementary," the homosexual-affirming video for schoolchildren, to exhibit at its conference for the previous three years.

Also last year, PFOX won a decision against the Montgomery County School Board in Maryland, halting the implementation of a sex-education curriculum that would have promoted gay religious organizations over ex-gay ministries and traditional religions.

The judge, in writing his decision, criticized the curriculum for engaging in "viewpoint discrimination" by excluding ex-gay material. The school board also had approved materials published by homosexual advocacy groups that positively portray homosexuality while making negative references to ex-gays.

"The National PTA is discriminating against a class of students and that is just wrong," Griggs said at the time.

[Soldier4Christ]

B.C. mother asks trustees to reconsider distribution among pupils in 'neutral zone'

PETTI FONG

VANCOUVER -- Renate Gepraegs thought she had stepped back in time when she opened her son's public-school newsletter and read a notice from the Gideon Society about free Bibles.

"I thought schools were neutral zones," said the 36-year-old graduate student and mother of a Grade 1 pupil. "I thought schools were secular, and organized religions didn't have a place in public schools."

Ms. Gepraegs, who said she does not belong to any specific religion, appeared before Richmond school trustees last month to ask them to reconsider their policy of Bible distribution. Other parents and representatives of other religions are also challenging the practice.

For 60 years, the Gideons, a lay association of Christians, have given Bibles to Grade 5 pupils across Canada through public schools.

School superintendent Bruce Beairsto said the board began to rethink the issue of distributing Bibles to every Grade 5 student in the district in the 1960s, when Richmond began to become a more diverse and multicultural community. Now, nearly 60 per cent of Richmond residents are of Chinese or South Asian descent.

The Richmond board's policy is to place a notice in school newsletters, and Grade 5 pupils may take a form home for their parents to sign if they want a Gideon Bible. The children return the form to the school, which relays the request to the Gideons, who bring the Bibles to the schools.

The Gideons no longer automatically bring Bibles to schools across the country every year, but wait for requests. Every year, each of the 38 elementary schools in Richmond receives one or two requests for Bibles, Mr. Beairsto said.

"We don't proselytize, of course. This is a vexing issue that we've wrestled with as to what multiculturalism means," Mr. Beairsto said. "If someone wanted to distribute the Koran the same way, we would be quite happy to do it in an equitable way."

Mr. Beairsto said some school trustees raised concerns at the meeting Ms. Gepraegs attended about what would happen if a less mainstream religion, such as the Wiccans, also requested that their materials be distributed.

"If one of those odd things come up, we will talk to our parent groups and try to share a collective wisdom," he said yesterday.

Richmond parent Abdullah Ali, who has a daughter in Grade 9, attended the school board meeting with Ms. Gepraegs in March. It's not appropriate, said Mr. Ali, who is Muslim, for anyone in the school to hand out religious books.

"The better process would be if these books can be placed in the library and any child who wants a copy can get one," Mr. Ali said. "I'm not knocking the policy, but I am saying it has to be inclusive and provide an equal playing field for everyone."

Because the board is not backing off its policy, Mr. Ali said he's securing a supply of Korans for distribution to students who request them.

Neither the Surrey nor the Vancouver school boards distribute Gideon Bibles to students.

The issue has divided school boards across the country. The Ottawa-Carleton school board stopped distributing Bibles in 2001, but last year the Gideons organization asked it to reconsider.

The American Civil Liberties Union sued a Missouri school district last month for allowing Gideons to distribute Bibles. The school board there had voted 4-3 in favour of allowing the practice to continue after parents raised concerns.

The Gideons distribute more than 60 million Bibles worldwide each year to hospitals, hotels, prisons and schools.

Executive director Paul Mercer of Gideons International in Canada said that throughout Canada, 250,000 to 300,000 Bibles a year are requested by students. Years ago, schools and the Gideons decided Grade 5 was the appropriate age to receive the Bible, he said.

"It's been done since the mid-1940s, and the offer is made. Some can say no and some can say, 'we want one,' " Mr. Mercer said. "We just simply believe that everybody should have the opportunity of owning a Bible."

Canadian Jewish Congress Pacific region chairman Mark Weintraub said school boards have a legal obligation to not distribute the Bibles.

"We are certainly not against any religious denomination disseminating sacred texts," Mr. Weintraub said. "But in a society that supports a public school system and has people of many faiths and children from families that do not believe in any particular faith, it's vital the school system not be the vehicle for any particular denomination."

B.C. Civil Liberties president Jason Gratl said he was surprised to learn that Bibles are still being distributed.

"It carries no threat of undermining the secularism of our school system, but it's a practice that ought to be quietly ended," he said yesterday.

