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While it is impossible to know the day or hour of the Rapture of the Church (Mark 13:32), it is however, possible to recognize the season of His return and our subsequent deliverance (1st Thess. 5:1-3, Hebrews 10:25). For those who would assert our ability to even wonder when Christ could return as soft date setting, just remember that Christ chastised the Pharisees’ and Sadducees, as well as the city of Jerusalem, for not recognizing the season of their visitation (Matt. 16:1-4, 19:43-44). We are to be actively watching and waiting for the Lord’s soon return (Luke 12:37). This does...

In early 1914, though, it seemed almost impossible that Britain and France would go to war with Germany to defend Russia against Austria-Hungary over a dispute with Serbia. Yet by June 28, war moved straight from impossible to inevitable — without ever passing through improbable. Four years later, 10 million people had died. (From World War One: First war was impossible, then inevitable; Anatole Kaletsky) Although I’ve used this quote in the past, I’ve found myself drawn to it again due to its precise accuracy describing the seemingly incredible and often unpredictable nature of geopolitics. Prior to World War I,...

When it comes to swindles, it would be hard to top Liz Carmichael. She spun a tale about obtaining proprietary secrets from her deceased NASA engineer husband that enabled her to start and become CEO of a totally bogus car company marketing the Dale. This fictitious 84 mpg, three-wheeled car bilked millions from investors in 1975…and all the while Liz was actually a man, Jerry Dean Michael, impeccably dressed like a woman. No investor ever saw the car factory or drove a Dale. Yet, “Liz” always talked with investors so matter-of-factly about “her” wholly imaginary industrial realm that they willingly...

As the Obama administration and other governments ruling Western nations increasingly seek to radically transform society and its values using social engineering and Big Government, former KGB operative Vladimir Putin is ludicrously trying to portray himself and the Russia he rules as the final bastion and defender of traditional morality. In his “state of the nation” speech last week, the Russian president even styled his regime the last bulwark standing firm against an onslaught of moral corruption and the decay of civilization. His words, however, rang hollow to analysts who study the global establishment, the real Russia, and its corrupt...

Bloomberg has become the first major corporate backer of the Ubuntu Edge, pledging $80,000 towards the project to build a crowdfunded smartphone, but this is unlikely to be enough to help Canonical reach its ambitious funding goal of $32 million (£20.8m). Canonical says the pledge is a huge boost for the company and other backers who want to get their hands on the world’s first “truly converged computing device”, but at the time of writing, the Ubuntu Edge has achieved just $8,544,097 of its target with just 14 days of fund raising left. Bloomberg has signed up for the ‘Enterprise...

Four leading House Republicans, citing national security concerns, are urging Treasury Secretary Timothy F. Geithner to block the sale of a Wyoming-based uranium mine to an arm of the Russian government's main nuclear agency. The lawmakers are raising alarm over the proposed sale of a Powder River Basin, Wyoming-based uranium processing facility operated by Uranium One USA, a Canadian-based company, to Atomredmetzoloto, a subsidiary of the Russian government agency Rosatom, according to a letter obtained Tuesday by The Washington Times. The sale was first announced on Aug. 31, and the lawmakers claim that it could give Moscow control of up...

In a bizarre 1984 book, ex-KGB Major Anatoliy Golitsyn predicted the liberalization of the Soviet Bloc and claimed that it would be a strategic deception. Let's examine the facts. In his spy book Wedge, Mark Riebling claims that "of Golitsyn's falsifiable predictions, 139 out of 148 were fulfilled by the end of 1993 -- an accuracy rate of 94 percent" [1]. Riebling's statistic, compiled from Golitsyn's 1984 book New Lies for Old, has been used in several other books and articles (including here at AT) since Wedge was first published in 1994. New Lies for Old is not light reading,...

Consolidation among companies that resell and distribute tech goods and services is continuing apace, as larger players look for growth in new product and geographic areas. At the same time, new resellers are popping up to deal with emerging markets such as unified communications and online video. The tech distribution and resale business remains strong thanks to hot product types such as notebook computers, wireless networks and data storage products, says Tim Curran, chief executive of the Global Technology Distribution Council. The council is a trade group for this field.

Tisha b’Av is the Jewish day of mourning for the destruction of the ancient Jewish temples, which both fell on the same day of the calendar. Last year, Tsh’a b’Av fell on August 14, the day Israel unilaterally withdrew from Gaza. This year August 14 marked the day when Israel’s cabinet accepted the UN’s cease fire in the current war. Because Judaism follows a lunar calendar, Tisha b’Av this year fell on August 3. I, nonetheless, believe that this year’s Tisha b’Av marks not only the end of the sacred temples but, with the withdrawal from Gaza and now the...

Most Israelis oppose Prime Minister Ehud Olmert's plan to unilaterally withdraw from most of the West Bank, a public opinion poll released Monday showed. 50 percent of Israelis oppose the premier's realignment plan, whereby Israel would pull out of the vast majority of the West Bank while maintaining the large settlement blocs, while 46% of Israelis support the proposal, the Hebrew University poll found. While 54 percent of the Israelis polled said that the outcome of the last election grants Olmert a mandate to carry out his withdrawal plan, 58% believe a referendum should be carried out over the contentious...

