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Almost 70 years after George Orwell created the all-seeing dictator Big Brother in the novel ``1984,'' Britons are being watched as never before. About 4.2 million spy cameras film each citizen 300 times a day, and police have built the world's largest DNA database. Prime Minister Tony Blair said all Britons should carry biometric identification cards to help fight the war on terror. During the past decade, the government has spent 500 million pounds ($1 billion) on spy cameras and now has one for every 14 citizens, according to a September report prepared for Information Commissioner Richard Thomas by the Surveillance Studies Network, a panel of U.K. academics.
By 2016, there will be cameras using facial recognition technology embedded in lampposts, according to the Surveillance Studies report. Unmanned spy planes will monitor the movements of citizens, while criminals and the elderly will be implanted with microchips to track their movements, the report says. Most controversial of all are Blair's biometric ID cards linked to a national register holding every citizen's fingerprints, iris or face scan. Starting in 2010, anyone renewing or applying for a passport will have to get one.
- JJ Commentary: Forget about Orwell. These are direct indicators of the New World (Dis)Order creating the end-time one-world government prophesied by Jesus in the Revelation 13.
The latest scuttlebutt on Capitol Hill is that Senator John McCain (R-AZ) and his friend Senator Edward Kennedy (D-MA) are planning to introduce a new immigration bill that is even more liberal than their past "amnesty" bill. They're calling it a fast-track to citizenship for illegal aliens. US Border Patrol agents haven't been happy with Senator John McCain (R-AZ) since he voted for the first Amnesty Bill (S. 2611). And they're not being quiet about their collective anger over the senator's actions and remarks.
But, according to members of the agents' union local 2544, Senator McCain has never been a friend to rank-and-file Border Patrol agents. Local 2544 represents US Border Patrol agents in Arizona, McCain's home state. "He routinely ignores correspondence from Border Patrol agents and often gives the impression that he is just too big and too important to deal with us," they said. "He attempts to undermine our mission at every turn and actively supports the criminals who violate our laws. He always trys to downplay the fact that illegal aliens knowingly and willingly violate our laws, and he is a close ally on immigration matters with Senator Ted Kennedy, who we believe is the biggest disgrace of all time in the United States Senate."
- JJ Commentary: Senator McCain would be the worst possible choice for President. Not only is he weak on immigration, he is also weak on abortion, marriage and other evangelical issues
A 67-year-old Spanish woman became the world's oldest mother after she gave birth to twins in the northern city of Barcelona on Saturday, a hospital official said. The woman, whose identity has not been revealed by Sant Pau hospital, gave birth by caesarian section on Saturday having previously undergone in vitro fertilization in the United States, according to the national news agency EFE. The previous holder of the oldest mother record was 66-year-old Romanian citizen Adriana Iliescu who gave birth to baby Eliza Maria in Jan. 2005.
- JJ Commentary: Giving human beings god-like control over procreation opens the door to all kinds of stupid, if not immoral, acts. Pity these twins. When they turn 13 their mother will be 80, if still alive.
Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad has sent a message to Pope Benedict XVI urging greater understanding between religions. Foreign Minister Manouchehr Mottaki arrived in the Vatican City Wednesday to deliver in person Ahmadinejad's message, his latest letter in a series of missives to world leaders, the official news agency IRNA reported. "President Ahmadinejad insisted in his letter on the common teachings of the prophets and the importance of establishing new political and human relations based on those teachings. "The unjust relations that exist at the moment require the cooperation of different religions to remedy them," Jahandideh quoted the letter as saying.
- JJ Commentary: This from someone who threatens to annihilate the Jews. However, this is the mantra of the New World (Dis)Order who want to establish a politically correct one-world religion that is “inclusive” and “tolerant.” Christianity is exclusive. Jesus is the “way” and the only way
ANKARA, Turkey — Some residents of a Turkish town were horrified by the decision to install a Santa Claus statue, replete with cotton-candy beard and red-and-white outfit, in place of a more solemn sculpture of St. Nicholas that was a gift from the Orthodox Christian community, and featured him with a halo and an open bible. St. Nicholas served as bishop of Demre in the 4th century A.D. From there, the legend of his generosity spread around the world and became interwoven with mythical stories of the jolly gift-bringer. For many Orthodox Christian Russians, St. Nicholas is an object of deep veneration rather than the father Christmas known to millions around the world.
The Santa character later took on the white beard of the pagan god Odin and Odin's eight-legged flying horse became eight reindeer. The ability to enter houses down the chimney comes from an old Norse legend, and the tradition of leaving him cookies and milk is derived from a medieval German tale. In the 12th century, French nuns began to give gifts in St. Nicholas' name on his feast day, Dec. 6. St. Nicholas gift-giving was later blended with the three wise men bearing gifts for the newborn Jesus and associated with Christmas. The image of today's Santa is a product of Coca-Cola commercials in the 1930s. And Rudolph, the red-nosed reindeer, was created for an ad campaign for the Montgomery Ward department store chain.
Less than half of British children between the ages of seven and 11 are aware that Christmas is the celebration of the birth of Jesus, according to a BBC poll published on Tuesday. Just 44% of 1,063 children questioned understood that Christmas returns each year for the birth of Christ. Among the children questioned, 29% said Christmas was primarily about thinking of others, while 24% said it more about giving than receiving presents
- JJ Commentary: That’s the devil’s way, twist the truth, twist it some more until finally we are left with a pagan fairy tale to replace saints and Christ.
The poor showing of "The Nativity Story" this Christmas season is bad news for people of faith who hope Hollywood will make more feature films their families can enjoy, according to Christian movie reviewer Ted Baehr. "It's a very serious setback," said Baehr, founder and publisher of Movieguide and chairman of the Christian Film & Television Commission. The poor showing is all the more significant, Baehr told WND, because, unlike blockbusters "The Passion of the Christ" and "The Chronicles of Narnia," "Nativity was produced by a major studio, New Line Cinema.
Right now, Baehr noted, the easy money is made on "extremely bigoted, anti-Christian movies" such as "Borat" and "Jackass 2." Baehr said the performance of "Nativity" is especially disappointing because it's an exceptionally good film that adheres closely to the Bible. But as of Tuesday, "Nativity," with a production budget of $35 million, has an estimated gross box office of just $24.6 million in the U.S. since opening Dec. 1.- JJ Commentary: CHRISTmas “spirit” has been replaced with Xmas greed, and people don’t want to be reminded of what this season is really all about, because then they might not get their plasma TV
In a greeting to the world's Christians for the coming new year, Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad said he expects both Jesus and the Shiite messianic figure, Imam Mahdi, to return and "wipe away oppression." "I wish all the Christians a very happy new year and I wish to ask them a question as well," said Ahmadinejad, according to an Iranian Student News Agency report cited by YnetNews.com."My one question from the Christians is: What would Jesus do if he were present in the world today? What would he do before some of the oppressive powers of the world who are in fact residing in Christian countries? Which powers would he revive and which of them would he destroy?" asked the Iranian leader. "If Jesus were present today, who would be facing him and who would be following him?"- JJ Commentary: Sounds suspiciously like more than one question. So I have one question for him. What will Jesus think of those nations and religions who deny that He alone is God?
