T.L. Winslow's 2013 C.E. Historyscope

2013 Chinese Year: Snake (Feb. 10). Doomsday Clock: 5 min. to midnight. Time Mag. Person of the Year: Pope Francis (1936-). This is the 666th anniv. of the arrival of the bubonic plague in Europe (1347). Since the Age of Aquarius began on Dec. 12, this is the Year of Prosperity? In 2012-13 the coldest winter in 50 years in Russia, with abnormally cold weather in Europe, India, China, and the U.S.; China has its coldest winter in 30 years; Moscow has its deepest snowfall in 134 years; in Jan. 2013 New Delhi records its lowest temperature in 44 years; in Mar. 2013 Britain experiences its 2nd coldest Mar. since 1910; in Apr. 2013 3,318 places in the U.S. record their lowest temps ever. Italy's pop. begins to decline from low birth rates; the pop. of Japan falls by a record 244K. The combined GDP of emerging countries exceeds that of advanced economies for the first time ($44.4T vs. $42.8T). Mexico becomes the first country to use iris scans on ID cards. The worldwide Internet-phone network creates 2.5 quintillion bytes of new data per day. The U.S. black budget (spy agencies): $52.6B. The U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) releases 36,007 criminal aliens from detention incl. 193 convicted of murder and 303 convicted of kidnapping. Russian pres. Vladimir Putin passes U.S. pres. Obama to become #1 on the Forbes list of the world's most powerful people. Civilian death toll in Iraq: 7,818; incl. security forces: 8,868. 17,958 are killed in terrorist attacks this year (61% increase over 2012); 80% happen in five Muslim countries, incl. Iraq, Afghanistan, Syria, Pakistan, and Nigeria. Thanks to Pres. Obama scaring people into thinking he's going to confiscate their guns, FBI background checks for guns soar to 21M, 8% more than 2012. 10% of babies born in U.K. are Muslim; in the 85+ age group, it's 0.5%. Saudi Arabia begins a campaign to detain and deport hundreds of thousands of undocumented migrant workers (ends ?). In early Jan.-Mar. after a pool of hot air settles over the center of the continent in Sept. combined with lack of cloud cover, the 90-day Australian Angry (Extreme) Summer sees 123 weather records broken incl. hottest Jan., hottest summer, hottest week (avg. of 39C or 102F), and hottest day in Australia (Jan. 7, 40.30C or 104.54F); no surprise, the U. of Melbourne claims a link to anthropogenic global warming. On Jan. 1 the 2013 Rose Bowl sees Stanford defeat Wisc. 20-14. On Jan. 2 Tim Scott (1965-) becomes a Repub. S.C. Sen., becoming the first African-Am. sen. from S.C., going on to win reelection in 2014, becoming the first black Repub. elected to the U.S. Senate since Edward Brooke in 1966, and the first elected from a Southern U.S. state since 1881. And you thought Obama has funny ears? On Jan. 3 Calgary, Alberta, Canada-born Rafael Edward "Ted" Cruz (1970-) (former domestic policy advisor to George W. Bush) becomes Repub. sen. from Tex. (until ?). On Jan. 3 Ladda Tammy Duckworth (1968-) becomes Dem. U.S. Rep. for Ill. (until ?), the first Thailand-born and first disabled woman U.S. rep. On Jan. 3 Okla.-born Elizabeth Ann Warren (nee Herring) (1949-) becomes Dem. U.S. Sen. from Mass. (until ?), the first woman. On Jan. 3 St. Louis, Mo.-born Maxine Waters (nee Maxine Moore Carr) (1938-) becomes Dem. U.S. Rep. from Calif. (until ?), representing the South Los Angeles area, becoming a leading critic of Repub. U.S. presidents George H.W. Bush, George W. Bush, and Donald J. Trump. On Jan. 3 the Council on Am.-Islamic Relations (CAIR) asks journalists to stop using the right-on term "Islamist" - they can ask? On Jan. 4 French minister Bernard Kouchner gives an interview on Al-Arabiya TV, saying that if Iran gets nukes it won't hesitate to use them on Israel. On Jan. 5 200 Palestinians attack Jewish residents in Esh Kodesh, Samaria, destroying their vineyards. On Jan. 5 the weekly 3-hour CMT Hot 20 Countdown debuts on CMT (until ?). On Jan. 7 Pres. Obama nominates John O. Brennan as CIA dir. #5, causing the ACLU to call for the Senate to not confirm him until they have verified that "all of his conduct was within the law" when he worked under Pres. George W. Bush in 2003-5 and supported the transfer of terror suspects to countries that might torture them. On Jan. 7 the U.S. Supreme (Roberts) Court dismisses an appeal from scientists trying to block federal funding of stem cell research on human embryos. On Jan. 7 police in Thailand arrest Algerian cyber criminal suspect Hamza Bendelladj en route from Malaysia to Egypt, accusing him of hacking 217+ banks and financial cos. worldwide, causing $10M losses. On Jan. 8-9 wild cold wet weather hits the Middle East, with snow in Jordan. On Jan. 9 a pro-govt. militia of Zakhakhel tribesmen in the lawless tribal belt of Peshawar, Pakistan murder two Sikhs, bringing protests. On Jan. 9 Norway rejects a demand to allow female Muslim police officers to wear a hijab on duty. On Jan. 9 Mexican pres. Enrique Pena Nieto signs a Victim Compensation Law for victims of crime and human rights violations. On Jan. 9 the Saudi govt. beheads Sri Lankan maid Rizana Nafeek for allegedly strangling her employer's 4-mo.-o. son after a trial sans lawyer, bringing worldwide protests after she claims he choked on his milk. On Jan. 9 three Kurdish activists are murdered in Paris, France; the Turkish govt. is suspected. On Jan. 10 (11:00 a.m.) al-Qaida rebels led by Algerian-born cigarette smuggler Mokhtar Belmokhtar "the One-Eyed" "Mr. Marlboro" (1972-), Dec. founder of the Signers in Blood take control of Kenna, Mali 55km from Mopti. On Jan. 10 twin suicide attacks in Quetta, Pakistan kill 115 Shiites at a snooker hall. On Jan. 10 two Indian soldiers are killed on the border between Jammu and Kashmir, causing Pres. Obama to ask India and Pakistan to cool off and talk. On Jan. 10 three Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) activists are assassinated in Paris, incl. a party co-founder. On Jan. 10 a judge sets $90K bail for Caleb Russell (1989-) of Chicago for threatening "jihad against the white devil" aboard a CTA bus. On Jan. 10-11 the Support for the Ahwaz People Conference in Cairo, Egypt is the first-ever conference expressing solidarity for Iran's Arab-Sunni minority. On Jan. 11 (6:30 a.m.) disgruntled coal miner Gao Wanfeng (1958-) bombs a commuter bus in Heilongjiang Province, killing 11 and wounding 30+, after which there is an attempted govt. coverup. On Jan. 11 Pres. Obama meets with Afghan pres. Hamid Karzai in the White House to discuss ending the Afghan War. On Jan. 11 Saudi Arabia king Abdullah allows women to sit on the nat. advisory council for the first time ever. On Jan. 11 after establishing diplomatic relations in 2011, the Vatican opens its first embassy in Malaysia. On Jan. 14 Pres. Obama meets with Afghan Pres. Hamid Karzai in the White House, and they agree to let the Taliban open an office in Qatar to facilitate possible reconciliation. On Jan. 16 the Taliban attacks the Afghan inel service in Kabul, Afghanistan, killing one guard and wounding dozens. On Jan. 16 an al-Qaida spinoff from N Mali calling themselves the Movement for Oneness and Jihad in West Africa (MOJWA), led by Omar Oud Hamaha (1965-) seize 41 Western soldiers at a BP oil installation in In Amenas, Algeria near the Libyan border, vowing to kill them one by one, incl. Am., British, French, and Japanese hostages, killing 39 hostages before being stormed at dawn by Algerian troops on Jan. 19, killing 29 terrorists, capturing three, and freeing 685 Algerian workers and 107 foreigners; some of the attackers also took part in the 9/11/12 attack on Benghazi. On Jan. 16 Pres. Obama gives a speech outlining his 23 new executive orders on gun control and pledging an all-out war on guns; one order asks doctors to query patients about guns they have at home. On Jan. 16 55 are killed and 288 wounded in a suicide attack and bombings in Baghdad and N Iraq. On Jan. 16 U.S. Staff Sgt. Edward Deptola pleads guilty to urinating on the corpse of a Taliban fighter in Afghanistan, and is demoted one rank under a plea agreement. On Jan. 17 U.S. ambassador Sherry Rehman is accused of blasphemy in a petition to the Pakistan Supreme Court, with a death sentence possible. On Jan. 18 the U.S. Transport and Security Admin. (TSA) announces that will remove its 174 naked airport scanners after mucho controversy. On Jan. 18 a whopping 10 in. of snow falls in non-globally-warmed Moscow, becoming known as teh Russian Snowpocalypse. On Jan. 18 Turkish police arrest 18 Muslims for plotting to attack a Christian church in Izmit, Turkey. On Jan. 19 Nigerian soldiers en route to Kachia, Nigeria are ambushed by Islamist Boko Haram terrorists, who kill two and injure five. On Jan. 20-21 after announcing that he's converting his campaign org. into a permanent lobby org., the 65th U.S. Pres. Inauguration is held in Washington, D.C.; Pres. Obama's 2nd Inaugural Address lays out an unabashedly liberal agenda, making climate change his #1 priority; it incl. the soundbytes: "My fellow Americans, we are made for this moment, and we will seize it, so long as we seize it together. For we, the People understand that our country cannot succeed when a shrinking few do very well and a growing many barely make it"; "Some may still deny the overwhelming judgment of science, but none can avoid the devastating impact of raging fires, and crippling drought, and more powerful storms"; "We will respond to the threat of climate change, knowing that failure to do so would betray our children and future generations"; it features the first-ever layperson invited to give the invocation, Myrlie Evers-Williams (1933-); Obama makes the first-ever reference to gay rights; during his first term Obama increased the nat. debt by $50,521 per household, more than the first 42 presidents in 53 terms combined; the number of Americans "not in the labor force" increased by 8,332,000; the number of Americans collecting disability increased by 1,385,418 (1 per 13 full-time workers, vs. 1 in 51 in Dec. 1968); Obama's first term approval rating averaged 49.1%, among the least for post-WWII presidents. On Jan. 21 after a family of five is slain by Syrian forces, French foreign minister Laurent Fabius says that Bashar al-Assad "must go as quickly as possible", announcing that Syrian opposition backers will meet in Paris on Jan. 28. On Jan. 21 French minister Arnaud Montebourg et al. announce a visit to Saudi Arabia to discuss selling them nuclear reactors - groan? On Jan. 21 Egypt announces the discovery of large deposits of uranium, along with its intention to mine it for use in nuclear reactors. On Jan. 21 after two suicide bombers detonate to open the gate, three Taliban militants siege a traffic police HQ in Kabul, Afghanistan for nine hours, wounding four policemen and 10 civilians. On Jan. 21 the first of six U.S. Patriot missile batteries arrive in Turkey from Germany to protect it from potential Syrian attacks. On Jan. 21 McDonald's Restaurants settles a $700K suit over allegations of falsely claiming to prepare foods according to Muslim dietary law in Detroit, Mich. On Jan. 22 despite prosecutors asking for a 15-year sentence, a court in Bali sentences British woman Lindsay June Sandiford (1956-) to death for smuggling cocaine in her suitcase. On Jan. 22 the reality competition TV show The Taste debuts on ABC-TV for ? episodes (until ?), featuring amateur and prof. chefs; judges incl. Anthony Michael Bourdain (1956-), Nigella Lucy Lawson (1960-), Ludovic "Ludo" Lefebvre (1971-), and Marcus "Joar" Samuelsson (Kassahun Tsegie) (1970-). On Jan. 23 U.S. defense secy. Leon Panetta lifts the ban on women serving in combat, overturning a 1994 prohibition; cmdrs. have until 2016 to "seek special exceptions". On Jan. 23 exiting U.S. secy. of state (Feb. 1) Hillary Clinton is questioned by the U.S. Senate about the 9/11/2012 Benghazi attack, growing angry and combative, taking responsibility for security lapses related while defending her lack of personal actions in regard to the matter, asking "What difference does it make?" why four Americans were killed, claiming "I did not say it was the video" that caused the attack, and finally admitting "We now face a spreading jihadist threat, we have to recognize this is a global movement", with Sen. Rand Paul saying "If I'd been president at the time and I'd found that you did not read the cables from Benghazi... I would have relieved you of your post"; the questions were pre-scripted? On Jan. 23 elections in Jordan are a V for King Abdullah II and his plan for gradual transition to parliamentary democracy, and a D for the Muslim Brotherhood. On Jan. 23 a suicide bomber at a funeral in a Shiite mosque in Samarra, Iraq kills 42 and injures 75. On Jan. 23 the U.S. Navy helps the coast guard in Yemen seize the mysterious ship Jihan1 carrying 40+ tons of munitions incl. Iranian-made missiles to Al Houthi Shiite rebels in Saada, N of Yemen; eight sailors are captured. On Jan. 23 after 16-y.o. rape victim Amina Filali (b. 1996) is forced to marry her rapist and commits suicide, Morocco outlaws rape marriage of children. On Jan. 25 the 113th U.S. Congress convenes; it incl. six openly gay or bi members in the House. On Jan. 25 Kosovo appoints its first ambassador to Serbia since the 1998-9 war. On Jan. 25 a suicide attack on a NATO convoy in Kapisa Province, Afghanistan kills five civilians. On Jan. 25 Egyptian protesters burn the HQ of the Muslim Brotherhood in Ismailia, Egypt, signaling the founding of the Black Bloc, causing Pres. Morsi to announce the formation of a White Bloc to counter it; on Jan. 26 riots in Port Said cause the police to kill 30 after 21 local soccer fans are given death sentences for a previous riot, while seven police officers are acquitted; on Jan. 27 Morsi declares a state of emergency in three major cities. On Jan. 26 Kathleen O'Day Wynne (1953-) becomes leader of the Ontario Liberal Party, followed on Feb. 11 by PM #25 of Ontario (until ?), becoming the first openly gay head of govt. in Canada. On Jan. 27 a prison riot at the Uribana Jail near Barquisimeto, Venezuela kills 61. On Jan. 27 a fire at the Kiss Nightclub in Santa Maria, Brazil kills 233. On Jan. 27 a court in Iran sentences Iranian-born Am. Muslim convert pastor Saeed Abedini to eight years in prison for leading underground house churches; meanwhile Iran arrests more than a dozen journalists, claiming they're linked to the BBC and Western govts. On Jan. 27 a 9-y.