The political outcome of Hamas' raid on Israelis at Kerem Shalom on Sunday is that Prime Minister Ehud Olmert's convergence plan is being set aside for now. Three elements have foiled Olmert's scheme. First, the government and the Israel Defense Forces failed to formulate a convincing security response to the continued attacks against Israel from the Gaza Strip. Under such conditions it is impossible to convince the public that there is logic in a pullout from the West Bank, which will bring the Hamas militants closer to Israel's population centers. Recent surveys have showed broad public opposition to the convergence....

WASHINGTON, June 7, 2006 – It is not enough to win tactical engagements in the war against terror -- the United States and its allies must win the peace, the vice chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff told the National Defense University's 2006 graduating class today. Navy Adm. Edmund P. Giambastiani, vice chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff (left), congratulates a student at the National Defense University's graduation ceremony, June 7. Photo by Steven Donald Smith  (Click photo for screen-resolution image);high-resolution image available. Cultivating international partnerships and facilitating strong cooperation throughout the U.S. government to maximize all of...

Last update - 03:17 24/05/2006 ANALYSIS / George Bush wants the convergence plan too By Aluf Benn, Haaretz Correspondent For Prime Minister Ehud Olmert, there were many good reasons to be satisfied with his first meeting with U.S. President George W. Bush. In the press conference that followed their first round of talks, Bush warmly adopted Olmert's initiatives for an extensive withdrawal in the West Bank, terming them "bold ideas" that "could be an important step" to peace. The president also pledged that the United States would hasten to Israel's defense in the event of an attack by Iran, and,...

Olmert, Rice discuss convergence PM meets with US secretary of state in Washington, introduces plan for unilateral pullout from West Bank. Olmert, Rice also discuss Iran's influence on Hamas government, joint Israeli-American policy towards Palestinians Yitzhak Benhorin Prime Minister Ehud Olmert met Tuesday with American Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice for a meeting later defined by the PM's associates as "excellent." Olmert introduced before Rice his vision for the convergence plan and has answered her questions on the subject.Despite the American objection to the plan at this point, Israeli officials said that Rice expressed great interest in the issue of...

Did you hear the one about the father of the Arab suicide bomber? "I'm so proud of little Mahmoud," he said. "You know, it's funny about kids – they blow up so fast!" I admit it. It's a sick joke. But it's a kind of metaphor for the madness taking place in the Middle East today. If it wasn't all a matter of life and death, it would be humorous. If it wasn't all a matter of preventing another holocaust, it would be laughable. If it wasn't all a matter of preserving Western Civilization from perhaps its gravest threat, it...

12th-Graders to Olmert: We'll Serve, But We Won't Help Retreat 12:43 May 22, '06 / 24 Iyar 5766 by Hillel Fendel A letter from 12th-grade students around the country has been sent to Prime Minister Olmert's office, declaring that they plan to serve in the army - but not to take part in his withdrawal plans. As of this morning, four days after the letter began to be circulated, some 250 students had signed it. One of the organizers, Malkiel (a fictitious name), said he expects the number to climb much higher after the English matriculation exams, which are being...

May. 19, 2006 1:59 | Updated May. 19, 2006 2:48 Official: Bush won't set a timetable for Israeli withdrawal By NATHAN GUTTMAN WASHINGTON President George Bush will ask Prime Minister Ehud Olmert if his convergence plan was compatible with the idea of a two-state solution when the two leaders will meet next week. According to a senior administration official, Bush will expect Olmert to explain how a unilateral move could be compatible with the US administration's wish for a negotiated final status agreement. The official told The Jerusalem Post on Thursday that President Bush will not express his opinion on...

U.S. urges Olmert to take lower profile on convergence plan By Aluf Benn As Prime Minister Ehud Olmert prepares for his first official trip to Washington next week, he appears to be taking a step back from vocally advocating the convergence plan. Olmert told Kadima ministers yesterday that he plans to present his plan to the Bush administration, but that only after "three, or 10, months," will it be possible to announce there is no Palestinian negotiation partner and move on to unilateral steps. The plan involves withdrawal from large swaths of the West Bank, but not from major settlement...

Struggle against outpost removal planned Plans for 'civil disobedience' drawn up to prevent outpost clearing Efrat Weiss As Prime Minister Ehud Olmert is set to begin his official visit in the United States Sunday, in Israel the Right wing is already drawing up plans the struggle against the plan to clear illegal outposts. A convoy of buses, a march towards the West Bank outpost of Maale Rehavam, and other plans have already been formulated by a number of settler organizations in Judea and Samaria. The aim: "To prove Jewish ownership over the land and to identify the roads which lead...

EU wants US pressure against convergence European Union opposed to unilateral withdrawal in West Bank, hoping Americans will convince Israel to renew peace talks with Palestinians during Washington summit next week The European Union is hoping the United States will persuade Israel in talks next week to resume peace talks with the Palestinians instead of carrying out a unilateral pullout from the West Bank, EU officials said Thursday. Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert, who arrives in Washington Sunday, has been hoping that the international community will recognize the lines to which Israel would pull back as permanent borders - but...