September/October 2001 Vol.4, No. 8 Contents The Coming Intervention in the Middle East by Darris McNeely Restoration by Darris McNeely A 20th Century Retrospective:The Shot Still Reverberating Around the World by Melvin Rhodes Partitioning Morality by Cecil E. Maranville In Brief... World News Review by Cecil Maranville, Melvin Rhodes, John Ross Schroeder and Jim Tuck This Is the Way... Just Outside My Window by Robin Webber In Brief...World News Review Prepare to Reduce Your Standard of Living Do you remember the advertising line that said, "when (a certain financial planner) speaks, people listen"?; People have become accustomed to "listening" to the vagaries of the stock market. Actually, they need to tune their ears to other voices-three in particular. Regardless of what happens in the near future in the major stock markets of the world, the following factors indicate rough times ahead. Argentina has come perilously close to defaulting on its international debt. In late August, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) agreed to lend still more money to Argentina in an emergency effort to stave off what could be a catastrophic economic event for Latin America, the United States and Europe. The $8 billion loan brings the total amount of IMF loans to Argentina to $22 billion. In spite of the huge loans, Argentina is far from solid in its financial standing. The second voice to which people should listen is that of Brazil. The IMF has also extended $15 billion in standby credit to Brazil, fearing that Brazil's economy would be pulled into the financial sinkhole created by an Argentine debt default. A double default by these large countries would most certainly plunge Latin America into a prolonged recession. "Globally, this would prolong the current economic slowdown in the United States and European Union, since a Latin American recession would hurt the earnings in stock prices of U.S. and European corporations heavily invested in the region, such as BellSouth, Ryder and Volkswagen AG" (Strategic Forecasting LLC, August 8, 2001). The third voice that should be heard is Japan's. Opting for a cosmetic and short-term solution to the country's continuing economic woes, Japan's central bank announced in mid-August that it would print more money-1 trillion yen ($8.1 billion). This action only papers over structural cracks in the Japanese economy. What would a collapse of the Japanese economy portend for the rest of the world? "Japan's economy is the world's second-largest and is bigger than all other Asian economies combined. When it finally topples, reverberations will be felt throughout the world. It is increasingly likely that a collapsing Japan will throw healthier economies-even that of the United States-into recession" (ibid. August 15, 2001). Look for developments, whether normal market shifts or manipulated ones, that separate the European economies from the United States. Europe, which has been preparing for the release of its new euro printed currency, is anxious to keep the breath of life in its economic body and resents taking a beating because of ties to the United States. Angered by alleged unfair trade practices by the United States, the European Union recently announced that it is seeking $4 billion in trade penalties. On August 20, the World Trade Organization announced its judgment that the United States had discriminated against foreign competition by giving special tax breaks to Microsoft Corp., Boeing Corp. and others. "U.S. Special Trade Representative Robert B. Zoellick has likened any EU sanctions of that magnitude to 'dropping a nuclear bomb' on the global trading system" (William Drozdiak, Washington Post Foreign Service). Negotiations are continuing, and the EU promises to step back from its demand, if the U.S. Congress agrees to enact tax legislation. Additional source: BBC News. The Apocalyptic Specter of AIDS Marches On After repeated denials, China has officially admitted a serious problem with AIDS. Officially, the government reported 23,905 HIV/AIDS cases at the end of March 2001. However, its Health Ministry admits that this number could be more than 600,000. United Nations projections show that China will have 10 million or more HIV/AIDS cases by 2010 unless it takes decisive action. Henan province in central China is one of the hardest hit areas, with perhaps hundreds of thousands of infected people. How could the infection become so widespread? People sold their blood to make money. "Villagers have told how blood was taken from several people at the same time and pooled in one container, where the blood plasma was removed. The remaining blood was then pumped back into the donors' bloodstreams. Such unsanitary methods, plus the re-use of needles and unsterilised (British spelling) equipment, gave the disease an easy pathway to spread rapidly through the local population," said a BBC report. Miracles or Monsters? Liberal scientists Panos Zavos and Severino Antinori rocked the world with their bold announcement in August that they would begin to clone humans before the end of this year. Is it