-o. girl Dafne gives birth to a 5.95 lb. baby daughter in Zappan, Mexico; the 17-y.-o. father flees after being accused of rape; meanwhile the same day 12-y.-o. ? gives birth to 3 lb. 4 oz. twins in Chilecito, Argentina. On Jan. 28 an explosion in the Fordow Nuclear Facility in Iran traps 240 personnel deep underground. On Jan. 28 Iran launches the Pishgam (Pioneer) rocket 72 mi. into space carrying a monkey, which safely returns to Earth. On Jan. 28 the bipartisan Gang of Eight (U.S. Sens. Charles Schumer, John McCain, Dick Durbin, Lindsey Graham, Robert Mendez, Marco Rubio, Michael Bennett, and Jeff Flake) announce yet another plan for comprehensive immigration legislation, emphasizing border security before granting amnesty. On Jan. 29 Dem. Mass. Sen. John Kerry is confirmed as U.S. secy. of state by the U.S. Senate by a 94-3 vote. On Jan. 29 a private SCAT passenger jet (Canadian-built Bombardier Challenger CRJ2000) crashes in heavy fog outside of Almaty, Kazakhstan, killing 21. On Jan. 29 at least 65 are found shot dead with hands bound in Aleppo, Syria. On Jan. 29 a suicide bomber in Mogadishu, Somalia kills two outside the residence called Villa Somalia. On Jan. 29 an Egyptian court upholds the death penalty for seven Coptic Christians for the film The Innocence of Muslims after it causes widespread protests and violence across the Muslim World last Sept.; on Feb. 9 an Egyptian court blocks YouTube for 30 days for carrying it. On Jan. 29 rain-driven floods in Mozambique kill 40+ and displace 150K. On Jan. 29 Bremen becomes the 3rd German state to officially recognize Islam. On Jan. 29 Nigerian Boko Haram cmdr. Sheik Abu Mohammed ibn Abdulazeez declares a unilateral ceasefire in Maidiguri. On Jan. 29 Pres. Obama gives a talk on his immigration reform proposals at Del Sol H.S. in Las Vegas, Nev. On Jan. 29 the First CELAC (Community of Latin Am. and Caribbean States) Summit in Santiago, Chile is attended by reps of 33 countries, pledging integration of Latin Am. and Caribbean states. On Jan. 29 the bizarre Defenders of Christ sex slavery ring is along the U.S.-Mexico border is busted in Laredo, Texas, and Nuevo Laredo, Mexico. On Jan. 29 Boomtown Rats star Bob Geldof utters the soundbyte: "The rock and roll age is essentially over. Rock and roll needs a context in which to exist. The context is there but I'm not sure rock and roll is any longer the right vehicle for it. That's a personal point of view but I think that's true. You see the declining sales, you see less fascination, it's less central a thing to a young person's life... You can have the teeny kids, the One Direction kids which is fantastic and important. You can have The X Factor generation but that is great television, it's great entertainment, it's great TV; it's not much good for music. Certainly, great voices come out but it isn't much good for articulating the moment. And if you don't articulate the moment, how can it therefore be popular music? How can it be pop music?" On Jan. 30 South Korea launches its first satellite from its own soil. On Jan. 30 (04:30 GMT) Israeli forces attack a convoy on the Damascus-Beirut Highway on the Syrian-Lebanese border, causing Syria on Jan. 31 to threaten retaliation; Israel claims that they hit a bldg. containing "game-changing" SA-17 ground-to-air anti-tank missiles headed for Hezbollah. On Jan. 30 Mexican police find 17 bodies in a well in Nuevo Leon, incl. 14 belonging to the Kombo Kolombia band, who were kidnapped in Hidalgo on Jan. 25. On Jan. 30 Syria opposition head Muaz Al-Khatib offers talks with Bashar al-Assad's govt. outside Syria if it releases tens of thousands of detainees. On Jan. 30 a U.N. panel issues a Report on Israeli Settlements, calling them "creeping annexation" that violates the human rights of Palestinians. On Jan. 30 French labor minister Francois Hollande describes France as "totally bankrupt", leaving citizens in a "state of shock". On Jan. 30 the U.S. announces that the economy shrank in Oct.-Dec. at an annual rate of 0.1%, becoming the first quarterly drop since 2009. On Jan. 30 "Gomer Pyle" actor-singer Jim Nabors announces that he's gay, and married his partner of 38 years Stan Cadwallader on Jan. 15. On Jan. 30 Joe Weisberg's period drama series The Americans debuts on FX Network, starring Keri Lynn Russell (1976-) and Matthew Rhys Evans (1974-) as Soviet KGB officers Nadezhda and Mischa, who are posing as married Amerikanskies Elizabeth and Philip Jennings and living in the suburbs of Washington, D.C in the early 1980s, whose two children don't suspect, while their neighbor Stan Beeman, played by Noah Nicholas Emmerich (1965-) is an FBI agent who is onto them. On Jan. 31 an explosion in the basement of the HQ of Pemex in Mexico City kills 14 and injures 80. On Jan. 31 al-Qaida issues a chilling new threat on its Web site, promising "earth-shattering" attacks on the U.S. and Western targets; meanwhile on Jan. 23 a jihadist issues a call to Muslims in France to become a "Trojan Horse" and attack French civilians. On Jan. 31 Neb.-born U.S. defense secy. nominee Charles Timothy "Chuck" Hagel (1946-) holds a Senate confirmation hearing, stating that the U.S. is pursing a policy of "containment" toward Iran, which vice-pres. Biden corrects on Feb. 2 at the Munich Security Conference, saying that it is only "to prevent Iran from acquiring a nuclear weapon", and offering bilateral talks; on Feb. 27 despite Repub. opposition over his friendliness to Iran and Islam, and ambivalent stand toward Israel, after a 58-41 vote (greatest number of no votes against a secy. of defense, #2=George C. Marshall in 1950 with 11) Hagel becomes U.S. secy. of defense #24 (until Feb. 17, 2015); he slides through primarily because the Am. Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC) refuses to take a stand? On Jan. 31 (1:50 p.m.) a student opens fire at Price Middle School in Atlanta, Ga., wounding a 14-y.-o. in the neck before an armed officer working at the school disarms him. On Jan. 31 Volgograd votes unanimously to restore the Soviet-era name Stalingrad for six days each year. On Jan. 31 Burger King flops and admits that their stores in the U.K. have been selling hamburgers tainted with horsemeat. On Jan. 31 Iran announces their use of 3K IR-2M centrifuges, which can enrich uranium 4x faster than their previous ones, allowing them to turn 20% enriched uranium into weapons grade uranium in only a week. In Jan. Greek Orthodox priest Father Jabra'il (Gabriel) Nadaf; on June 25 Israeli deputy defense minister Danny Danon announces that the govt. will help Arab Christians who wish to serve in the IDF, and "have their backs". In Jan. a teachers' strike in Dadaab, Kenya over unpaid salaries affects 40K primary school children. In Jan. Am. cycling tourists Jamie Neal (1985-) and Garrett Hand (1987-) go missing in Peru until ?. In Jan. Muslim militants from Sudan begin poaching elephants in Cameroon to fund their jihad. In Jan. Linc Energy Ltd. of Australia releases two reports announcing that the 30K sq. mi. Arckaringa Basin near Coober Pedy, Australia may have as much as 233B barrels of oil, rivaling Saudi Arabia - the real Road Warrior? In Jan. the U.S. economy adds 157K jobs while unemployment rises to 7.9%. On Feb. 1 convicted released suicide bomber Ecevit Sanli (b. 1972) explodes outside the U.S. embassy in Ankara, Turkey, killing himself and a Turkish guard; the Turkish govt. blames it on leftist militant group Rev. People's Liberation Party-Front (DHKP-C). On Feb. 1 Australian Maj. Gen. Richard Burr is apointed deputy commanding gen. of operations at the U.S. Pacific Command (USARPAC), becoming the first non-American in such a high-ranking position in this type of command. On Feb. 1 Kuwait acquires the Euro HQ of London's Bank of Am., signalling an intention of moving away from a petroleum-based economy. On Feb. 1 Beau Willimon's House of Cards debuts on Netflix for 73 episodes (until Nov. 2, 2018), based on the BBC TV mini-series and novel by Michael Dobbs, starring Kevin Spacey (Fowler) (1959-) as S.C. Dem. House majority whip Francis "Frank" Underwood, who is passed-over for secy. of state, causing him to launch a plan to gain power, reaching the White House at the end of season 2; on Dec. 4, 2017 after sexual misconduct allegations emerge, Spacey is removed, but the series goes on, not lasting a year. On Feb. 2 anti-Morsi protests in Cairo, Egpt kill one and injure dozens. On Feb. 2 Park Geun-hye (1952-) (pr. pahk kuhn-YEH) becomes pres. #11 of South Korea (until ?) (first woman). On Feb. 2 French pres. Francois Hollande visits Timbuktu, Mali six days after French forces liberate it from Islamists. On Feb. 2 Iran unveils its new 3rd gen. Qaher-313 (Conqueror-313) fighter jet. On Feb. 3 the Israelis use tear gas and stun grenades to evict a group of rock-throwing Palestinians from the Al Manatir camp in Burin in the disputed West Bank territories 40 mi. from Jerusalem. On Feb. 3 the secular Islamic Ennahda Party in Tunisia threatens to quit the govt. unless it drops to religiously conservative ministers; meanwhile 70 constituent assembly lawmakers protest a visit by Kuwaiti preacher Kamil Alh Awhadi, who poses with little girls dressed in Islamic veils, calling it "a clear intention to indoctrinate the population". On Feb. 3 Syrian opposition leader Ahmed Moaz al-Khatib meets with Iranian foreign minister Ali Akbar Salehi in Munich; Russian foreign minister Sergei Lavrov holds his first meeting with him also. On Feb. 3 a Pew Research Poll reveals that for the first time a majority (53%) of Americans believe that the federal govt. threatens their own personal rights and freedoms. On Feb. 3 ex-LAPD cop Christopher Jordan "Chris" Dorner (b. 1979) begins a shooting rampage against police officers, causing one of the largest manhunts in LAPD history; on Feb. 12 he is killed while holed-up in a cabin in Big Bear, Calif. after it is set on fire by incendiaries; burned alive? On Feb. 3 (8:00 a.m. local time) a truck ploughs into a bus carrying maintenance workers in Al Ain, UAE kills 24 and injures 24, becoming the country's deadliest road tragedy (until ?). On Feb. 3 Lobsang Namgyal (b. 1975) commits Tibet's 100th self-immolation since 2009 in W Tibet in a protest against Red Chinese occupation. On Feb. 3 Super Bowl LXVII (47) (AKA the Harbaugh Bowl, HarBowl, Super Baugh, Brother Bowl, Superbro) in the Mercedez-Benz Superdome in New Orleans, La. sees the Baltimore Ravens, led by QB (#5) Joseph Vincent "Joe" Flacco (1985-) and coached by John Harbaugh (1962-) defeat the San Francisco 49ers, led by QB (#7) Colin Rand Kaemernick (1987-) and coached by his younger brother James Joseph "Jim" Harbaugh (1963-) by 34-31; first SB in which both teams are undefeated in prior SB appearances; last game for Super Bowl XXXV MVP Ray Lewis; after a halftime show by big bouncing Beyonce and Destiny's Child, the power goes out in the stadium for 34 min., throwing the momentum of the game and causing the Ravens' 28-6 score to dwindle steadily until they make a final goal line stand and run out the clock; 108.4M U.S. viewers watch it; CBS-TV charges $4M for each 30-sec. commercial; Flacco is named MVP. On Feb. 4 Egyptian anti-Morsi activist Mohammed El-Gindy (b. 1984) dies in Cairo after being tortured by police, causing yet more protests. On Feb. 4 Iranian pres. Imadinnajacket announces that he wants to be Iran's first astronaut, saying "I'm ready to be the first Iranian to sacrifice myself for our country's scientists." On Feb. 4 an al-Qaida suicide bomber in Taji, Iraq N of Baghdad kills 19 Awakening members and three Iraqi soldiers, and wounds 44 people. On Feb. 4 Afghan pres. Hamid Karzai and Pakistan pres. Asif Ali Zardari pledge to reach a peace settlement within 6 mo. On Feb. 4 the all-girl Kashmiri rock band Pragaash disbands after Grand Mufti Bashiruddin Ahmad issues a