I. SFGATE - States fight Obamacare
Opposition to the new health reform law is continuing to grow in the states - just as Congress prepares for its final pre-election legislative session. Colorado, for instance, just placed an initiative on the ballot that would, if passed, block many aspects of Obamacare - including the requirement that individuals purchase health insurance. A similar measure was overwhelmingly approved by voters in Missouri last month. And several states recently announced that they don't believe they have the authority to enforce the new law. With actions like these, the message to Washington is clear: If Congress doesn't repeal Obamacare, the states just might do it themselves. The health reform law remains unpopular. The August Kaiser Health Tracking poll found that 45 percent of Americans disapprove of the new law. Among likely voters, the numbers are even worse. The most recent Rasmussen Reports survey found that 56 percent favor repealing health care reform. State officials across the country have heard their constituents - and acted accordingly. This fall, voters in Arizona and Oklahoma will consider ballot initiatives similar to the ones in Colorado and Missouri. Lawmakers in Florida tried to put a measure invalidating the individual mandate on the ballot, but their effort was struck down by the state Supreme Court. These measures have an excellent chance of passing. In Colorado, for instance, 61 percent of likely voters want to repeal health reform; 48 percent strongly so. Individual governors have challenged Obamacare as well. The states are pushing back against the feds for two primary reasons. First, Obamacare will saddle public and private payers alike with huge new costs at a time when most are still struggling to recover from the recession - which may not even be over yet. Second, the health reform law will dramatically curtail individual freedom and force people to comply with Washington's dictates on what constitutes "acceptable" health insurance. Obamacare is like an iceberg. The federal government's tab is merely the observable tip. The bulk of the costs - to individuals, businesses and the states - are hidden. Less quantifiable - but no less important - is the hit to Americans' individual liberty. Most Americans will lose their current health plans once they come up for renewal, despite President Obama's promises to the contrary. And in 2011, they'll face a barrage of new taxes and fees needed to fund all the programs created by the law. By fighting back against Obamacare, state lawmakers are simply executing the will of their constituents. This November, voters may force Congress to jump on the bandwagon too.
On the occasion of the 9th Anniversary of the events of September 11, 2001, Archbishop Demetrios of America will officiate at the annual Memorial Service to honor the memory of all victims and heroes who perished on that day. A prayer will also be offered focused on St. Nicholas Greek Orthodox Church, the only house of worship destroyed on September 11, which was crushed by the debris of the South Tower when it collapsed. The Memorial Service, organized by the community of St. Nicholas Church, will be held on Saturday, September 11, 2010 beginning at 4:00 p.m. Those interested in attending must meet at Gate 3B, at the corner of Greenwich and Liberty Streets across from the Fire House, between 3:30 and 3:45 p.m. Space is limited.On the occasion of the 9th Anniversary of the events of September 11, 2001, Archbishop Demetrios of America will officiate at the annual Memorial Service to honor the memory of all victims and heroes who perished on that day. A prayer will also be offered focused on St. Nicholas Greek Orthodox Church, the only house of worship destroyed on September 11, which was crushed by the debris of the South Tower when it collapsed. The Memorial Service, organized by the community of St. Nicholas Church, will be held on Saturday, September 11, 2010 beginning at 4:00 p.m. Those interested in attending must meet at Gate 3B, at the corner of Greenwich and Liberty Streets across from the Fire House, between 3:30 and 3:45 p.m. Space is limited.
III. GREEKREPORTER - New Greek Foreign Minister invited to FYROMacedonia
The foreign minister of the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia (FYROM) conveyed today his congratulations to the newly appointed Greek Foreign Minister Dimitris Droutsas — who previously held the alternate FM’s portfolio — while also extending an invitation to the latter to visit Skopje. “I would like, on this opportunity, to underline my conviction that during the upcoming period we will make joint efforts to upgrade relations between our two countries in the spirit of European values, mutual cooperation and understanding,” fYRoM Foreign Minister Antonio Milososki said. Mr. Milosoki invited the Greek Minister on a date to be decided via diplomatic channels and underlined, that this visit is going to be a bilateral effort to establish mutual trust and good relationship status between the two neighbors. According to information, Mr. Droutsas accepted the invitation and is going to continue the talks concerning the name issue and the Skopje’s proposal to set up embassies in the two countries.
IV. FINANCIALMIRROR - Cypriot president, leader commence intensive negotiations
The leaders of the two communities in Cyprus, President Demetris Christofias and Turkish Cypriot leader Dervis Eroglu, begin today in the morning intensive meetings, during which they will discuss the property issue in the framework of the UN-led direct talks for a Cyprus settlement. According to Alexander Downer, UN SG’s Special Advisor in Cyprus, the all-day meetings will be held on the 8 and 10 September. President Christofias said on Friday after his last meeting with Eroglu that he hopes for ''serious discussions'' on the property chapter during the two-day talks. The President had also said that the two sides outlined their positions orally and no documents were submitted. He further said that the positions of the two sides on property will be submitted ''in due time.'' Downer had said the UN look forward to the start of the intensive talks. Peace talks began in September 2008 between President Christofias and former Turkish Cypriot leader Mehmet Ali Talat. Talks continue now with Eroglu, who succeeded Talat in April this year. Cyprus has been divided since 1974, when Turkish troops invaded and occupied its northern third.