possible? The rest of the scientific community does not seem to doubt that it is. The question is: What will their efforts produce? The probability of miscarriages, premature deliveries, genetic abnormalities and stillbirths is extremely high. Much publicity has been given to Dolly, the cloned sheep that was born in 1997. However, little coverage has been given to the fact that hundreds of animals are born dead or with terrible defects in cloning attempts gone wrong. Among those defects are serious lung problems, as well as disorders of the heart, blood vessels, the immune system, bones, brain and kidneys. Scientists have warned that we should expect similar outcomes in human clones. Potentially, there will be additional problems that aren't easily detected in animals, such as behavioral abnormalities, learning difficulties, problems with sociability, aggressiveness and emotional instability. Even Dr. Ian Wilmut, who was the leader of the team that cloned Dolly, issued a gloomy warning about the high probability of serious problems in human cloning efforts. An additional unresolved problem is the fact that some fetuses grow to an enormous size, so huge that their size could threaten the health of a woman pregnant with a clone. Scientists do not know what goes haywire in the genetic coding that causes this phenomenon. Many governments have passed legislation that bans human cloning, including a recent bill voted on by the U.S. House of Representatives. However, that's unlikely to stop the mad pursuit of cloning. It holds a certain intrigue for the scientist. "Let's see what we can do" is so loud that it shouts down the quieter whispers of conscience. A potential candidate for the U.S. Congress has already spent hundreds of thousands of dollars in an attempt to clone his infant son who died in surgery. Mark Hunt, a wealthy attorney, told the manager of a cloning laboratory, "I will spend every dime I have to get my son back." When the manager explained that cloning would not recreate his son, Hunt replied: "At least I will have one who looks like him." As long as there are scientists without ethics and people willing to finance their work, the possibility of human cloning is extremely high. However, the possibility of successful human cloning is not. Sources: Lois Rogers and Joe Lauria, Times Newspapers Ltd.; Michael Woods, The Toledo Blade; Janelle Carter, AP; Agence France Presse. A New Rival for HIV It wasn't spotted until 1989, but hepatitis C is already killing 10,000 people annually, and the U.S. Centers for Disease Control (CDC) predicts that by 2010, it will claim more victims than AIDS. Between 1993 and 1998, AIDS deaths had dropped to just below 18,000 a year from a high of more than 45,000. Rising indifference to morality in society has caused the CDC to warn of another upswing in HIV infections. During the same period, hepatitis C infections skyrocketed by a dizzying 260 percent-a rate of increase that by 2010 will cause it to leapfrog past AIDS as a killer in the United States. Infections are caused through dirty needles, blood transfusions or tattoos. Four million people in the United States and 200 million people worldwide are infected with hepatitis C; 200,000 people get treatment in the United States, and that could double in four years. David Bernstein, chief of hepatology at North Shore University Hospital in Mannhasset, New York, on Long Island, has hosted a rising flow of patients in recent years, among them Wall Street professionals who have just failed a physical and learned some staggering news: They are infected with hepatitis C. This master of stealth can remain dormant in the liver for up to 20 years before symptoms such as jaundice, fatigue and abdominal pain appear. By the time hepatitis C has been diagnosed, it is already in its chronic stage, when serious liver scarring and the threat of cancer and death exist. Like other plagues, hepatitis C has stymied scientists. No vaccine is available, and scientists have been unable to grow it in the lab. In the race pitting science against microbes, however, the spread of hepatitis C looks likely to outrun a cure. "The disease isn't becoming an epidemic," says Dr. Bernstein. "It is an epidemic." Sources: Newsmax.com, Forbes. Crime Stalks Britain Britain was once known as the most civilized country in the world. But The Economist recently reported that "Britain may have slipped down many world tables over the past few decades, but (except for Australia) it beats all other rich countries in one activity: crime." The article continued: "According to a new victimisation (British spelling) survey of industrialized nations, people in England and Wales are at greater risk than anywhere else of having their car stolen. And apart from Australia, people who live in England and Wales are at greater risk of being assaulted, robbed, sexually attacked and having their homes burgled than are people in any (other) rich country." Crime costs the citizens of Britain an estimated £60 billion ($86 billion) annually. Of even more concern is that fewer than one in four crimes is solved. Drug