fatwa on Feb. 3 declaring singing un-Islamic. On Feb. 4-? a massive protest against Islamists in Dhaka, Bangladesh sees hundreds of thousands demand the execution of Jamaat-e-Islami leader Abdul Qader Mollah and others convicted of war crimes during the 1971 independence struggle. On Feb. 5 Pakistan agrees to hand control over the deepwater port of Gwadar, Pakistan 250 mi. from the Strait of Hormuz to China. On Feb. 5 Afghanistan and Norway sign a 14-year strategic partnership agreement that will give Afghanistan $136M aid every year until 2017. On Feb. 5 a suicide bomber kills four and injures 14 at an army checkpoint in Taji, Iraq N of Baghdad. On Feb. 5 a U.S. Justice dept. memo titled Lawfulness of a Lethal Operation Directed Against a U.S. Citizen Who is a Senior Operation Leader of al Qaeda or an Associated Force surfaces, concluding that it is legal to target U.S. citizens with drone strikes under certain circumstances. On Feb. 5 the Brussels Conference on Mali is attended by reps from the African Union, U.N., EU, and ECOWAS. On Feb. 5 the U.S. House of Reps. begins holding hearings on immigration reform, chaired by Bob Goodlatte; on Feb. 5 House Repubs. say they're open to legal residency but not citizenship. On Feb. 5 Cuban-Am. U.S. Sen. (D-N.J.) Robert "Bob" Menendez denies reports that he hired hos in the Dominican Repub. On Feb. 5 the British House of Commons by 400-175 approves same-sex marriage; over half of Conservative Party MPs vote against it or abstain. On Feb. 5 Danish anti-Islam historian-journalist Lars Hedegaard (1942-) is attacked in his home in Copenhagen by a Muslim gunman, who misses. On Feb. 5 Dell Computer Co. announces a $24.4B deal to go private, the largest such deal since 2007. On Feb. 5 Rochester, N.Y. Muslim Omer Fadhel Saleh Mohammed (1981-) is charged with making 21 false bomb threats against Kodak Corp. On Feb. 5 the Assoc. for Electronic Music (AFEM) is formed to represent electronic musicians, who are often snubbed by rock musicians. On Feb. 5 the U.S. House of Reps. Subcommittee on the Middle East and North Africa holds a hearing on Fatah-Hamas reconciliation. On Feb. 5-7 the Council of European Bishops' Conferences meets in Warsaw, Poland; secy.-gen. Rev. Guy Liagre says that Islam in Europe is being "more radical"; "You can see the fundamentalist tendencies"; there are 558M Christians in Europe vs. 44M Muslims. On Feb. 6 an 8.0 earthquake in the Solomon Islands destroys three villages along the Lata coast and triggers a tsunami. On Feb. 6 Tunisian leftist opposition leader Chokri Belaid is assassinated outside his home in Tunis, causing massive protests, causing PM Hemadi Jebali on Feb. 7 to announce the formation of a new govt. of technocrats to prepare for elections "as soon as possible"; on Feb. 11 interim pres. Moncef Marzouki announces that the party has "frozen" its withdrawl from the coalition govt. to continue talks. On Feb. 6 two suicide car bombings at a military intel HQ in Palmyra, Syria kill 19 members of Syria's security forces. On Feb. 6 Muslims shoot and kill four fruit traders in Rayong, Thailand because they are Buddhists. On Feb. 6 the U.S. imposes yet more sanctions on Iran to "significantly restrict Iran's ability to make use of the oil revenue that it's earning", and clamp down on its media orgs. and cyber police for human rights abuses. On Feb. 6 the Cairo Egyptian Summit in Egypt is opened by pres. Mohammed Morsi; Iranian pres. Imadinnajacket makes the first official visit to Egypt since the 1979 Iranian Rev.; on Feb. 6 a Sunni Salafist Syrian is arrested for throwing a shoe at Imadinnajacket outside a mosque where he is praying; on Feb. 7 Ayatollah Khamenei rejects direct nuclear talks with the U.S., with the soundbyte: "The U.S. is pointing a gun at Iran and wants us to talk to them. The Iranian nation will not be intimidated by these actions." On Feb. 6 Boko Haram fighters kill six park rangers in Sambisa Reserve in Nigeria in reprisal for govt. attacks on two of their training camps last week that killed 17. On Feb. 6 the Boy Scouts of Am. delay a vote on allowing homosexuals to join. On Feb. 6 Liberian pres. Ellen Johnson Sirleaf issues a proclamation declaring a day of "intensifying global efforts for the elimination of female genital mutilation". On Feb. 6 the Israeli govt. appoints former Soviet dissident Nathan Sharansky to mediate a dispute between women who want to pray at the Western Wall in Jerusalem, and ultra-orthodox rabbis, who call it an "abomination". On Feb. 6 the U.N. Internat. Labor Org. (ILO) releases a report saying that youth unemployment in the Arab region is 23.2%, highest in the world, compared to an avg. of 13.9%. On Feb. 6 74-y.-o. pensioner Maria Frank (1938-) is convicted in Munich of hate speech for displaying a sign at a Sept. 8 rally against Muslim immigration. On Feb. 6 Gambia ratifies a motion from the Org. of the Islamic Conference (IC) to create an Islamic court of justice. On Feb. 7 after a secret White House memo is leaked authorizing the killing of U.S. citizens abroad, and U.S. Sen. (D-Calif.) Dianne Feinstein defends drone strikes with the soundbyte that "the civilian casualties that result from these strikes each year have typically been in the single digits", the Senate Intelligence Committee holds a confirmation hearing for CIA nominee John O. Brennan, which is interrupted by protesters from Code Pink 5x; Brennan defends Pres. Obama's drone program, lying that not one single civilian ws killed in almost a year of drone strikes, and agreeing with U.S. Sen. (D-Ore.) Ron Wyden that the U.S. govt. should publicly acknowledge drone strikes when they happen, waffling on whether enhanced interrogations yield meaningful intel, waffling again on whether waterboarding qualifies as torture while expressing disgust and saying that it will not happen on his watch at the CIA. On Feb. 8 former congressman Jesse L. Jackson Jr. signs a plea agreement with federal prosectors over misuse of campaign funds. On Feb. 8 Boko Haram militants kill nine female polio vaccinators in two shootings in Kano, Nigeria. On Feb. 8 the U.S. military denies allegations made by a U.N. committee that U.S. attacks killed hundreds of children in Afghanistan in the past five years. On Feb. 8 a suicide bomber at a checkpoint in Gao, Mali goofs and kills only himself. On Feb. 8 protesters against Georgian pres. Mikhail Saakashvili attack parliamentarians and senior officials outside the Georgian Nat. Library in Tbilisi while he is preparing to deliver his annual address to the nation; he blamed it on PM Bidzina Ivanishvili. On Feb. 9 the Nemo Snowstorm rocks the NE U.S., leaving 650K without power. On Feb. 9 the FBI arrests Taliban supporter Matthew Aaron Llaneza (1984-) for attempting to bomb an Oakland, Calif. branch of Bank of Am. back in Nov. On Feb. 9 after it was defeated in 2011 and 2012, the Fla. House Civil Justice Subcommittee approves an anti-Sharia bill restricting and/or denying the use of religious law for matters involving marriage, divorce, or child custody. On Feb. 9 Pakistani security forces and Muslim hardliners torture and rape Christian women in Punjab. On Feb. 9 Islam-watching ex-FBI agent John Guandolo (1966-) makes the claim that John Brennan, Pres. Obama's nominee for CIA dir. converted to Islam while in Saudi Arabia. On Feb. 10 Iran celebrates the Ten Day Dawn of the 1979 Islamic Rev., attempting to take credit for the Arab Spring, defying the U.S., and predicting the elmination of Israel. On Feb. 10 U.S. Gen. John Allen is replaced by U.S. Marine Gen. Joseph F. Dunford as NATO cmdr. of the Internat. Security Assistance Force (ISAF) in Afghanistan (until ?), with Allen uttering the soundbyte "We are winning." On Feb. 10 former U.S. vice pres. Dick Cheney utters the soundbyte that Pres. Obama's performance in picking a nat. security team is "dismal", because John Kerry, John Brennan, and Chuck Hagel are "second-rate people". On Feb. 10 Malian troops regain control of Gao, Mali after rebels stage a canoe raid. On Feb. 10 the 55th Annual Grammy Awards in the Staples Center in Los Angeles, Calif. is hosted by LL Cool J (2nd time); Mumford & Sons wins album of the year for "Babel"; Gotye and Kimbra win record of the year for "Something That I Used to Know"; Fun and Jeff Bhasker win song of the year and best new artist for "We Are Young"; Kelly Clarkson wins est pop vocal album for "Stronger" (first to win 2x). On Feb. 11 Pope (since 2005) Benedict XVI announces that he's resigning on Feb. 28 (8:00 p.m.) due to ill health, with the soundbyte: "My strengths, due to an advanced age, are no longer suited to an adequate exercise of the Petrine Ministry", becoming the first pope to resign since Gregory XII in 1415; he decided to resign after his Mar. 2012 Mexico-Cuba trip; at 6:00 p.m. hours after his resignation lightning strikes the dome of St. Peter's Basilica; black African Cardinal Peter Kodwo Appiah Turkson (1948-) of Ghana i s a crowd favorite for next pope; another candidate is Cardinal Rodriguez Maradiaga of Honduras, an anti-Israel pro-Palestine borderline anti-Semite; on Feb. 21 the Italian newspaper La Repubblica claims that Benedict XVI resigned because "various lobbies within the Holy See were consistently breaking" the 6th and 7th Commandments "thou shalt not commit adultery" and "thou shalt not steal", referring to a gay underground network; on Mar. 12 the papal conclave convenes, and on Mar. 13 on the 5th vote it selects cardinal (since 2001) Jorge Mario Bardoglio of Argentina (of Italian roots, who came in #2 in the 2005 voting) as pope #266 Francis I (1936-) (until ?), becoming the first pope in 600 years to take office after another pope resigns, first South Am. pope, first from the American continent, first non-European pope since Gregory III (731-41), and first Jesuit pope; he appears on the balcony 66 min. after the white smoke; a strategic move to prepare South Am. as a haven for when the Muslims take over Europe?; he refuses to live in the papal apartments in the Apostolic Palace, moving into St. Martha's guesthouse next to St. Peter's Basilica, where he often dines in the common dining room; on Oct. 30 the Italian news mag. Panorama claims that the NSA spied on the conclave - a New Age plant? On Feb. 11 North Korea stages its 3rd nuclear test for "self-defense against the U.S.", which Pres. Obama calls a "highly provocative act", causing the U.N. Security Council to hold an emergency meeting on Feb. 11. On Feb. 11 a shooting in New Castle County Courthouse in Del. kills three incl. the shooter and injures two. In Feb. 11 al-Qaida affiliate Al Nusrah Front for the People of the Levant militants capture a major dam in Thawra, Raqqa Province, Syria, and stages a suicide attack on Syrian intel HQ in Palmyra; on Feb. 14 they seize control of al-Shadadi in NE Hasakah Province. On Feb. 12 the anniv. of Mubarak's fall is marked by protests by policemen in Cairo, Egypt On Feb. 12 (Lincoln's birthday) Pres. Obama delivers his 2013 State of the Union Address, calling for a "smarter government", calling for the minimum wage to be raised to $9 an hour so nobody with a full-time job is below the poverty line, and asking Congress to vote on immigration reform, and promising to withdraw 34K troops (out of 66K) from Afghanistan within a year; he also signs two executive orders on cybersecurity, On Feb. 12 U.N. human rights chief Navi Pillay announces that the death toll in Syria has exceeded the "truly shocking" figure of 60K. On Feb. 12 Muslim jihadists kidnap Armenian Catholic priest Father Michael and another Orthodox clergyman in Aleppo, Syria. On Feb. 12 (10:00 p.m.) a NATO airstrike in Shigal District, Kunar Province, Afghanistan kills four Afghan insurgents and nine civilians incl. five children, coming just as Pres. Obama announces the big troop withdrawal. On Feb. 13 amid rumors that he is too Muslim-friendly and Israel-hostile, Sen. majority leader Harry Reid files a cloture motion to end a Repub. filibuster, becoming the first for a U.S. defense secy. On Feb. 13 a Tibetan monk shouting anti-Chinese slogans self-immolates on the street in Katmandu, Nepal. On Feb. 13 global warming scientist James A. Hansen of NASA is arrested outside the White House along with Sierra Club dir. Michael Brune, 350.org co-founder Bill McKibben, civil rights activist Julian Bond, and actress Daryl Hannah while protesting the proposed Keystone XL Pipeline. On Feb. 14 Syrian rebels shoot down to Syrian warplanes in Idlib Province, Syria; meanwhile U.S. secy. of state John Kerry announces that he will try to convince Syrian pres. Bashar al-Assad to step down, saying that he "must end this killing". On Feb. 14 (2nd anniv. of the Bahrain uprising) protests in Manama, Bahrain kill a 16-y.