Rev. Gary Simpson of the Broadway Church in Chilliwack, which has Gideons among its members, said when he was in Grade 5 in the late 1960s, Bibles were automatically distributed, requested or not.

"Obviously, the Gideons are interested in conversion, otherwise they wouldn't be doing this. They hope the Bible can help kids in need and they believe God can change someone's life," Mr. Simpson said.

"But I'm not sure it's right to do it in a public school system. I would be willing to shut the whole supply off, if it means our kids are going to be bombarded with 50 options. My Bible doesn't need to be out there if that's the case."

[Shammu]

Latest Disturbing Teen Fad--Even for Girls

Your teenager may be smoking, but chances are it's not cigarettes. The latest teen craze is cigar smoking, and thanks to an industry that encourages such behavior, they can even smoke grape, cinnamon and apple flavored stogies.

Alarmingly, the trend isn't limited to just boys. Plenty of girls are lighting up, too.

A study from the University of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey blames the unhealthy fad on celebrity-backed advertisements. After all, if Demi Moore can smoke a cigar, so can your teen.

"The cigar industry (has) successfully marketed their products to adult women and adolescents of both sexes," study co-author Cristine Delnevo told HealthDay News reporter Randy Dotinga. What's more, Delnevo insists that public health officials haven't caught on to this fad. "This issue is under our radar," she says.

Here are some shocking statistics Delnevo uncovered in her research:

    * Overall, cigar consumption in the United States increased by more than 28 percent between 2000 and 2004.
    * Cigarette use among teens has declined by almost 30 percent between 2001 and 2004.
    * High school boys are more likely to smoke cigars than cigarettes, according to the 2004 New Jersey Youth Tobacco Survey.
    * In New Jersey, about 17 percent of the boys surveyed said they smoke cigars, compared to 16 percent who smoke cigarettes. Fully 10 percent of high school girls admitted to smoking cigars.
    * A 2004 survey of teenagers in Cleveland, Ohio found that 23 percent of teens smoked cigars, compared with 16 percent who smoked cigarettes.

Why cigars? It could be the price. Stogies are cheaper than cigarettes. Delnevo says states need to tax cigars appropriately and regulate where they are sold, making it more difficult for teenagers to buy them.

The study findings were reported in the American Journal of Public Health.

Latest Disturbing Teen Fad--Even for Girls

[Shammu]

Minutemen launch new campaign
Group returns volunteers to monitor U.S. borders
Posted: April 4, 2006
1:00 a.m. Eastern


© 2006 WorldNetDaily.com

The volunteer border-watchdog group Minuteman Civil Defense Corps has launched a new monthlong campaign one year after its operations along the U.S.-Mexico frontier began drawing national attention.

The new effort comes as Congress debates controversial immigration-reform legislation that has drawn massive protests from advocates of illegal aliens.

Along with Arizona, the Minutemen have planned exercises along the border in California, New Mexico and Texas, and along the northern frontier in Washington, New Hampshire, Vermont and New York state.

J. Glenn Sorensen, a retired school administrator living in Flagstaff, Ariz., told the Associated Press the group already has accomplished part of its purpose, "to draw national attention to an insecure border."

"I don't think anybody wants to close the border – I certainly don't," he said. "Basically, I think they need to be secure."

Bob Wright, director of New Mexico's Minutemen group, said patrollers had been on duty less than 30 minutes Saturday when they alerted Border Patrol to the first group of illegal aliens – seven people – trying to enter the U.S.

Don Goldwater, a Republican candidate for governor and nephew of the late Sen. Barry Goldwater, was among the politicians and activists at a rally Saturday of at least 200 mostly older men and women at a remote southern Arizona ranch.

"Build us that wall – now!" Goldwater said, referring to a measure to add 700 miles of fences along the border.

Since Oct. 1, agents have caught more than 48,000 in the area patrolled now by the Minutemen, an increase of 48 percent over the same period last year.

The group's national leader, Chris Simcox, said volunteers will keep an eye on four watering stations set up by the group Humane Borders.

The Border Patrol said more than 400 people died last year from exposure to the heat or dehydration as they tried to cross the desert into the U.S.

President Bush and Mexican President Vicente Fox favor a bill being debated in the Senate that establishes a guest-worker program allowing illegal aliens employed in the U.S. to stay and possibly gain citizenship. The House passed a controversial measure last month that tightens border security.

Critics accuse the Minuteman group of racism, but leaders say they reject any members of racist organizations who apply to volunteer.

Click to Visit

A chief opponent, the American Civil Liberties Union said it was concerned over "the potential for taking actions and ... attempting to enforce immigration laws."