gangs-not wanting to pay high prices to professionals-are recruiting teenagers as hitmen. Why are these things happening? The true historical explanation is found in our full-color booklet The United States and Britain in Bible Prophecy. Please request your free copy. Sources: The Sunday Times, The Daily Mail, Evening Standard, The Economist (all London). More Grandparents Bringing Up Babies "More American children are calling Grandma's house home. In Florida alone, the 2000 Census says, more than 250,000 children live in homes headed by grandparents, up 33 percent from 1990.... The share of children in grandparent-headed homes increased from 6.8 to 7.1 percent" according to the census as reported by the Associated Press. Other states released similar data. More than half the children living with grandparents also have their mother living with them. This is just one of the demographic trends that shows the decline of the traditional American family. The Bible reveals that God established marriage at the beginning of human existence when He created Eve out of Adam. "Therefore a man shall leave his father and mother and be joined to his wife, and they shall become one flesh" (Genesis 2:24). Mankind was God's creation. "So God created man in His own image; in the image of God He created him; male and female He created them. Then God blessed them, and God said to them, 'Be fruitful and multiply...'" (Genesis 1:27-28). It was God's intent from the beginning that children should grow up with two parents, male and female, committed to each other in marriage. "So then, they are no longer two but one flesh. Therefore what God has joined together, let not man separate," said Jesus Christ (Matthew 19:6). Although the Scriptures provide for divorce in certain limited circumstances, the ideal family situation, which God intended for the benefit of all, is the traditional family He created and established thousands of years ago through our first parents, Adam and Eve. Source: Associated Press. Locusts of Almost Biblical Proportions According to a British newspaper, there has never been a better time to be a locust. Economic, environmental and weather conditions have resulted in a massive proliferation of the winged insects, often with devastating consequences. China, Russia and the state of Utah in America have suffered severe crop losses from these migratory insects. Locusts were the eighth of the 10 biblical plagues on ancient Egypt. Note that long before Israel's exodus from Egypt, locusts arrived by an east wind in a swarm so dense that "the land was darkened; and they ate every herb of the land and all the fruit of the trees.... So there remained nothing green on the trees or in the plants of the field throughout all the land of Egypt" (Exodus 10:15). Locusts can be every bit as devastating today. In northeast China more than 19 million acres (8 million hectares) of land has been under attack. The Central Eurasian area of Russia is threatened. And, according to The Daily Mail, "Moscow's Emergency Situations Ministry says the locusts...are eating everything in their path." While proportionally this present plague cannot be compared to the devastation wreaked on ancient Egypt, today's dire happenings should represent a wake-up call to our modern nations that shows how quickly devastation can strike. We need to get our spiritual houses in order (Psalm 50:23). Sources: The Times, The Daily Mail (all London). Internet Pornography Affects Christians By now we are used to hearing statistics such as a fifth of our youth are solicited while surfing the Internet and that a virtual flood of pornography is increasingly available to on-line users. But one fact many may not be aware of is the debilitating effect of pornography on Christians. The Southern California Christian Times reported that "those who have dealt with the issue of sexual addictions say the Christian community is far from exempt when it comes to the lure of pornography on the Internet. Unlike other addictive behaviors, sex carries an enormous stigma that is not easily bridged in Christian circles." But how extensive is this particular problem? This article continued: "Although securing data is difficult because of the nature of the lifestyle, other studies suggest that 10 percent of the Christian community is sexually addicted." And yet Christians hesitate to ask for needed help partially because, as Steve Watters, Internet expert for Focus on the Family, stated: "There is an increased pressure in the church for people to look their best and not demonstrate anything that represents weakness, especially if it's sexual addiction." But this is no time to put our heads in the sand. The salvation of sufferers may be at stake. Addicts should be able to consult confidentially with their pastors and other competent professional counselors without fear. Sources: Southern California Christian Times, The Washington Times. Contributors: Cecil Maranville, Melvin Rhodes, John Ross Schroeder and Jim Tuck -wnp- Issue Index Send any comments / changes regarding this page to webmaster@churchofgodtwincities.org