-o. boy and injure dozens. On Feb. 14 South African amputee sprinter ("Blade Runner") ("the Fastest Man on No Legs") Oscar Leonard Carl "Oz" Pistorius (1986-) fatally shoots his model girlfriend Reeva Rebecca Steenkamp (b. 1983) in his bathroom in Pretoria, winning an Oscar for his piss story that he thought she was an intruder, after which next year he is found guilty of culpable homicide, receiving a 5-year prison sentence; on Dec. 3, 2015 after prosecutors appeal the lenient sentence, the appeals court convicts him of murder, extending the sentence to six years after voiding the usual min. sentence of 15 years; on Nov. 24 the supreme court doubles the sentence to 13 years 5 mo. - piss on that? On Feb. 14 the U.S. FDA approves the artificial retina for blind people, giving them limited vision. On Feb. 15 after the 2013 Shahbag Protests begin in Shahbag, Bangladesh over anti-Islamic blogs, Bangladeshi atheist blogger Ahmed Rajib Haider AKA Thaba Baba is killed by Ansarullah Bangla Team (ATB) jihadists in Dhaka, who hack him to death with machetes. On Feb. 15 Asteroid 2012 DA14 flies by the Earth; an unrelated 10K-ton 55-ft. meteor enters the atmosphere undetected over the Ural Mts. of Russia, exploding with the strength of 25 Hiroshima A-bombs, injuring 1.2K in Chelyabinsk, becoming the biggest meteor to strike Earth since 1908. On Feb. 15 200 Palestinian Arabs riot in the West Bank calling for the release of Samer Issawi, who is on a hunger strike. On Feb. 15 Turkey announces the arrest of eight retired generals for involvement in the ouster of the Islamic govt. in the late 1990s. On Feb. 15 Egypt accuses Israel of looting it of oil during its 1967-82 occupation of Sinai, dimanding $480B in compensation, and canceling their gas agreement. On Feb. 15 anti-Islam blogger Ahmed Rajib Haider (b. 1977) is murdered by students of North South U. in Dhaka, Bangladesh for organizing protests against leaders of the Jamaat-e-Islami Party on trial for war crimes; five are later arrested. On Feb. 16 a bomb blast in Quetta, Pakistan kills 65+ near a market in a mainly Shiite neighborhood, causing mass Shiite protests. On Feb. 17 the Forward on Climate movement holds protests in major U.S. cities incl. 35K in Washington, D.C., calling for Pres. Obama to act on his inaugural pledge about climate change and reject the Keystone XL oil pipeline. On Feb. 17 elections in Ecuador give pres. Rafael Correa a 3rd term, with 56.7% vs. right-wing candidate Guillermo Lasso's 23.3%. On Feb. 17 for the first time Imran Khan, head of Pakistan's Tehrik-i-Insaf (PTI) party calls on the banned Lashkar-e-Jhangvi (LeJ) Party to give up territorism in the name of Islam. On Feb. 17 after hacking Assemblies of God minister Pastor Mathayo Kachili to death in early Feb. in the Geita region of Lake Victoria, Muslim gunmen kill Roman Catholic Father Evaristus Mushi in Zanzibar; on Feb. 19 they burn the Evangelical Church of Siloam. On Feb. 18 the 2013 Brussels Diamond Heist sees eight gunman make off with $50M worth. On Feb. 18 after resigning months earlier, top British cardinal the resignation of Keith O'Brien is accepted by Pope Benedict XVI; it is not announced until Feb. 25, one day after being accused of "inappropriate acts" with priests; he opts out of electing the new pope. On Feb. 19 Iranian spokesman Ramin Mehmanparast agrees to nuclear talks if the West agrees to their right to enrich uranium. On Feb. 19 Islamic militants kidnap a French family incl. three adults and four children in Waza Nat. Park, Cameroon. On Feb. 19 unemployed Muslim Ali Syed (1992-) goes on a shooting spree in Orange County, Calif., killing three and injuring two others on the freeway. On Feb. 19 Russian lawmaker Mikhail Pakhomov is found dead cemented in a barrel. On Feb. 19 the U.S. Supreme (Roberts) Court rules unanimously in Fla. v. Harris that police may use dogs to sniff for undercover illegal drugs if they ae tested and certified. On Feb. 20 the govt. of Bulgaria resigns after nationwide protests over high electricity prices. On Feb. 20 U.S. Rep. Mike Rogers, chmn. of the House Select Committee on Intelligence utters the soundbyte "I can't tell you how serious" the threat of Chinese hackers are to the security of the U.S., calling it "breathtaking, it's serious, and it will cost us the next generation of prosperity if we don't do something about it". On Feb. 20 a Boko Haram suicide bomb attack in Maiduguri, Nigeria kills three and wounds two. On Feb. 20 three Muslims are jailed in Kazakhstan for a plot to blow up a factory for manufacturing "Allah Vodka". On Feb. 20 Bangladesh begins cracking down on anti-Islam blogs for "hurting religious feelings". On Feb. 20 Mexico announces that it has records of 27K+ "disappeared people". On Feb. 20 36-y.-o. Bulgarian photographer Plamen Goranov (b. 1976) burned himself to death in front of the city hall in Varna, causing five copycats by the end of Mar., and nine by Aug. On Feb. 20 Google and Facebook announce the creation of the Breakthrough Prize in Life Sciences, five annual $3M prizes to those making research breakthroughs. On Feb. 21 a car bomb in Damascus, Syria near the HQ of the ruling Baath Party and the Russian embassy kills 4+. On Feb. 21 two bombs on parked bicycles in Dilsukhnagar, Hyderabad, India kill 13 and injure 84. On Feb. 21 three Muslims are convicted in Britain of a plot tokill hundreds by using eight suicide bombers with backpacks and guns. On Feb. 21 Austrian ambassador Axel Wech marries Pakistani TV journalist Sadia Afzaal and converts to Islam. On Feb. 22 Tunisia's ruling Islamist party names interior minister Ali Larayedh as new PM (until ?). On Feb. 22 U.S. State Dept. spokesperson Victoria Nuland warns Pakistan against signing "deals with Iran that may be sanctionable", referring to a gas deal. On Feb. 23 F23 Demonstrations in Spain see hundreds of thousands of leftists demonstrate in 80+ cities on the 32nd anniv. of the attempted coup by Francoist Lt. Col. Antonio Tejero. On Feb. 23 Anas Urbaningrum, head of Indonesia's ruling Dem. Party resigns a day after an anti-corruption commission names him as a suspect in a case. On Feb. 23 Stockholm, Sweden allows public recitation of the Muslim adhan (call to prayer) for the first time ever in Botkyrka via speakers. On Feb. 23 Muslims loot and burn 200 homes in Bengal, India. On Feb. 23 Muslim gunmen attack Aduwan Gida Village in Southern Kaduna, Nigeria, killing six. On Feb. 24 Louis Farrakhan gives a speech at the U. of Ill. in Chicago calling on blacks to curb spending, pool resources, and buy land. On Feb. 24 former White House press secy. Robert Gibbs admits that was told not to publicly acknowledge the U.S. drone program. On Feb. 24 11 African countries sign a Dem. Repub. of Congo (DRC) Peace Deal at the African Union HQ in Addis Ababa. On Feb. 24 the India-Sri Lanka Fishing War ramps up when Tamil Nadu media accuse the Sri Lankan navy of attacking Indian fisherman in the Palk Straits. On Feb. 24, 2013 the 85th Academy Awards, presented at the Dolby Theatre in Hollywood, Calif., hosted by Seth Macfarlane awards the best picture Oscar for 2012 to Argo, which also wins best adapted screenplay; Ang Lee wins best dir. for Life of Pi; Daniel Day-Lewis wins best actor for Lincoln (first actor to win 3x); Jennifer Lawrence wins best actress for Silver Linings Playbook; Christoph Waltz wins best supporting actor for Django Unchained, and Quentin Tarantino wins best original screenplay; Anne Hathaway wins best supporting actress for Les Miserables; Skyfall by Paul Epworth, performed by Adele Adkins wins best original song; Brave wins best animated feature; Amour wins best foreign language film; Seth Macfarlane stinks the show up with We Saw Your Boobs (The Boob Song). On Feb. 25 U.S. secy. of state John Kerry opens his first official trip abroad in London with British PM David Cameron, saying that Iran can't be allowed to develop nuclear weapons. On Feb. 25 Mexican pres. Enrique Pena Nieto signs an education reform, the most sweeping in seven decades, designed to weaken the powerful teacher's union; on Feb. 26 Elba Esther Gordillo, head of the Mexican Teachers' Union is arrested for embezzling union funds; in May the reforms knock Carlos Slim off the world's richest man spot, with $69.1B in wealth, compared to new #1 Bill Gates at $69.8B. On Feb. 25 the EU gives Ukraine 3 mo. to reform its justice and electoral systems before free trade and political assoc. deals signed in 2012 will be ratified. On Feb. 26 amid protests, Gaza militants fire a rocket into S Israel, breaking the Nov. ceasefire. On Feb. 26 the 4th Round of Nuclear Talks with Iran and six world powers begin. On Feb. 26-27 the P5+1 Summit in Almaty, Kazakhstan (known for renouncing nukes) incl. reps from Iran. On Feb. 26 a hot air balloon crashes in Luxor, Egypt, killing 19 and injuring two, hurting tourism. On Feb. 26 Human Rights Watch announces that the Syrian govt. fired at least four ballistic missiles into Aleppo during the past week, killing 140 incl. 70 children. On Feb. 27 a report by Brandeis U. claims that the wealth gap between U.S. blacks and whites balooned 8x between 1984 and 2009, with median white household net worth of $265K vs. $28.5K for blacks. On Feb. 28 Jacob Joseph "Jack" Lew (1955-) succeeds Timothy Geitner as U.S. treasury secy. #76 (until ?), becoming the most powerful Jew in the Obama admin? On Feb. 28 Turkish PM Recep Tayyip Erdogan makes remarks comparing Zionism and Islamophobia with anti-Semitism, and calling them "a crime against humanity", causing Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu and the White House to condemn him. In Feb. the U.S. economy adds 236K jobs while employment drops to 7.7%. In Feb. Dutch politician Arnoud Van Door announces his conversion to Islam, shocking his party boss, anti-Islam politician Geert Wilders. In Feb. Japanese military forces engage in Operation Iron Fist in response to increasing aggressiveness by China, shifting further away from pacifism. On Mar. 1 the 2013 U.S. Sequestration comes into effect under a plan by Pres. Obama, with automatic federal spending cuts of $1.2T over 10 years, incl. $85B in 2013; on Mar. 5 the White House cancels tours for lack of funds. On Mar. 1 elections in Britain are a big D for the ruling Conservative Party, and a V for the Liberal Dem. Party and UK Independence party that wants Britain to leave the EU and supports a crackdown on immigration laws. On Mar. 1 interior minister Ali Laarayedh (1955-) becomes PM of Tunisia(until ?). On Mar. 1 Russian PM Vladimir Putin announces a new system of Islamic higher education in Russia to counter extremism. On Mar. 1 a protest by 160 women and children in Buraidah, Saudi Arabia demanding that their imprisoned husbands and fathers be freed from endless imprisonment while accused ob being part of a "deviant group" of al-Qaida sympathisers or Islamist political opposition groups is quashed by security forces, causing a Twitter campaign by Shiites in the E and liberals in Jidda and Riyadh, causing the govt. two weeks later to announce a plan to ID Twitter accounts. On Mar. 2 more violent protests erupt in Cairo, Egypt are greeted by police, who use excessive force and kill one by crushing him with an armored vehicle. On Mar. 2-3 U.S. secy. of state John Kerry visits Egypt, pledging $250M to support "democracy", cautioning Pres. Mohammed Morsi to heal political rifts. On Mar. 3 twin explosions in Karachi, Pakistan near Abul Hassan Isphahani Rd. kill 45+ and injure 130+. On Mar. 4 Pres. Obama picks nuclear physicist Ernest Jeffrey Moniz (1944-) for energy secy., Regina "Gina" McCarthy (1954-) for EPA head, and Sylvia Mary Mathews Burwell (1965-) for OMB head on Apr. 11; on May 16 the U.S. Senate unanimously confirms Moniz, who is sworn in on May 21 (until Jan. 20, 2017); McCarthy isn't confirmed by the Senate until July 18 after a record 136-day fight over her support of Obama's global warming and climate change initiative, and is sworn in as EPA head #13 on July 18 (until Jan. 20, 2017); Burwell is sworn in as OMB dir. on Apr. 24 (until June 9, 2014), then nominated by Obama on Apr. 11, 2014 for HHS secy., and confirmed 78-17 by the Senate on June 5 before being sworn in as U.S. HHS secy. #22 on June 9 (until Jan. 20, 2017). On Mar. 4 Afghan pres. Hamid Karzai rails against Pakistan, accusing it of a weak resolve to battle terrorism after ?, head of the Pakistani clerics council declared suicide attacks in Afghanistan lawful. On Mar. 4 a policy change signed by Pres. Obama on Feb. 2 shortens the visa wait for illegal aliens with U.S. spouse. On Mar. 4 a locust plague in Egypt puts Israel on high alert ahead of Passover for a possible locust invasion; meanwhile Iran fights a plague of 10-lb. rats. On Mar. 4 Fla. imam Hafiz Khan (1935-) is convicted of funneling $50K to the Pakistani Taliban. On Mar. 4 Islamist gunmen attack a Christian church in Benghazi, Libya, assaulting two priests. On Mar. 4 dozens of Syrian troops are ambushed in Iraq while seeking refuge, killing 48; Syrian rebels take 21 U.N. peacekeepers hostage, releasing them on Mar. 9. On Mar. 4 Fla. Repub. gov. Jeb Bush appears on USA Today, saying that he's flopped on allowing illegal immigrants citizenships, favoring permanent residence passes. On Mar. 5 the Dow Jones Industrial Avg. closes at an all-time high of 14,253, passing the Oct. 2007 record of 14,164. On Mar. 5 U.S. atty. gen. Eric Holder sends a letter to U.S. Sen. (R-Ky.) Rand Paul, saying that drone strikes on U.S. soil are "possible". On Mar. 6 the U.N claims that there are 1M Syrian refugees. On Mar. 6 Stuart Bowen, special inspector gen. for Iraq reconstruction pub. his final report to Congress, sayyng that after 10 years and $60B spent in postwar reconstruction, Iraq is still unstable, making the effort a waste. On Mar. 6 a report from UNICEF claims that practices by the Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) of arresting Palestinian youth are "cruel, inhuman, or degrading". On Mar. 6 the EU fines Microsoft $733M for reneging on its promise to offer users a choice of browsers. On Mar. 6 a criminal court in Bruges, Belgium sentences a man to 4 mo. in prison and a 600 Euro fine for shredding a Quran. On Mar. 6 (night) Norwegian interior designer Marte Deborah Dalelv (1988-) is raped by a coworker in Dubai, and after she reports it she is arrested and convicted of having sex outside marriage and drinking alcohol without a license, and sentenced to 16 mo. in prison; her attacker is sentenced to 13 mo.; after an internat. uproar they are both pardoned. On Mar. 7 after a 13-hour filibuster by Sen. Rand Paul (R-K.Y.), the U.S. Senate approves the nomination of Arabic-speaking North Bergen, N.J.