V. WINNIPEGFREEPRESS - Serbia replaces disputed Kosovo resolution for UN General Assembly in agreement with EU
Serbia's government on Wednesday gave up its bid to challenge Kosovo's independence at the upcoming U.N. General Assembly meeting, after reaching a compromise solution with the EU over the resolution it tabled there. President Boris Tadic said, however, the compromise "in no way includes recognition of Kosovo's independence." The U.S. and major EU powers are among over 70 countries that have recognized Kosovo's independence. Serbia, supported by Russia and China, maintains it will never accept the split. Serbia has faced pressure from the EU to withdraw the previous text, which called Kosovo's unilateral secession "unacceptable," and demanded more status talks, even after the U.N.'s highest court ruled that Kosovo's 2008 move was legal. EU officials have urged Serbia to drop its bid to retain claim on Kosovo and focus instead on its prospects of joining the EU. The new text, carried by the official Tanjug news agency, "hails readiness by the European Union to facilitate the process of dialogue between the sides." "The joint resolution of Serbia and the European Union is the result of joint work ... a compromise," Tadic said in a statement. "The agreed text of the resolution was reached with a sincere desire to solve all open issues in a partnership with the EU, and all other important international factors." The government's move was immediately hailed by Serbia's liberals, who said it would bring the troubled country closer to the European Union. But, opposition Democratic Party of Serbia, who are advocating dropping Serbia's EU bid over Kosovo, called the changes "an act of capitulation at an ultimatum by the Western powers in order to snatch away Kosovo."
VI. RIANOVOSTI - Russia to reorganize military command structure
The central commands of Russia's Air Force, Navy and Ground Forces will be retained but some of their functions will be transferred to integrated strategic commands, Defense Minister Anatoly Serdyukov said on Wednesday. This will help streamline the military command and control system, he said. "The command and control system should have three tiers at the most. Our old system had up to 16 levels - that was something unimaginable. Now their functions will be clearly defined and everyone will be responsible for his unit," the minister said. The streamlining of central command personnel will continue, he added. "Some sub-units will be downsized and some, quite to the contrary, enlarged," he said. Under a military district reform plan, the number of military districts is to be reduced to four from six by December 1 and reorganized as tactical-strategic commands.
VII. PRAVMIR - Beating the Digital Highways and Hedges
Orthodoxy possesses the fullness of the Truth. It provides the sure way to peace, hope, and salvation. It restores our relationship with God and one another. The solution to every real problem is found within our Sacraments. So why aren’t our churches full? Why are entire generations of baptized Ukrainian Orthodox “missing in action”? And why aren’t the spiritually impoverished and under-churched people in our neighborhoods filling our pews to receive the Body of Christ and drink from the Fountain of Immortality? The recent Pew Study on Religion found that Orthodox parishes lose one out of every four of those Baptized into their ranks. The overall number of Orthodox remains constant, but only because there are enough converts (through marriage or otherwise) to make up for the loss. While I am happy that we are attracting so many converts, these data suggest three major problems. First, gains and losses are not evenly distributed and there are many parishes that lose far more people than they gain. Second, the survey sample is truncated so that it does not even address the funeral to baptism imbalance. Third, even if a parish manages to “break even” in terms of parishioners, it has still lost one out of every four of its own children to heresy. The Truth is too important for us to do so poorly. While I think that the most important way to address parish decline is to improve our commitment to the Truth, Beauty, and Authority of Orthodoxy,* this must be augmented by evangelism: the wedding banquets tables are set, but the hall is empty: it is time for us to make sure everyone gets an invitation (paraphrase of St. Matthew 22: 8-10). In the Parable of the Wedding Feast (St. Matthew 22: 1-14), the king sent his servants into the highways and hedges to find guests; we can augment this by going out onto the “information superhighway” of the internet and associated technologies. The most obvious (and simplest) way to let people know that that your parish possesses and desires to share the Fullness of the Truth with them is with a welcoming and informative website. At a minimum, it should have a brief statement of faith and legitimacy, contact information, pictures, service times, and links; but what will set it apart and gain credibility for your parish (especially among our lost generations of 20 – 40 year olds) is personalized content. This can mean anything from more pictures to posting bulletins, homilies and articles. Outside information (delivered via links, applets, or even “cut and paste”) is fine, but does not have the same effect as locally-generated content (think “facebook” rather than “yahoo”). One warning: expand your website gradually – nothing looks worse that a website whose content is out of date. It takes our webmaster about 5-10 hours a week to solicit, generate, and publish material to our website (www.stmichaeluoc.org). The next step: blogging and podcasting. Two more ways to share content and reach out to people in your local community (and the world) is through blogging (i.e. keeping an on-line journal) and podcasting (kind of like producing a regular short radio program). Blogging is the easiest: you can set up your own blog at www.blogspot.com in a manner of minutes. Your priest is used to writing, so encourage him (and give him time!) to regularly post his thoughts and reflections. Be sure to provide a link to the blog from your website (see our parish website, www.orthoanalytika.org and orthoanalytika.blogspot.com for three examples of how this can be done). Podcasting takes more time, but if you digitally record your priest’s sermons, it is simply a matter of prettying it up making it available on the internet. It took us a couple of weeks to crack the code, but our podcasts are now available both on our website and via iTunes (search for “Orthoanalytika”). While anyone with internet access can subscribe to your blog and podcast, subscriptions usually spread by word of mouth through your community (which mirrors the primary mechanism of church growth). We personalize our podcast by adding recordings of parish musicians. One more possibility: on-line communities. While YMMV, I have found it useful to keep active profiles on both Facebook and OrthodoxCircle. I daresay that most of our Jr UOL members (and those who should be… which is everyone in the world of the right age!) has a Facebook account, and using your own account makes it easy to stay in touch with them (the presence of a few priests also helps lend an air of civility/sanctity to a medium that sometimes threatens to break out into unaccountable hedonism). Each of our parishes possesses the complete fullness of the Truth that people long for. Share it with them and invite them to the feast.