The Minutemen say, however, they only are reporters of illegal crossing to the Border Patrol.

My note; No the ACLU isn't concerned about that. They are concerned that these Americans are fighting back, reporting  illegal crossing. Taking away a source of money for the ACLU.

[Shammu]

New Survey Reveals U.K. Christians' Lack of Basic Bible Knowledge
Monday, Apr. 3, 2006 Posted: 8:57:07AM EST

LONDON – Less than a quarter of Christians in the United Kingdom possess enough knowledge of the Bible to be able to place key events in the order they appear, according to the results of a new survey by the Bible Society released last week.

 The Christian evangelical organization carried out a survey of regular churchgoers, which revealed that 76 percent of people were unable to put a series of ten popular Bible stories in the order that they appear in the Bible.

Events used in the survey included Noah’s Ark, Solomon’s building of the Temple, and Jesus feeding the five thousand, among other similar incidents.

The survey was carried out by asking the questions in a quick-fire quiz style, and was designed to assess the common assumption that Christians possess an in-depth knowledge of the Bible.

The survey results have been published to coincide with the recent publication of “The Drama of Scripture,” which is an SPCK (Society for Promoting Christian Knowledge) book that has been created in association with the Bible Society. The book aims to portray the Bible as a drama containing six “Acts,” including creation, sin, Israel, Jesus, mission, and new creation.

The Director of Program at the Bible Society, Ann Holt said, “It seems that even Christians struggle to see the big picture when it comes to the Bible – never mind those who never read it.

“The Drama of Scripture has been published to provide Christians with some much-needed help in rediscovering afresh the significance of God’s Word for living out their faith today. That is why we recently supported the launch of the book with the mass distribution of a booklet containing key extracts from the publication.”

New Survey Reveals U.K. Christians' Lack of Basic Bible Knowledge

[Shammu]

Union Leaders Boo McCain on Immigration

By RON FOURNIER, AP Political Writer 19 minutes ago

WASHINGTON - Sen. John McCain (news, bio, voting record) threatened on Tuesday to cut short a speech to union leaders who booed his immigration views and later challenged his statements on organized labor and the
Iraq war.

"If you like, I will leave," McCain told the AFL-CIO's Building and Construction Trades Department, pivoting briefly from the lectern. He returned to the microphone after the crowd quieted.

"OK, then please give me the courtesy I would give you."

It was a colorful and contentious session, producing as many laughs as boos, that tested McCain's commitment to the straight-talking, wisecracking image he honed during his failed 2000 presidential bid. An underdog six years ago, the Arizona Republican is expected to seek the 2008 GOP nomination as a front-runner.

"I loved it. I love mixing it up like that," McCain said after the speech to a Democratic-leaning crowd of several hundred.

He did seem to enjoy the back and forth that began minutes into his address, when he mentioned campaigning on behalf of California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger, a fellow Republican. The crowd booed the reference to Schwarzenegger but laughed at McCain's self-effacing joke that followed.

He said somebody came up to him at the Schwarzenegger event and said, "Do people tell you look like John McCain?"

"Yes, they do."

"Doesn't that make you madder than hell?"

Later, the senator outlined his position on the Senate immigration debate, saying tougher border enforcement must be accompanied by guest-worker provisions that give illegal immigrants a legal path toward citizenship.

Murmurs from the crowd turned to booing. "Pay a decent wage!" one audience member shouted.

"I've heard that statement before," McCain said before threatening to leave.

Afterward, the senator said he offered to cut his speech short "because I wanted to be heard."

In the speech, McCain also argued that withdrawing U.S. troops prematurely from Iraq would turn terrorists loose on the United States.

This time, there was no booing — though one audience member cursed from the back of the crowd.

McCain got another laugh when he finished the speech and asked whether anybody had "questions, comments or insults."

The first questioner seemed to challenge his commitment to organized labor. When McCain started to praise a particular labor group in Arizona, the crowd booed again.

"Stop!" he said with a smile, drawing laughter from the crowd. "I surrender."

But he took more questions, including a pointed one on his immigration plan.

McCain responded by saying immigrants were taking jobs nobody else wanted. He offered anybody in the crowd $50 an hour to pick lettuce in Arizona.

Shouts of protest rose from the crowd, with some accepting McCain's job offer.

"I'll take it!" one man shouted.

McCain insisted none of them would do such menial labor for a complete season. "You can't do it, my friends."

Some in the crowd said they didn't appreciate McCain questioning their work ethic.

"I was impressed with his comedy routine and ability to tap dance without music. But I was impressed with nothing else about him," said John Wasniewski of Milwaukee. "He's supposed to be Mr. Straight Talk?"