-born John Owen Brennan (1955-) as CIA dir.; on Mar. 8 he asks to be sworn-in on a copy of the U.S. Constitution instead of the Bible to "reaffirm his commitment to the rule of law", becoming CIA dir. #5 (until Jan. 20, 2017). On Mar. 7 after U.S.-South Korean military drills piss it off, and the U.N. Security Council votes 15-0-0 for Resolution 2094 to place new sanctions on it, the govt. of North Korea warns of a preemptive nuclear strike on the U.S., causing shockwaves. On Mar. 8 after being captured on ?, Osama bin Laden's loudmouthed son-in-law Sulaiman Abu Ghaith is arraigned in New York City on terrorist charges, with a possible life sentence; he allegedly talks in custody. On Mar. 8 former PM #3 (1998-2002) Milos Zeman (1944-) of the Czech Social Dem. Party becomes pres. #3 of the Czech Repub., becoming the first directly-elected pres. in Czeh history; he is reelected in 2018 despite going against EU migrant quotas and supporting Pres. Trump's recognition of Jerusalem as Israel's capital. On Mar. 9 new U.S. defense secy. Chuck Hagel makes his first official visit to Afghanistan, and is greeted by two suicide attacks by militants, killing nine outside the Afghan Defense Ministry, plus a policeman and eight civilians, mostly children at a police checkpoint in Khost. On Mar. 9-10 150+ Christian homes and schools in Lahore, Pakistan are looted and torched by a Muslim mob outraged at allegations of blasphemy against Muhammad. On Mar. 10 Afghan pres. Karzai gives a nationally-televised speech accusing the U.S. and Taliban of collusion in order to keep U.S. troops there; he also accuses U.S.-led forces of "abusing" univ. students after the CIA arrests a student on Mar. 9, banning them from entering campuses. On Mar. 10 due to a shortage of swordsman, Saudi Arabia announces that it is considering firing squads for executions. On Mar. 12 U.S. nat. intel dir. James Clapper tells Congress that Al-Qaida no longer poses a major threat, and adds that the Arab Spring has benefited Islamists instead of democracy advocates, providing openings for terrorists. On Mar. 12 a suicide bomber in Konduz Province, Afghanistan kills six and injures several fans watcing a buzkashi (dead goat polo) game. On Mar. 13 a Lashar-e-Taiba suicide attack on a Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) camp near a public school in Bemina, Srinagar, Jammu and Kashmir kills five CRPF and two militants; on Mar. 19 they attack again, killing 18-y.-o. school dropout Suhail Ahmed Sofi hiding in the fireplace of a mosque Baramulla District; on Mar. 21 they attack again in Methain Bypass near Srinagar, firing on a Border Security Force (BSF) vehicle. On Mar. 13 al Nusra Front Wahhabi militants bomb the Shrine of Ammar ibn Yasir in al-Raqqah, Syria, pissing-off orthodox Sunni Muslims. On Mar. 13 the flow of gas from Israel's Tamar Reservoir in the Mediterranean Sea is initiated, promising Israel energy independence. On Mar. 14 Xi Jinping (1953-) becomes pres. #7 of the People's Repub. of China (until ?); on Mar. 15 former Young Communists leader Li Keqiang (1955-) becomes PM #7 of China (until ?); Jinping goes on to consolidate power in the party's hands, announcing a reorg. in late Mar. 2018 transferring control of key govt. bureaus to party organs, undoing the party-state divide set up by Den Xiaoping in the 1980s, and cracking down on univs., increasing ideological control with a 2016 directive from the ministry of education calling for more "patriotic education"; in 2017 he urges overseas Chinese students to set up Communist party cells. On Mar. 14 the U.N. Security Council votes 15-0-0 for Resolution 2095, "reaffirming its strong commitment to the sovereignty, independence, territorial integrity, and national unity of Libya", calling for full and equal participation of women, youth, and minorities in the political process, and expressing deep concern over reports of sexual violence and lack of judicial process for detainees. On Mar. 15 Pres. Obama utters the soundbyte that Iran is only a "year or so" away from having a nuclear bomb. On Mar. 15 a freak storm buries E and C Europe in deep snow, causing 10 ft. deep snowdrifts in Hungary. On Mar. 15 the U.S. announces that it's spending $1B to bolster missile defenses along the Pacific Coast against North Korea. On Mar. 15 SAC Capital Advisors run by Steven A. Cohen is fined a record $602M by the SEC for insider trading. On Mar. 15 after learning that his son is gay, Ohio Repub. Sen. Robert Portman announces that he's flopped about marriage of same-sex couples, and believes that the govt. "shouldn't deny" them the right, becoming the first Repub. Sen. to support gay marriage. On Mar. 15 a Swiss tourist is gang-raped in Madhya Pradesh, India. On Mar. 15 Pres. Obama visits the Argonne Nat. Lab in Chicago, Ill., and announces a $2B trust to be formed from royalties from offshore dirlling to support energy research into alternatives to gasoline. On Mar. 16 the EU rejects a request by the U.K. and France to lift an arms embargo to Syrian rebels. On Mar. 17 Family Guy debuts the episode i>Turban Cowboy, showing Peter surviving a near-death experience (NDE) then embracing Islam via fellow patient Mahmood, then skewering Muslims. On Mar. 17, 2013 the History Channel defines Obama's presidency by portraying him as looking like the Devil in its weekly series The Bible (Mar. 3-31); it's really Moroccan actor Mohamen Mehdi Ouazanni. On Mar. 18 Cyprus announces that it's going to confiscate 9.9% of all bank accounts; on Mar. 13 Dutch finance minister Jeroen Bijsselbloem announces that this scheme will be the template for future Euro bank bailouts, causing a furor that makes him retract it; on June 26 the EU announces that its 27 finance ministers have agreed on a plan shifting the responsibility for bank losses from govts. to bank investors, creditors, and uninsured depositors. On Mar. 18 Pope Francis meets with Argentine pres. Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner at the Vatican. On Mar. 18 former secy. of state Hillary Clinton announces that she now supports same-sex marriage; her hubby Bill Clinton already endorsed it while she was serving in Pres. Obama's cabinet after Chelsea talked him into it. On Mar. 18 the Nat. Dialogue Conference (NDC) in Yemen, mediated by the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) is attended by 565 delegates incl. all political and other parties in a landmark attempt at political transition. On Mar. 19 (10th anniv. of the U.S.-led invastion) a series of attacks across Baghdad, Iraq kills 65, becoming the deadliest day in Iraq since Sept. 9. On Mar. 19 U.S.-educated Hamas/Muslim Brotherhood supporter Ghassan Hitto is elected by the Syrian Nat. Council as head of an interim govt. in Syria to administer areas seized by rebel forces. On Mar. 19 Pres. Obama utters the soundbyte about Iran that it needs to take "immediate and meaningful steps... toward an enduring, long-term settlement" over its nuke program. On Mar. 20 (10th anniv. of U.S.-led Iraq invasion) after touching down at Ben Gurion Airport, Pres. Obama visits Israel, with the soundbyte "It's good to be back in The Land. The United States is proud to stand with you as your strongest ally and your greatest friend", vowing eternal support, calling it the "work of generations", with the soundbyte "In this work, the state of Israel will have no greater friend than the United States." On Mar. 20 Jordanian king Abdullah interviews CNN's Jake Tapper, warning of a "Muslim Brotherhood Crescent" rising in Egypt and Turkey. On Mar. 20 Muslim man Derron Black AKA Shahid Abdullah storms the stage during a speech by Kansas City, Mo. mayor Sly James, and is removed by security after short speech and a scuffle. On Mar. 20 Burmese Buddhist monk Shin Thawbita is burned alive by a Muslim mob in Meikhtilar. On Mar. 21 (a.m.) an Afghan policeman kills five colleagues in Qadis District, Badghis Province, Afghanistan. On Mar. 21 Pres. Obama gives a Speech in Israel, finally calling Hezbollah a terrorist group, adding "Peace is far more preferable to war", adding that there is no "unconditional" U.S. support for Israel because they might disagree from time to time, and that the "only way" for peace and security for Israel is an "independent and viable" Palestine, "two states for two people" because "neither occupation nor explusion is the answer", but that "Palestinians must recognize that Israel will be a Jewish state"; he adds that the U.S. will do everything it has to do to prevent a nuclear Iran. On Mar. 21 U.S. Marine Corps Gen. John F. Kelly holds a Pentagon news conference, telling reporters that Iranian influence is increasing in Latin Am. enough to be worrisome, and that a potential connection between crime syndicates and terrorists in Latin Am. would constitute a clear danger to the region. On Mar. 21 Syrian Sunni Muslim cleric (last one to support Bashar al-Assad) Mohamed Saeed Ramadan al-Bouti is killed in a suicide attack in a mosque in Damascus, causing thousands to mourn at his funeral along with 40 others; meanwhile opposition activists get pissed-off at his burial beside the tomb of Saladin. On Mar. 21 the Obama admin. admits to the New York Times that they stalled in producing a metric to determine whether the U.S.-Mexico border is secure so that they could push citizenship paths for illegal aliens; on Mar. 20 Dept. of Homeland Security officials admitted to congress that they still have no official way to measure whether the border is secure. On Mar. 22 new humble Pope Francis I gives his first foreign policy address, calling for a dialogue with Islam and offering an olive branch to China. On Mar. 22 after Pres. Obama puts him up to it, Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu makes a surprise apologizes for Turkish flotilla deaths, and agrees to compensate victims, causing Turkey to begin restoring trade; meanwhile Obama arrives in Jordan after visiting Israel and the West Bank, pledging $200M aid for the 450K+ Syrian refugees; too bad, on Mar. 24 Turkish PM Recep Tayyip Erodogan issues the soundbyte that the Gaza blockade must be lifted before full normalization with Israel. On Mar. 22 Lebanese PM Najib Mikati resigns after dissolving the govt. On Mar. 22 deadly clashes between Buddhists and Muslims in Meikhtila, Burma cause a state of emergency to be declared. On Mar. 22 an anti-Muslim Brotherhood protest in Cairo, Egypt results in a Mar. 25 order to arrest of five anti-MB activists, putting the MB on "high alert" about a possible crackdown. On Mar. 22 a U.S. Marine shoots and kills a female and male Marine then kills himself at the Marine Corps Base in Quantico, Va. On Mar. 22 19-y.