IOR Obstruction

http://www.ansa.it/english/news/2019/10/02/five-vatican-officials-suspended-over-finance-probe_04a93a47-8048-4861-899a-d8636bb79436.html

As mentioned in the January 2019 piece (linked below) there will be continued resistance to reforming the IOR/Vatican Bank.

The question is... just who are these five officials? I'm not referring to their names, rather what faction do they represent? Are these people resisting reform with other connections to the hierarchy? Are these people acting in the interest of outside parties? Are their suspensions a protective measure, a tactical move on the part of one faction or the other?

The Lausanne Legacy: Danish Evangelicals Seek Political Influence

http://evangelicalfocus.com/europe/4821/God_is_at_work_with_politicians_and_culturally_engaged_people

This is yet another example of the Lausanne mindset on display. Somehow getting legislators into church on Sunday morning is deemed a great victory or accomplishment.

Poland's PiS Rewarded

https://www.upi.com/Defense-News/2019/10/11/Poland-US-celebrate-new-US-Army-division-headquarters-in-Poland/3401570811620/?sl=17

As Poland continues to stand with the United States, this is their reward... and yet the people of Poland should beware.

For some they will see the US establishment of a divisional headquarters as a surety, a guarantee of security against the threat of Moscow. Additionally it is all but a guarantee of further economic growth through the military apparatus. The Americans build bases and they spend lots of money and the infrastructure, logistics and maintenance will generate jobs and stimulate the local economy. Poland's defense sector will certainly benefit.

Trump +1006: Developments in Northeast Syria

The timing of Trump's Syria withdrawal is interesting in light of the impeachment probe. Again I wonder if he truly blundered into this or if he isn't being set up? One can hardly pity him but the policy is even turning many Republicans against him.

CNN: Not Left-wing but Establishment Safe

https://thegrayzone.com/2019/09/06/embassy-insider-exposes-cnn-lies-about-julian-assange/#more-14399

The fact that CNN is once again exposed as a propaganda outlet for the US Establishment should come as a surprise to no one. I suppose when the outlet first appeared in the 1980's, around-the-clock news and the level of international reporting was novel and thus we were all fascinated. That said, even the mainstream outlets had extensive international bureaus at that time and while the coverage was certainly slanted, nothing compares to what's happening today.

The Syria Blacklist

https://www.mintpressnews.com/using-forged-emails-progressive-journalists-smear-challenging-syria-groupthink/261972/

This article provides a good summary for the case that Syria coverage has been manipulated and often fabricated. Given the longevity and complexity of the conflict the number of articles dealing with these questions is voluminous, even daunting for someone who hasn't been following things closely.

And thus this article plays a helpful role in providing the 'big picture' in terms of this question.

Rolling Back the Pink Tide: A Scandal in Colombia, the Anti-Venezuela Media Campaign and the IMF Motivated Protests in Ecuador

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2019/oct/01/colombia-spy-chief-quits-dossier-venezuela-oswaldo-pena

Duque working in concert with American Imperialism and its regime change operation in Venezuela has been called out and exposed. The report appears in The Guardian, a publication largely in alliance with the Atlantic Establishment. And yet when it comes to Latin America their editors are clearly comfortable pursuing stories that American media are less likely to emphasise.

Medicaid and Christian Ethics

https://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/archive/2019/10/when-medicaid-takes-everything-you-own/596671/

This reality is already known to many and yet I am often startled by how many people do not seem to understand how the world of medical coverage functions. I suppose if you've had a long-term steady job that provided health coverage then you would have little reason to look into the realities that many people face.

Washington, the PiS and EU Climate Targets

https://www.politico.eu/article/new-yorks-lackluster-climate-summit/

Leaving aside all the silliness surrounding the deranged Swedish teenage activist and her 'glaring' at Trump, the real story in this article pertains to French president Macron's condemnation of Poland's PiS government for inhibiting the EU's climate goals.

Falwell and the Politico Whistleblowers

https://www.npr.org/2019/09/15/761046389/liberty-university-students-react-to-falwell-scandal

https://www.politico.com/magazine/story/2019/09/09/jerry-falwell-liberty-university-loans-227914

By now many are familiar with the Politico article about the whistleblowers at Liberty University who have sought to expose Jerry Falwell Jr. as a hypocrite and something of a tyrant.

Another HSLDA Travesty: Trump's UN Speech

https://hslda.org/content/hs/international/20190925-trumps-historic-un-speech-should-help-persecuted-homeschoolers.aspx

The twists and turns of history. Public education is largely a result of the sacral state and in the United States its genesis was championed by dyed in the wool Protestants that wanted to bring about social conformity and cultural unity especially in the face of massive immigration.

Elizabeth Warren's Wall Street Socialism

https://www.aol.com/article/finance/2019/09/24/senator-elizabeth-warrens-net-worth-2020-presidential-election/23818922/

The Right continues to taut the 'Socialism' of millionaires like Bernie Sanders and Elizabeth Warren. These politicians advocate a form of social democracy which actually falls within Centrist orbits in the rest of the world. They are advocates of the market and finance capital. What they're arguing for is that the state as an organising principle should pool some of society's excess profits and redistribute them to the poorest elements of society.

Ritter on Smolenkov and Some Thoughts on Christian Discernment

https://consortiumnews.com/2019/09/14/the-spy-who-walked-away/

Ritter will be remembered by some as the patriotic American ex- UN weapons inspector who refused to accept the Bush administration's line on Iraq. He exposed the administration as dishonest and challenged the WMD narrative.

South Tyrol: A Chink in the EU's Armour

https://www.thelocal.it/20181018/italy-and-austria-at-odds-over-south-tyrol-dual-citizenship

The region of South Tyrol doesn't normally make it into the news. An alpine wonderland, for most it's just part of northern Italy and yet its story is far more complicated. It's actually one of the dozens of potential 'trouble spots' within Europe that retain the possibility of future political turmoil and unrest. South Tyrol isn't a 'hot spot' like Kosovo or even as contentious as Transylvania, Ulster or Catalonia but it still has the potential to generate trouble. The EU was supposed to eliminate these tensions, to bring these cycles of history to an end and yet history just won't go away. And as Brussels weakens, history is rearing its head.

Patriotic Idolatry in China

http://www.asianews.it/news-en/Official-churches-and-religions-celebrate-the-70th-anniversary-of-the-Chinese-communist-regime-(Video)-48071.html

Of course this is done voluntarily on the part of many American Churches. These idolatrous celebrations are more or less repeated in the United States. Of course they're not mandated but represent willing offerings on the part of American Christians to the deified holy state.

Were an American president of the right political stripe to suggest and encourage such ceremonies I am confident American Christians would comply. These sorts of idolatrous displays have become almost routine since 9/11.