Others said McCain showed some moxie, if not the best political judgment.

"Most of us don't agree with him on immigration, but I give him credit for trying," said Chris Schoenbeck of Milwaukee.

With his profile rising, a growing number of Democrats are accusing McCain of flip-flopping on issues to court conservative GOP primary voters.

McCain denied that charge later Tuesday — after addressing the Hispanic Chamber of Commerce, a GOP-leaning group that backs his immigration views. There were no boos. Just laughter, and at the end of his remarks, a standing ovation from the Hispanic leaders.

Yet McCain's mind was still on the labor activists and their prickly reception.

"I can't tell you how much fun that was," he said.

Union Leaders Boo McCain on Immigration

[Shammu]

Navy: Pirates Hijack South Korean Ship

By ROBERT BURNS, AP Military Writer 2 hours, 7 minutes ago

WASHINGTON - Pirates captured a South Korean-flagged fishing vessel off the coast of Somalia on Tuesday and efforts by a U.S. Navy ship and a Dutch vessel to intervene were abandoned when members of the South Korean crew were threatened with guns and the ship slipped into Somali territorial waters, the Navy said.

Cmdr. Jeff Breslau, spokesman for the U.S. Navy's 5th Fleet in Bahrain, said he did not know the number of crew aboard the South Korean vessel, the Dong Won.

It was the latest in a series of incidents off the coast of Somalia. On March 18, two U.S. Navy ships exchanged gunfire with suspected pirates, killing one and wounding five. No U.S. sailors were injured. Somalis involved in that incident later claimed they were patrolling Somali waters to stop illegal fishing when the U.S. ships fired on them.

On Tuesday morning, naval ships patrolling international waters in the Persian Gulf region as part of an international Maritime security mission received a radio distress call from the Dong Won, which reported that it had been fired upon about 60 miles off the coast of Somalia, according to a statement issued by 5th Fleet.

Some hours later the guided missile destroyer USS Roosevelt and the Dutch ship HNLMS Zeven Provincien arrived at the scene. Apparently, by that time the pirates had taken control of the fishing vessel.

Breslau said that when the Dong Won turned toward Somali territorial waters, one or both of the U.S. and Dutch ships tried to intercept it and fired warning shots in its direction. Members of the South Korean crew were seen on the deck of the Dong Won with guns pointed at them, so the intercept effort was broken off, he added.

"The top priority is the safety of innocent lives," the 5th Fleet statement said.

Breslau said the U.S. and Dutch ships remained in the area in international waters to monitor the situation.

Navy: Pirates Hijack South Korean Ship

[Shammu]

Iran: Ready to Negotiate on Enrichment

By ALI AKBAR DAREINI, Associated Press Writer 28 minutes ago

TEHRAN, Iran - Iran said Tuesday it is willing to negotiate with world powers on large-scale enrichment of uranium but will never give way on their key demand — to cease all enrichment, a process that can produce fuel for nuclear reactors or material for bombs.

The U.N. Security Council has demanded that Iran suspend all uranium enrichment activities and asked the U.N. nuclear watchdog agency to report back by April 28 on whether Iran had complied.

Foreign Minister Manouchehr Mottaki reiterated that Iran would not comply with the Security Council demand, saying the small-scale enrichment it resumed in February was strictly for research and was within its rights.

The United States and France have accused Iran of pursuing a secret program to build atomic weapons, but Tehran claims its nuclear program is peaceful and aimed only at generating electricity. Enrichment makes uranium suitable for reactor use but, taken to a high degree, it becomes suitable for a nuclear bomb.

"The enrichment of uranium ... is Iran's right as defined as a signatory to the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty," Mottaki said. "One thing we can't give up and that is the right of the Iranian nation ... We can't hold a dialogue with any country about giving up our rights."

He added, however, that Iran was prepared to talk to the international community about large-scale enrichment.

Mottaki did not specify with whom Iran wants to hold negotiations. The United States is facing calls from its European allies for it to enter direct talks with Iran to resolve the standoff.

German Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier underlined his country's support for U.S.-Iran nuclear talks ahead of a meeting in Washington with Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice.

"I think it is recognized here in Washington that the British and the German foreign ministers are positive on this question," he told reporters Tuesday.

State Department spokesman Adam Ereli said Monday the cause of the standoff was "not because the United States isn't in negotiations" but because Iran was defying international pressure and "moving with apparently great determination to develop an enrichment capability."

"So don't suggest that the way to solve this is for the U.S. to jump into negotiations. The way to resolve it is to get Iran to cease and desist from its active refusal to be a responsible member of the international community," Ereli said.