-o. Tunisian woman Amina Tyler (1993-), founder of the feminist FEMEN org. posts topless photos of herself on Facebook, bringing out the Muslim establishment, who calls for her death by stoning, causing her supporters to declare Topless Jihad Day on Apr. 4, while she goes into hiding; meanwhile a Tunisian sheikh calls for young girls to perform sexual jihad by offering themselves to Syrian fighters; too bad, on May 22 Tyler is caught and arrested. On Mar. 22-24 new Chinese pres. Xi Jinpig makes his first official foreign visit to Russia to highlight strengthening ties; his wife Peng Liyuan becomes China's Michelle Obama. On Mar. 23 Pope Francis meets with Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI at Castel Gandolfo. On Mar. 23 Saudi cleric Muhammad Ali Shanqiti posts a lecture on the Internet that claims that each lucky Muslim will get not 72 but 19,604 virgins in Paradise. On Mar. 24 after overthrowing pres. Francois Bozize, Russian-educated Michel Am-Nondokro Djotodia (1949-), head of the Islamist Seleka rebel coalition becomes the first Muslim pres. (#7) of mostly Christian Central African Repub. (CAR) (until Jan. 10, 2014); too bad, on Apr. 13 the CAR Conflict begins between his Muslim minority Seleka (Séléka) coalition rebels and mainly Christian Anti-balaka coalition forces, who forcibly convert Muslims to Christianity. On Mar. 24 outlawed Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) chief Abdullah Ocalan calls for a ceasefire after almost 30 years and 35K killed. On Mar. 25 the U.S. military cedes control of its last military facility in Afghanistan as John Kerry and Hamid Karzai make a show of unity in Kabul. On Mar. 25 Muslim Brotherhood supreme guide Muhammad Badie meets with James Watt, British ambassador in Cairo for the first time. On Mar. 26 Pres. Obama selects Julia Pierson as the first female head of the FBI (until ?). On Mar. 26 another suicide bomber in Damascus, Syria kills three and wounds dozens. On Mar. 26 the Arab Summit in Doha convenes, with the soundbyte that the first summit discussed the single problem of the Palestinian problem, but this one is convening under the shadow of "a political, security, and economic earthquake, and raging storms of chaos, upheaval, and fitna" in almost all Arab countries incl. Syria, Lebanon, Iraq, Egypt, Palestine, Libya, Tunisia, and Yemen. On Mar. 26 the U.S. Monsanto Protection Act slips through the U.S. Congress, protecting genetically-modified seeds from litigation, pissing-off anti-GMO groups. On Mar. 26 Okla. permits the operation of horse slaughterhouses. On Mar. 26-27 the 5-nation "emerging powers" 2013 BRICS Forum sees Syrian pres. Bashar al-Assad appeal for help against "acts of terrorism backed by Arab, regional and Western nations"; decisions are made to fund anti-Bashar rebels in Syria, and establish a $1B fund to strength the Arab and Muslim character of Jerusalem; they announce that they oppose military threats against Iran, with the soundbyte "We are concerned about threats of military sanctions as well as unilateral sanctions." On Mar. 26-30 the 11th World Social Forum is held for the first time in Tunisia. On Mar. 27 Egyptian naval forces capture three scuba divers trying to cut an undersea Internet cable in Alexandria, Egypt belonging to Telecom Egypt. On Mar. 27 the Worst Attack in the History of the Internet is caused by a war between an anti-Spam group and a Dutch hosting co. On Mar. 27 1.5KK armed vigilantes in Tierra Colorado, Guerrero, Mexico take control of the town and arrest homes, searching homes after a vigilante leader was killed, and firing on cars headed to Acapulco. On Mar. 27 a 16-y.-o. Afghan teenie stabs and kills U.S. Army Sgt. Michael C. Cable (b. 1986) while playing with children near the Pakistan border, then escapes to Pakistan and joins the Taliban. On Mar. 27 Hilde Raastad, Norway's first pastor (since 1997) (a Lutheran) quits over the "exclusionary" church; church and state were officially separated in 2012; same-sex marriage was legalized in 2009; ordination of gays was officially authorized in 2007. On Mar. 28 mortar shells crash into an outdoor cafe at Damascus U. in Syria, killing 15+ students and wounding 20. On Mar. 28 a bomb blows up the Sufi Sidi Al-Andhusi Mausoleum (a nat. monument) in Tajoura, Libya near Tripoli. On Mar. 28 the U.S. announces that it has sent two nuke-capable B-2 bombers to South Korea after threats from North Korea. On Mar. 28 the Red Chinese People's Daily pub. an article blasting Apple Computer Inc., with the headline "Destroy Apple's Unparalleled Arrogance", accusing it of "Westerners' traditional sense of superiority" in its policies towards China for only having a 1-year warranty instead of a 2-year warranty. On Mar. 28 (Passover) the Jewish pop. of Israel passes the symbolic 6M mark. On Mar. 28 (Holy Thurs.) Pope Francis I performs a foot-washing ceremony at a prison in Rome on 12 incl. a teenage boy, teenage boy, and two Muslims. On Mar. 28 British Muslim Lord Ahmed apologizes for comments that his imprisonment over a fatal car crash was caused by Jews. On Mar. 29 four car bombs in Shiite mosques in in Baghdad, Iraq kills 19 and wounds 72. On Mar. 29 Afghanistan cancels joint military training with Pakistan after claiming cross-border fire; Pakistan calls it "over-reaction". On Mar. 29 Syrian rebels kill Sunni cleric Sheikh hassan Seifeddin in Aleppo, behead him, drag his body through the streets, and lay his head on a minaret. On Mar. 29 a study is pub. by Harvard U. claiming that the combined costs of the Iraq and Afghanistan Wars is $4T-$6T counting future health care costs for veterans. On Mar. 29-30 the Battle of In Arab between Anefif and bourem, Mali is a V for the MNLA (Movement for the Nat. Liberation of Azawad) over the MOJWA (Movement for Oneness and Jihad in West Africa); in Aug. some MOJWA members led by Mokhtar Belmokhtar and Ahmed Ould Amer (Ahmed al-Tilemsi) split off as the Al-Mourabitoun, joining AQIM on Dec. 4, 2015. On Mar. 30 North Korea warns that it's entering a "state of war" with South Korea. On Mar. 30 2K ethnic Albanians take to the streets in Mitrovica, Kosovo to protest ongoing talks with Serbia. On Mar. 30 (a.m.) a NATO heli strike in Ghazni Province, Afghanistan kills nine Taliban militants and two children. On Mar. 30 deadly floods hit Port Louis, Mauritius. On Mar. 30 Kaufman County, Tex. DA Mike McLelland and his wife Cynthia are found assassinated in their home. On Mar. 31 (Easter Sun.) after being flown for a week to mark the sesquicentennial of the U.S. Civil War and mark how the Old Capital appeared in 1863, the Confederate flag comes down in Raleigh, N.C. after objections by civil rights orgs. On Mar. 31 Muslims slaughter 50 Christians in Barkin Ladi, C Nigeria - happy Easter? On Mar. 31 Muslims bomb a building housing a women's rights org. in Peshawar, Pakistan. On Mar. 31 Iranian brig. gen. Mohammad Reza Naghdi utters the soundbyte "The American empire will all in 2013", saing that he's backed by supreme leader Assahollah Khamenei. On Mar. 31 extremist Muslims stone Jews attempting to access the Temple Mount in Jerusalem on the 7th day of Passover. On Mar. 31 Am. Muslim ? drives his pickup trup through a parking lot in San Jose, Calif., hitting parked cars, then drives it into the front of a Walmart store, getting out and assaulting shoppers until police arrest him. On Mar. 31 police in Azerbaijan arrest Muslim theologian Taleh Bagirzadeh (1982-) and charge him with drug possession, causing a Muslim protest on Apr. 1 in Imam Hussain Square in Baku, and another on Apr. 2 in Lenkoran. In Mar. 2013 the Peterborough Ditch Murders in Cambridgeshire, England see the bodies of three dumped in ditches outside Peterborough during a 12-day killing spree by sadistic "man woman" Joanna Dennehy (1982-) ("Uma Thurmna from Kill Bill"), who is sentenced to life in prison; her accomplices in disposing of the bodies 7'3" Gary Stretch (1976-) and Leslie Layton (1986-) are also convicted. In Mar. the Coalition for the Homeless pub. the report State of the Homeless 2013, claiming that 50K homeless are sleeping in New York City's municipal shelter system, incl. 21K children, greatest since the Great Depression, up 19% in one year. On Apr. 1 a suicide attacker at a police HQ in Tikrit, Iraq kills nine and injures 17. On Apr. 1 Lebanese Sunni gunmen kidnap eight Alawite Syrians and demand a hostage exchange. On Apr. 1 Palestinian Authority Chmn. Mahmud Abbus signs an agreement with Jordanian king Abdullah II confirming their "common goal to defending" Jerusalem, and their opposition to efforts to "Judaize" it. On Apr. 1 Syrian rebel fighters blast the Muslim Brotherhood for "delaying victory" by trying to dictate their politics. On Apr. 1 the North Korean parliament meets to shift away from warlike rhetoric, appointing new PM Pak Pong Ju (until ?), who focuses on economic development in a country where two-thirds of the 24M pop. face regular food shortages. On Apr. 1 the Police Service of Scotland is created from eight regional police forces. On Apr. 1 the historic Jobar Synagogue in Damascus, Syria is looted. On Apr. 1 the Indian Supreme Court rules against Swiss pharmaceutical co. Novartis, paving the way for cheap generic drugs in India. On Apr. 1 an anon. hacker releases a draft statement from Hillary Clinton, claiming that in her 2016 pres. run she will become the first candidate to formally endorse legalizing polygamy, polyamory, and adultery. On Apr. 1 the Mogadishu Music Festival in Somalia takes aim at Al-Shabaab. On Apr. 1 Burma allows privately-own newspapers to be sold for the first time since 1964. On Apr. 1-6 Turkey breaks its truce with Kurdish separatists by bombarding Kurdish positions. On Apr. 2 after being launched in 1997 by Costa Rican pres. Oscar Arias, the U.N. Gen. Assembly votes 154-3-23 (Iran, North Korea, Syria) to adopt the U.N. Arms Trade Treaty (ATT) regulating internat. trade in conventional weapons, effective Dec. 24, 2014 after 50 states ratify it; it is eventually signed by 94 states, with 41 signing but not ratifying it, incl. the U.S., which signs on Sept. 25 but is swayed by a chain email claiming that Pres. Obama is trying to take the "first major step in a plan to ban all firearms in the U.S." On Apr. 2 North Korea announces the intention to resume activities in the Youngbyon Nuclear Complex, which has been closed since 2007; U.S. officials announce concerns that pesky North Korea can explode a nuke over the U.S. with their "space launch vehicle", positioning warships closer to North Korea, and also reveal that China has been increasing its military presence on the North Korean border since mid-Mar. along with naval drills in the Yellow Sea, while experts reveal that the 2013 North Korean nuclear test may have been conducted with a uranium nuke rather than a plutonium one. On Apr. 2 Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan militants attack a power station in Peshawar, Pakistan, killing 7+ and taking 10 hostages. On Apr. 2 after an outbreak of food poisoning at Al-Azhar U. that hospitalizes 500, hundreds of Egyptian students storm the offices of Al-Azhar Mosque grand imam Ahmed el-Tayed. On Apr. 2 Palestinian prisoners in Israeli jails stage protests over the alleged maltreatment of Maysara Abu Hamdiya (b. 1948), who died on Apr. 2 of throat cancer. On Apr. 2 yet another protest in Dhaka, Bangladesh. On Apr. 2 police find nine mutilated bodies in a SUV with Tex. license plates in Tamaulipas, Mexico. On Apr. 2 quarry collapse in Arusha, Tanzania kills 13. On Apr. 2 police arrest three Sinhalese Buddhist monks in Colombo, Sri Lanka for burning down a Muslim-owned clothing store. On Apr. 2 Hamas reelects Khaled Meshaal as its leader, and orders gender segregation in Gaza schools starting in Sept. On Apr. 2 a fire at a Muslim religious school in Yangon, Burma burns 75 orphans alive. On Apr. 2 (night) after three missiles are fired at Israel, Israeli jets carry out strikes on Jabal al Rayes, Gaza, the first Gaza strike since the Nov. 21, 2012 Pillar of Defense ceasefire. On Apr. 2 the Associated Press (AP) drops the term "illegal immigrant" from its stylebook. On Apr. 3 sudden floods in Argentina kill 46+. On Apr. 3 Mingo County, W. Va. sheriff Eugene Crum, known for his war on illegal drugs is killed in front of a courthouse in Williamson by 37-y.-o. Tennis Melvin Maynard. On Apr. 3 Christian pres. of the All Pakistan Minorities Alliance Sindh Chapter Saleem Khursheed Khokhar is unsuccessfully attacked by a drive-by shooter en route to Karachi from Badin. On Apr. 4 hours after the U.S. announces the deployment of an ABM defense system to Guam, North Korea threatens a nuclear attack on the U.S., causing the U.S. to respond by more redeployment of military forces, announcing that if attacked, it will seek a regime change there. On Apr. 4 thousands of Palestinians protest in East Jerusalem over the death of Mai-sara Abu Hamdiyeh, who died on Apr. 2 of throat cancer while serving a life sentence in an Israeli jail. On Apr. 4 French pres. Francois Holland makes his first state visit to Morocco. On Apr. 4 Maj. Gen. Ralph Baker of U.S. Africa Command is fired for alcohol and sex charges. On Apr. 4 topless feminists stage anti-Islamist oppression rallies in front of mosques and Tunisian embassies in Berlin, Germany and across Europe, protesting Islamist crackdowns on Arab women's rights. On Apr. 4 a tower block collapses in Mumbai, India, killing 47 incl. 17 children, and injures 70, causing a police search for the builders. On Apr. 4 the Teachers' Union of Ireland (TUI) becomes the first academic union in Europe to academically boycott Israel to please the Palestinians, calling it an "apartheid state". Pres. Obama becomes the Emperor With No Clothes vis a vis his Muslim appeasement policy? On Apr. 4-7 Iran holds nuclear talks with six world powers, which results in no end to Iran's nuclear ambitions; instead, on Apr. 9 (Iranian Nat. Day of Nuclear Technology) Pres. Imadinnajacket announces two new nuclear-related projects. On Apr. 5 Pres. Obama pledges to return 5% of his salary to the U.S. Treasury to show solidarity with federal workers facing $85B in spending cuts. On Apr. 5 the U.N. announces that it's cutting food distribution to Gaza for "days or even weeks" in protest of its HQ being stormed by protesters. On Apr. 5 a fight between Muslim and Buddhist detainees in Myanmar kills eight. On Apr. 5 supporters of Sunni Islam's top religious authority al-Azhar clash with supporters of Muslim Brotherhood pres. Mohammed Mursi in Alexandria, Egypt, injuring dozens. On Apr. 5 Pres. Obama pledges $200M to Jordan to take care of Syrian refugees. On Apr. 5, U.S. vice-pres. Joe Biden utters the soundbyte at the 28th Annual Conference of the U.S. Export-Import Bank that "the affirmative task we have now is to actually create a new world order"; he repeats his call for a new world order on Mar. 21, 2022 at a secretive meeting at the Business Roundtable CEO Quarterly Meeting with leaders in energy, manufacturing, and retail. On Apr. 5-6 (anniv. of the Apr. 6 Yough Movement) Muslim-Christian clashes near Cairo, Egpt kill five and injure eight. On Apr. 6 a suicide car bomb in S Afghanistan kills three U.S. soldiers and two U.S. civilians incl. U.S. ambassador Anne Smedinghoff, becoming the deadliest attack against U.S. forces so far this year. On Apr. 6 a U.S. air strike against Taliban leaders in Shigal, Kunar Province, Afghanistan kills 17 civilians incl. 12 children; Hamid Karzi holds both the Taliban and the U.S. responsible. On Apr. 7 (Sun.) (Holocaust Remembrance Day) the hactivist group Anonymous launches its 2nd cyberattack on Israel. On Apr. 7 Turkish foreign minister Ahmet Davutoglu meets with U.S. secy. of state John Kerry in Istanbul, and surprises him with a demand that Israel end all restrictions on Palestinians and lift the Gaza blockade before Turkey will restore ties. On Apr. 7 a battle in Kunar Province, Afghanistan between U.S.