Friday, February 11, 2011
Egyptian President Mubarak Steps Down From Power
DEVELOPING: CAIRO -- Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak has stepped down and handed control of the country to the military, Vice President Omar Suleiman said Friday in an address on state television.
The announcement touched off a wave of jubilation throughout Cairo's Tehrir Square, where tens of thousands of anti-government protesters had gathered demanding Mubarak's ouster hours after he failed to do so in an address on Thursday.
"In these difficult circumstances that the country is passing through, President Hosni Mubarak has decided to leave the position of the presidency," Suleiman said. He has commissioned the armed forces council to direct the issues of the state."
President Obama will deliver a statement on the development at 1:30 ET Friday.
Mubarak had sought to cling to power, handing some of his authorities to Suleiman while keeping his title. But an explosion of protests Friday rejecting the move appeared to have pushed the military into forcing him out completely. Hundreds of thousands marched throughout the day in cities across the country as soldiers stood by, besieging his palace in Cairo and Alexandria and the state TV building.
Read more: http://www.foxnews.com/world/2011/02/11/egyptian-president-hosni-mubarak-steps/#ixzz1DfiPdGol
Thursday, February 10, 2011
Egypt's President Refuses To Step Down But Give More Authority To VP
Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak said Thursday he has passed authority to Vice President Omar Suleiman, but will not step down before September elections.
The move, announced in a nationally-televised address, means he will retain his title of president and ensures the regime will continue to control the reform process.
Immediately after his speech, Suleiman addressed the nation and urged protesters to return to their homes.
"To the youth of Egypt, and the heroes of Egypt, go back to your home and your works, the nation needs you so that we can build and develop and innovate," said Suleiman.
"Let us walk together, hand in hand, in a new path that achieves the hope of the youth and all generations for a new life, a stable life, and a safe life," he added.
Mubarak's announcement was not what hundreds of thousands of protesters in Cairo's Tahrir Square had hoped for, as they resumed their chants of "Leave! Leave! Leave!"
"I will never leave Egypt and Egypt will not leave me until I am buried in the soil of Egypt," Mubarak said in his 15-minute address.
Mubarak said the demands of the protesters calling for his immediate ouster are legitimate. He said he had requested the amendment of five articles of the constitution to loosen the now restrictive conditions on who can run for president, to restore judicial supervision of elections, and to impose term limits on the presidency. He also said that he would lift hated emergency laws -- but only when security permitted.
Mubarak also vowed to punish those behind violence over the past two weeks and offered condolences to the families of those killed.
President Obama said earlier Thursday at a new wireless initiative event in Michigan that "we are witnessing history unfold."
"The people of Egypt are calling for a change," Obama said.
The president also said the U.S. will do anything it can to support a smooth transition of power in Egypt.
Wednesday, February 9, 2011
U.S Judge Throws Out Atheist's Case Over Cross Grant
ST. LOUIS – A federal judge in Illinois has tossed out a Chicago-area atheist's quest to force the return of a state grant given to restoration efforts of a southern Illinois cross landmark.
U.S. District Court Judge Michael McCuskey, central Illinois' chief federal jurist, threw out Rob Sherman's lawsuit Tuesday.
McCuskey accepted the recommendation of U.S. Magistrate David Bernthal, who late last week refused to reconsider his decision to reject Sherman's lawsuit over the $20,000 grant to the 11-story tall Bald Knob Cross of Peace.
Bernthal ruled the state's economic-development agency has discretion in how it doles out its money.
Sherman has pledged this week to take the matter to a federal appellate court in Chicago if McCuskey ruled against him.
Read More From Fox NewsTexts Reveal Muslim Brotherhoods Radical Creed
Banned but tolerated for decades by successive Egyptian regimes, the Islamist movement is now emerging as a central player in the country’s resurgent opposition.
On Tuesday, two Brotherhood representatives participated in an opposition delegation that met with Vice President Omar Suleiman for the first set of talks over implementing political reforms.
Pundits have portrayed the Brotherhood as uncompromising zealots or beneficent providers of social services that long-deprived Egyptians desperately need.
But a translation released Tuesday of a 1995 book by the movement’s fifth official leader sheds light on just how Egypt’s Brotherhood views itself and its mission. Jihad is the Way is the last of a five-volume work, The Laws of Da’wa by Mustafa Mashhur, who headed the Muslim Brotherhood in Egypt from 1996-2002.
The Jerusalem Post on Tuesday saw excerpts of the text, compiled by Palestinian Media Watch founder Itmar Marcus and analyst Nan Jacques Zilberdik.
They detail the Brotherhood’s objectives of advancing the global conquest of Islam and reestablishing the Islamic Caliphate, the public and private duties of jihad and the struggle Muslims must wage against Israel.
The full text, translated by PMW, will be posted Wednesday on the organization’s website, Palwatch.org.
“The Islamic ummah,” it says, referring to the supranational community of Muslims, “can regain its power and be liberated and assume its rightful position which was intended by Allah, as the most exalted nation among men, as the leaders of humanity.”
Elsewhere, it exhorts Muslims, “Know your status, and believe firmly that you are the masters of the world, even if your enemies desire your degradation.”
Read More from the Jerusalem Post
New Iphone App Allows Catholics To Confess Their Sins Through Their Phones
You’ll still have to tell a priest your sins in person, but “Confession: A Roman Catholic App” holds your hand through the process via your hand-held.
Katie, a Temple University sophomore, likes how the app takes you step-by-step, preparing you for the sacrament by asking questions that might point out a sin or two you’ll want to divulge.
“I like how you have the ‘in the name of the Father’ — like what they should say,” Katie said.
Teresa, a senior at Temple, says that’ll help — as long as you’re not blasting Jay-Z when you enter the confessional.
“Confession for some people can be kind of intimidating, so I think this will make it a lot easier for them to go through it,” Teresa said.
Father Jerry Wild at the University’s Newman Center says when it comes to absolution, touchscreens can’t replace the face-to-face, but support for the app shows the Church is keeping up with the times.
“We certainly live in a technological age, so the Church has to be aware of that and respond to that reality.”
Survey Says: Children Today Prefer Virtual Lives To Real World
Children are often happier with their online lives than they are with reality, a survey has revealed.
They say they can be exactly who they want to be – and as soon as something is no longer fun they can simply hit the quit button.
The study also shows that, despite concerns about online safety, one in eight young people is in contact with strangers when on the web and often lies about their appearance, age and background.
Researchers for children’s charity Kidscape assessed the online activities of 2,300 11- to 18-year-olds from across the UK and found that 45 per cent said they were sometimes happier online than in their real lives.
The report – Virtual Lives: It is more than a game, it is your life – lays bare the attitudes of children today to the internet and includes revealing insights into how they feel when they are on the web.
One told researchers: ‘It’s easier to be who you want to be, because nobody knows you and if you don’t like the situation you can just exit and it is over.’
Another said: ‘You can say anything online. You can talk to people that you don’t normally speak to and you can edit your pictures so you look better. It is as if you are a completely different person.’
One teenager admitted the only place he or she felt comfortable admitting they were gay was on anonymous internet forums.
Around 47 per cent of children said they behaved differently online than they did in their normal lives with many claiming it made them feel more powerful and confident.
Psychotherapist Peter Bradley, who is also deputy director of Kidscape, said that the desire for so many to adopt a different identity online was a cause for concern because the children were being divorced from reality.