Iran and the United States have agreed to hold rare direct, high-level talks to discuss how to stabilize Iraq. While both sides have insisted the talks won't touch on the nuclear issue, U.S. officials say they suspect Tehran is looking to open the door for nuclear talks.

Since the U.N. Security Council issued its demand last week, Iran has taken a stance of rejection — while playing up hopes for a negotiated solution.

Mottaki said Iran's nuclear program had two options: cooperation or confrontation. "Iran prefers the first option," he said.

On Monday, hard-line Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad said the United States and Europe were "confused" if they thought they could stop Iran's nuclear ambitions. But he vowed Iran's nuclear program would be "transparent" and under the supervision of the International Atomic Energy Agency.

Past negotiations have faltered over the enrichment issue. Britain, France and Germany negotiated with Iran for two years on behalf of the European Union, endeavoring to persuade Tehran to abandon enrichment. Iran gave up on the negotiations last August and resumed parts of its nuclear program that it had suspended as a goodwill gesture.

Moscow then tried to persuade Tehran to accept a U.S.-backed compromise proposal under which large-scale uranium enrichment for Iran's nuclear program would take place in Russia. But negotiations ended in a stalemate after Tehran rejected a Russian demand to suspend uranium enrichment activities at home.

Iran: Ready to Negotiate on Enrichment

[Shammu]

Democrat: Intelligence on Iran Inadequate

By KATHERINE SHRADER, Associated Press Writer 9 minutes ago

WASHINGTON - U.S. intelligence information on Iran is inadequate and may contain misinformation that spy agencies are accepting as solid, the top Democrat on the House Intelligence Committee said Tuesday.

Rep. Jane Harman (news, bio, voting record), D-Calif., told a Council on Foreign Relations gathering that she and other lawmakers recently received a briefing from intelligence agencies based on information shared with the
International Atomic Energy Agency and the U.N. Security Council.

Her bottom line: "I remain skeptical — lots of unanswered questions."

"The conjecture that I have is that if I were Iran, and I wanted to put out disinformation, it might look a lot like what our government is claiming is information," she said. "I can't tell you that's true, but I can't tell you it's not true."

Harman didn't provide details on the classified session.

With tensions growing between the U.S. and Iran over its nuclear program, Tehran in the past week has touted new weapons including missiles supposedly invisible to radar and torpedoes too fast to be avoided. Experts have questioned Iran's claims about the weapons' capabilities.

The announcements came as the Bush administration was working toward a diplomatic solution to address its belief that Iran intends to produce nuclear weapons. Iran says it aims only to generate electricity, but it has thus far defied U.N. Security Council demands that it give up key parts of its program.

Last week, the Security Council unanimously approved a statement demanding that Iran suspend uranium enrichment.

When asked about Iran's recent weapons announcements Tuesday, White House spokesman Scott McClellan said Iran's "aggressive military program and defiant rhetoric are further examples of how the regime is isolating itself." But he stressed the administration hopes to work toward a diplomatic solution.

McClellan said the United States has a number of concerns about Iran's behavior, including its efforts to conceal its nuclear activities, support of terrorism, use of threatening rhetoric and disregard for the demands of the international community.

Harman said she does not doubt that Iran is a threat. "The issue is how capable are they and what are the real intentions of Iran's leaders, and I think the jury is out on both of those," Harman said.

In recent months, she and others on Capitol Hill have been seeking information about how to deal with Iran. Bruises in Congress and elsewhere in the government remain fresh on the botched prewar intelligence on
Iraq's never-to-be-found weapons of mass destruction.

"I want to be absolutely sure that we base decisions — especially tough decisions like what are the next steps with Iran, and I surely hope they are diplomatic because I think those are our best options — on pristine and pure intelligence or the closest we can get to that," Harman said.

She was echoing the words of former U.S. weapons inspector David Kay, who was in charge of the hunt for Iraq's arsenal until he quit his position in January 2004. Then, he said that "pristine intelligence, good accurate intelligence" was fundamental to a pre-emptive military policy, which the Bush administration adopted after Sept. 11, 2001.

Harman spoke alongside former acting CIA Director John McLaughlin, a veteran intelligence analyst who was the agency's No. 2 official in the run-up to the Iraq war. He politely quibbled with the use of the phrase "pristine intelligence."

"It's important, I think, to realize that intelligence isn't going to be pristine and pure," McLaughlin said.

He said intelligence is often incomplete and at some point policy decisions must be made. "We are getting a little caught in the idea that intelligence has the answer to everything," he said.

Democrat: Intelligence on Iran Inadequate