-backed Afghan forces and Taliban forces kills 20 incl. a U.S. civilian adviser and 11 Afghan children. On Apr. 8 WikiLeaks announces the Public Library of U.S. Diplomacy (PlusD), "the world's largest searchable collection of United States confidential, or formerly confidential, diplomatic communications." On Apr. 8 South Africa announces a single-dose $10 a mo. AIDS treatment drug. On Apr. 9 after his opponent Raila Odinga unsuccessfully contests the election, Uhuru Muigai Kenyatta (1961-), son of pres. #1 Jomo Kenyatta becomes pres. #4 of Kenya (until ?). On Apr. 9 a 6.3 earthquake in S Iran near Iran's only nuclear power station in Bushehr kills 30 and injures 800. On Apr. 9 the Nat. Iranian Am. Council (NIAC) is order to pay $183K in sanctions after losing a defamation suit against Iranian-Am. writer Hassan Daioleslam for allegedly defaming them by claiming that they lobbied U.S. officials on behalf of Iran. On Apr. 10 Ghabagheb, Syria and nearby al-Sanamayn are attacked by Syrian forces. On Apr. 10 Mark Zuckerberg launches the lobbying group Fwd.us to influence education and immigration legislation. On Apr. 11 Uruguay legalizes same-sex marriage, making it #3 in America after Canada and Argentina. On Apr. 11 Pres. Obama's approval rating drops to 47%, vs. 51% when he was reelected, and the first under-50 rating since last Aug. On Apr. 11 a Syrian army assault in Daraa Province, S Syria kills 57 incl. six children, 16 rebels, and 12 army troops. On Apr. 11 an unclassified Pentagon report reveals that North Korean may have nuclear-tipped missiles. On Apr. 12 the IMF recognizes Somalia after 22 years. On Apr. 12 Israeli Pres. Shimon Peres utters the soundbyte: "I have no doubt that if diplomatic talks fail with Iran and Tehran doesn't stop accelerating its nuclear development, U.S. Pres. Barack Obama will conduct a military attack against Iran." On Apr. 12 the historical fantasy series Da Vinci's Demons debuts on Starz Network for (until Dec. 26, 2015), starring Tom Riley as young Leonardo da Vinci, who is implicated in the political schemes of the Medici and Pazzi families and get hooked up with the Sons of Mithras cult on his quest to uncover the "Book of Leaves". On Apr. 12-14 the Muslim World League (MWL) holds its first-ever conference in Nigeria (Sokoto). On Apr. 13 despite U.S. pressure, Palestinian Authority PM Salam Fayyad resigns, and on June 6 English prof. Rami Hamdallah (Abu Walid) (1958-) becomes PM #15 of the Palestinian Authority (until ?), but it is disputed, and on June 20 he offers to resign; on June 2, 2014 his incumbency is no longer disputed. On Apr. 13 Syrian forces destroy the Omari Mosque in Daraa, where the uprising erupted two years earlier. On Apr. 14 (10:25 p.m.) a 5.2 earthquake near Fukushima, Japan. On Apr. 14 Turkey becomes the first country with an ambassador to Palestine, Sakir Ozkan Torunlar. On Apr. 15 (Patriots Day) (101st anniv. of the birthday of Kim Il Sung) (2:49 p.m. EDT) the Boston Marathon Bombings see two bombs packed with ball bearings go off 10 sec. and 90m apart at the finish line of the Boston Marathon, killing three and injuring 176 incl. eight children, leaving many runners without legs after finishing the 26.2 mi. marathon (23K runners); at 4:30 p.m. another explosion occurs at the JFK Pres. Library and Museum 1 mi. away, but it was planned by authorities as part of a drill?; Muslims in Gaza dance in the streets at news of the bombing; after being tackled by bystanders, Saudi Muslim Abdul Rahman Ali Alharbi (1993-) is arrested, then released and deported after Pres. Obama holds an emergency meeting on Apr. 17 with Saudi foreign minister Prince Saud al-Faisal; at ? p.m. Pres. Obama gives a televised speech, with the soundbyte that those responsible will "feel the full weight of justice"; on Apr. 16 he gives a press conference, calling the bombings an "act of terror"; on Apr. 19 after they hijack the Mercedes of Chinese-Am. engineer Dun "Danny" Mengin, and he escaped to a Mobil gas station on Memorial Dr. in Cambridge, the FBI publicizes a photo showing two Muslim Chechen suspects, Dzhokhar Anzorovich "Jahar" Tsarnaev (1993-) and his older brother Tamerlan Tsarnaev, who is killed in a shootout with police overnight on Apr. 18 that kills MIT police officer Sean A. Collier; Dzokhar runs over his older brother Tamerlan in his car while trying to escape, then is caught hiding in a boat behind a man's home, leaving a confession note that contains the soundbyte "When you attack one Muslim you attack all Muslims"; they build pressure cooker bombs using instructions given in the al-Qaida Inspire mag. article "How to Cook a Bomb in the Kitchen of Your Mom"; on May 30 Inspire, Issue #11 is released, claiming credit for motivating the bombing, and promising more; the whole affair torpedoes Pres. Obama's lalaland rhetoric about Islam, and reveals how he's shackled the FBI and DHS so they can't do their jobs? On Apr. 15 Iraq's Bloody Mon. sees 75 killed and 356 wounded, incl. 30 dead and 92 wounded in Baghdad. On Apr. 15 Turkish pianist Fazil Say (1969-) is sentenced to 10 mo. suspended for insulting Islam on Twitter. On Apr. 15 a 5-y.-o. girl is kidnapped from her home in New Delhi, India by 22-y.-o. Manoj Kumar, who rapes and tortures her, causing outrage and protests against police. On Apr. 16 a 7.7 earthquake (biggest in 50+ years) hits Iran, killing 46+ and swaying skyscrapers as far as New Delhi. On Apr. 16 the Islam and Just Transition in Syria Conference in Istanbul convenes; Syrian nat. coalition pres. Ahmaz Moaz al-Khatib utters the soundbyte that he's against calls for an Islamic state because Syria is a country where moderate Islam dominates. On Apr. 16 the Pathways to 100% Renewable Energy in San Francisco, Calif. convenes. On Apr. 16 the U.S. Senate Foreign Relations Committee approves a resolution to assist Israel it it's forced to take action against Iran. On Apr. 16 the price of gold falls below $1.4K, sparking a buying frenzy in India and China. On Apr. 16 letters are sent to Pres. Obama and U.S. Miss. Sen. Robert Wicker containing ricin; on Apr. 17 Paul Kevin Curtis of Corinth, Miss. is arrested, and released on Apr. 27, and James Everett Dutschke (1971-) of Tupelo, Miss. is arrested. On Apr. 17 Iraq executes 21 nationals on terror charges, drawing internat. condemnation. On Apr. 17 Muslim militants from the Sinai Peninsula in Egypt fire two rockets into the southern resort town of Eilat, Israel; nobody is hurt. On Apr. 17 New Zealand becomes the first country in Asia to legalize same-sex marriage. On Apr. 17 a series of explosions at the West Fertilizer plant in West, Tex. injure 160+. On Apr. 17 200+ mostly Bangladeshi strawberry workers demanding back pay are fired on by supervisors in Manolada, Greece, injuring 20+. On Apr. 17 the U.S. Senate by ?-? defeats background checks for guns legislation, pissing-off Pres. Obama, who calls his opponents deliberate liars and says it is "a pretty shameful day for Washington". On Apr. 18 after a Pakistan court revokes his bail and order his arrest on treason charges, former military leader (1999-2008) Pervez Musharraf flees the court with his security team to a protected compound outside Islamabad, which doesn't stop them from arresting him, which he calls "politically motivated". On Apr. 18 the U.S. House passes the Cyber Intelligence Sharing and Protection Act (CISPA), which makes it easier for the federal govt. to get Internet user personal info. On Apr. 18 U.S. state secy. John Kerry tells the House Foreign Affairs Committee that the 2-state solution in Israel maybe dead within two years. On Apr. 18 suicide bomber in Amiriya, Iraq kills 32 and wounds 65; others kill 15 more and wound 12 more. On Apr. 18 New York City police arrest Muslin teen Stephan Stowe (1995-) for taunting a Jewish subway rider, causing a wild melee. On Apr. 18-23 the 2nd Internat. Psychedelicscience 2013 Conference is held in Oakland, Calif. On Apr. 19 a suicide bomber in a cafe in Baghdad, Iraq kills 27. On Apr. 19 Mexico passes a telecommunications bill aimed at increasing competition. On Apr. 19 a 7.0 earthquake in Sichuan, China kills 156 and injures 5.5K. On Apr. 19 thousands of Muslim Brotherhood supporters demand the removal of justice minister Ahmed Mekki, who resigns on Apr. 22. On Apr. 19 Okla. gov. Marry Fallin signs an Okla. Anti-Sharia Bill, which passed by 70%. On Apr. 19 Garry Trudeau's political satire series Alpha House debuts on Amazon TV, based on real Dem. legislators who share a row house in Washington, D.C. (Sen. Dick Durban of Ill., Sen. Chuck Schumer of N.Y., and Rep. George Miller of Calif.), starring John Stephen Goodman (1952-) as U.S. Sen. Gil John Biggs (R-N.C.), J. Clark (Clarque) "Slappy" Johnson (1954-) as U.S. Sen. Robert Bettencourt (R-Penn.), Matt Mallow (1963-) as Mormon U.S. Sen. Louis Laffer (R-Nev.), and Mark Andrew Conseuelos (1971-) (husband of Kelly Ripa since 1991) as U.S. Sen. Andy Guzman (R-Fla.); comedian Bill Murray guest-stars as Sen. Vernon Smits. On Apr. 20 a female suicide bomber detonates outside a hospital in Khar, Bajaur, Peshawar, killing four. On Apr. 21 elections in Iraq are the first since the U.S. military withdrawal. On Apr. 21 an agreement between Serbia and Kosovo is signed normalizing relations. On Apr. 21 80+ corpses are found in Jdeidet al-Fadel, Syria near Damascus, revealing a massacre. On Apr. 21 tobacco magnate Horacio Manuel Cartes Jara (1956-) of the conservative Colorado Party is elected pres. #50 of Paraguay, and is sworn-in on Aug. 15 (until Aug. 15, 2018). On Apr. 21 45K march against a same-sex marriage proposal sponsored by Pres. Francois Hollande in Paris, France; on Apr. 23 French lawmakers ? On Apr. 21-23 Elmar Mammady becomes the first Azerbaijani foreign minister to visit Israel. On Apr. 22 Ahmed Moaz al-Khatib resigns, and Christian George Sabra becomes interim chief of the Syrian Nat. Coalition, uttering the soundbyte that Bashar al-Assad's ally Hezbollah is "at war with the Syrian people", accusing them of fighting in Qusayr in Homs Province near the Lebanese border. On Apr. 22 Canadian police arrest Muslim jihadists Chiheb Esseghaier and Raed Jaser, accusing them of planning an al-Qaida style terrorist attack on an Amtrak-Via rail train. On Apr. 22 a heli carrying seven Turkish workers, two Russian pilots, and an Afghan is seized by the Taliban in Logar Province, Afghanistan after it is forced down by bad weather. On Apr. 22 Taliban militants attack a girls' school with poison gas in Taluqan, Afghanistan, injuring 74. On Apr. 22 U.S. secy. of state John Kerry in Brussels calls for a dialogue with "moderate Islam", saying "We have to speak to moderate Islam and find ways to get moderate Islam to fight and stand up for real basis of their religion rather than allowing it to be hijacked by people who completely misinterpret and misapply it and diminish the voice of moderation that is there. The vast majority are moderate." On Apr. 22 the Running for Boston Marathon in Jakarta, Indonesia sees Muslims running in solidarity with the Boston Marathon Massacre victims. On Apr. 23 (a.m.) a car bomb at the French embassy in Tripoli, Libya wounds two French guards and a Libyan teenager. On Apr. 23 (a.m.) Iraqi security forces raid a Sunni protest camp in Hawija, Iraq (near Kirkuk), causing a gunbattle that kills 23 incl. three soldiers. On Apr. 23 25K British Muslims gather in Aton Park to call for legislation to silence critics of Islam. On Apr. 23 Syrian Catholic metropolitans Boulos Yazigi and Youhanna Ibrahim are kidnapped outside Aleppo, and their driver murdered. On Apr. 23 a U.S. Congressional Report on the Benghazi Attack traces it to al-Qaida in the Maghbreb and al-Qaida-linked Ansar al-Sharia. On Apr. 23 France becomes country #14 to legalize same-sex marriage. On Apr. 24 after 2 mo. of political paralysis Enrico Letta is appointed interim PM of Italy (until ?). On Apr. 24 a shoddy 8-story clothing factory in Rana Plaza in Savar, Bangladesh (20 mi. from Dhaka) collapses, killing almost 400 and injuring hundreds, causing owner Sohel Rana (1977-) to be arrested. On Apr. 24 a clash between govt. forces and Muslim Uighurs in Xinjiang, China kills 21. On Apr. 24 Bill Gates kicks off the First Global Vaccine Summit in Abu Dhabi, saying that "zero is the number we need to get to". On Apr. 24 the Jerusalem District Court grants a victory to Women of the Wall (WOW), permitting them to pray at the Wailing Wall (Kotel) in Jerusalem; they filed their lawsuit in 1989. On Apr. 25 Israel shoots down a Hezbollah drone over the N coast while PM Benjamin Netanyahu is on a heli tour of the area. On Apr. 25 U.S. defense secy. Chuck Hagel announces that the U.S. has evidence that Syria has used chemical weapons against insurgents, passing the so-called "red line". On Apr. 25 the George W. Bush Pres. Library in Dallas, Tex. is dedicated by Pres. Obama. On Apr. 25 (Maundy Thur.) Pope Francis I washes the feet of a woman Muslim prisoner. On Apr. 26 a poll of 14K people in 13 countries by the German Bertelsmann Stiftung for Die Welt indicates broad-based concern about Islam and its compatibility with Western civilization, with 57% of East Germans and 49% of West Germans calling Islam a "threat", and 21% of East Germans and 31% of West Germans callit an "enrichment". On Apr. 27 the Taliban announce the start of their Drawn Sword of Allah spring offensive. On Apr. 27 the Jerusalem district court finally rules that women may wear prayer shawls (tallitot) to the Western Wall in Jerusalem. On Apr. 27 Salafi Sheikh Ahmad al-Assir gives a sermon in Abra, Lebanon calling for volunteers for his new Free Resistance Brigade to wage jihad against the Syrian regime of Bashar al-Assad. On Apr. 27 Russian authorities arrest 140 suspected Islamist extremists at a mosque in Moscow. On Apr. 27 a riot in San Luis Potosi Prison kills 17 and injures 65. On Apr. 27 Obama addresses the annual White House Correspondents' Dinner, making a joke where he says he was once a "strapping young Muslim Socialist"; the PC media deletes the word Muslim. On Apr. 28 a report by Brown U.'s Eisenhower Research Project claims that the U.S. wars in Afghanistan, Iraq, and Pakistan cost $4T and killed 225K. On Apr. 28 Iraq suspends Al Jazeera and nine other satellite TV channels for "unprofessional reporting". On Apr. 28 Gaza militants fire another rocket at S Israel, causing an Israeli retaliatory air strike. On Apr. 28 missiles from Syria cross the border and hit in Thneibat, Jordan, causing no casualties; on Apr. 30 the Israeli Air Forces carries out an airstrike against terrorist Hithem Ziad Ibrahim Masshal in the Gaza Strip. On Apr. 28 Russian foreign minister Mikhail Bogdanov meets with Hezbollah head Hassan Nasrallah in Lebanon, creating a new alliance. On Apr. 28 the Ghriba Synagogue in Tunisia opens its doors for the first time since protests broke out in 2011. On Apr. 29 an assassination attempt against Syrian PM Wael Al-Halqi in Mazzeh, Damascus fails, killing his bodyguard. On Apr. 29 five car bombs across Shiite areas of Iraq kill 26. On Apr. 29 Yemeni journalist Farea al-Muslimi testifies before a U.S. Senate subcommittee, telling them that "Drone strikes are the face of America to many Yemenis". On Apr. 29 Am. Muslim Ramineh Beehbehanian (1962-) is arrested for trying to sneak orange juice bottles spiked with a lethal dose of rubbing alcohol into a Starbucks coffee joint in San Jose, Calif., and charged with attempted murder. On Apr. 29 the May 6 issue of Sports Illustrated mag. carries a cover of Jason Paul Collins (1978-), 7'0" center for the NBA Washington Wizards, who becomes the first openly gay prof. athlete in North Am.; on Apr. 29 (night) Pres. Obama calls him to congratulate him for his courage. On Apr. 29 Iranian pres. Imadinnajacket is arrested by the Rev. Guard and held for questioning for seven hours. On Apr. 29 Japan and Russia finally agree to end World War II. On Apr. 30 queen (since 1980) Beatrix of the Netherlands abdicates in favor of her eldest son (prince of Orange) Willem-Alexander (1967-) (chmn. of the advisory committee on water, duh?), who becomes king of the Netherlands (until ?). On Apr. 30 the Arab League for the first time explicitly offers Israel land swaps and recognition, causing Israeli justice minister Tzipi Livni to call the news "very positive... it could allow the Palestinians to enter the room and make the needed compromises and it sends a message to the Israeli public that this is not just about us and the Palestinians". On Apr. 30 Muslim-friendly Netherlands Queen Beatrix abdicates in favor of her Muslim-friendly son Willem-Alexander who becomes king (until ?). On Apr. 30 Pres. Obama gives a talk on Syria, amending his red line talk to add that more verification is needed before he considers it to have been crossed. On Apr. 30 Israeli actor Evyatar "Napo" Borovsky is stabbed to death while waiting for a ride at the Tapuach Junction in Ariel S of Nablus in the West Bank; Fatah's Facebook page glorifies the event. On Apr. 30 Israeli jets bomb a chemical compound near Damascus, Syria. On Apr. 30-May 1 UAE pres. Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan makes his first state visit to the U.K. at the invitation of Elizabeth II, who visited UAE with hubby Prince Philip in 2010 to reaffirm their 1971 Treaty of Friendship; on May 1 Khalifa tells Prince Charles that Islam is a message of peace. On Apr. 30 Tokyo gov. Naoki Inose apologizes for saying that Muslim countries have nothing in common but Allah and "fighting with each other". On Apr. 30 Hezbollah head Hassan Nasrallah utters the soundbyte that "Syria has real friends in the region and in the world who will not allow Syria to fall into thehands of America or Israel or the Takfiris", admitting to supporting Bashar al-Assad. In Apr. Arie Perliger of the Combating Terrorism Center at the U.S. Military Academy at West Point pub. a Report on Extremists that labels the "violent far-right" as the enemy, citing the infamous far-left Southern Poverty Law Center. In Apr. Iraq has its deadliest month since June 2008, with 712 killed incl. 117 Iraqi security forces. In Apr. the names of 50 former guards at Auschwitz are dug up to continue prosecution. In Apr.-May after a 17-year hiatus, billions of cicadas infest the U.S. E coast. On May 1 14 members of the anti al-Qaida Sunni Awakening Council militia are killed in two attacks by militants near Fallujah, Iraq. On May 1 the Taliban assassinates Malim Shah Wali, a member of the Afghan High Peace Council in Helmand, making three members since fall 2011. On May 1 Syrian pres. Bashar al-Assad makes a rare public appearance at a power station in Damascus; meanwhile two bombs explode in C Damascus, killing one and wounding 24+. On May 1 three Kazakh Muslim college students are arrested on suspicion of aiding the Boston Marathon bombers. On May 1 two teenage boys attempt to open a cardbox near a store in Makhachkala, Dagestan, Russia, and it explodes, killing them. On May 1 Google recognizes a Palestinian state, changing the name of the page at www.google.ps from "Google - Palestinian Territories" to "Google - Palestine". On May 2 Syrian forces advance into Homs, and attack Baniyas, killing 60+. On May 2-3 Pres. Obama visits Mexico, touting border security, claiming that the U.S. has put "enormous resources" into it, and promoting the Senate's immigration bill; on May 3 he speaks in Mexico City, claiming that the U.S. is responsible for much of the crime and violence in Mexico because of the demand for drugs and illegal smuggling of guns across the border. On May 2 Rhode Island becomes state #10 to legalize same-sex marriage. On May 3 the U.S. Terror Watch List grows to 875K from 540K in 2008 due to rule changes caused by the 2009 Underwear Bomber. On May 3-July 6 the Solar Impulse by Swiss designers Bertrand Piccard and Andre Borschberg makes the first solar-powered airplane flight across the U.S. from San Francisco, Calif. to Washington, D.C. in 105 hours 41 min. (33.14 mph avg.). On May 5 Israel stages airstrikes on Syria for the 2nd time in three days, causing Repubs. to ramp up calls for Pres. Obama to take stronger action; meanwhile Egypt and the Arab League condemn Israel. On May 5 Turkish PM Recep Tayyip Erdogan utters the soundbyte about the pro-Assad militia massacre of 62+ Sunni civilians along with 200 in the Syrian coastal towns of Banias and Baida: "If Allah permits, we will see this criminal, this murderer [Assad] receive his judgment in this world, and we will be grateful to Allah for it." On May 6 a new report by the Heritage Foundation claims that granted amnesty to illegal immigrants would cost the U.S. $9.4T in costs of benefits and services. On May 7 U.S. state secy. John Kerry visits Moscow to hold talks with Russian foreign minister Sergei Lavrov, announcing a new push to get Assad's regime and rebels to end their conflict. On May 6 the Dallas Morning News reports that Latino students have surpassed white students in yee-haw Tex. On May 7 hardcore Muslis demolish homes of Ahmadiya Muslims in West java, causing gov. Ahmad Heryawan to utter the soundbyte that the violence would stop if the minority group disappears. On May 7 Syria goes dark on the Internet (until ?). On May 7 the Somalia Conference 2013 in London is hosted by PM David Cameron in an attempt to counter growing Turkish influence in Somalia. On May 8 after 20 intellectuals led by Noam Chomsky send him a letter urging him to boycott Israel, British physicist Stephen Hawking announces that he's cancelling his participation in the annual Israeli Pres. Conference. On May 8 at a conference at Catholic U. of the Sacred Heart celebrating Emperor Constantine's 313 Edict of Milan, Milan archbishop Cardinal Angelo Scola calls for abolition of blasphemy laws worldwide. On May 9 (a.m.) Malcolm Shabazz (b. 1984), grandson of Malcolm X is killed in a bar fight in Mexico City. On May 10 after denying it, the IRS admits that it targeted conservative and Tea Party groups for additional reviews during the 2012 election, causing Pres. Obama on May 13 to call the IRS actions "outrageous" and vow a full investigation; on May 15 he demands and receives the resignation of IRS dir. Steven Miller; too bad, he is replaced by Sarah Hall Ingram, who was in charge of tax-exempt orgs. in 2009 when the targeting of the Tea Party was going on. On May 10 Muslims bomb the St. Joseph Catholic Church in Arusha, Tanzania during its first-ever Mass, killing three and injuring 60+. On May 10 a bombing near a Sunni mosque near Baghdad, Iraq kills three and wounds seven. On May 10 Sudan's High Committee for Mobilization and Alert meets with imams over recent attacks in Kordofan by the rebel Sudan Rev. Front (SRF), asking them to call for jihad. On May 10 ex-Conn. Sen. Joe Lieberman utters the soundbyte that it's not just al-Qaida but "violent Islamic extremism" that drives terrorists like the Tsarnaev brothers. On May 10 a Pew Poll reveals that 79% of Palestinian Arabs view the U.S. unfavorably, vs. 16% of Israelis; 15% believe that the Palestinian Authority has a good relationship with the U.S. govt., vs. 94% of Israelis; 61% of Palestinians believe that there are no prospects for Palestinian statehood, vs. 38% of Israelis; 41% of Palestinians believe that Pres. Obama should have an increased role in the conflict, vs. 49% of Israelis. On May 11 two car bombs in Reyhanli, Turkey near the Syrian border kill 43 and wound 143; Turkish PM Recep Tayyip Erdogan blames it on Syrian refugees who "want to agitate sensitivities"; Turkish interior minister Muammer Guler says it was "linked to the Syria regime and intelligence agency"; on Apr. 4, 2014 Turkish ambassador Tacan Ildem admits it was carried out by al-Qaida. On May 11 elections in Pakistan are marred by bombings that kill 16; 40-y.-o. woman Badam Zari beomes the first woman to run for parliament in Pakistan's NW tribal region; Nawaz Sharif, head of the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz Party is the winner, becoming PM of Pakistan for the 3rd time on ? (until ?), questioning Pakistan's cooperation with the U.S.-led war on Islamic extrmists and critizing the use of drones. On May 11 Coptic social studies teacher Demyana Emad (1989-) is arrested in Luxor, Egypt for insulting Prophet Muhammad in front of her class. On May 11 U.S. Gen. Martin Dempsey fires Lt. Col. Matthew Dooley for teaching a course to soldiers on how to fight Islam and jihad. On May 11 Egypt arrests three militants tied to al-Qaida for planning attacks on Egptian cities and the U.S. embassy in Cairo. On May 11 (night) the roof of a mosque under construction in UAE collapses, killing one and injuring 17. On May 12 (Sun.) a shooting at the New Orleans Mother's Day Parade injures 18 incl. 2 children. On May 12 Israeli jets attack Damascus, pissing-off Russian PM Vladimir Putin, who warns that further attacks won't be tolerated; meanwhile he plans on selling S-300 AA systems and nuclear-capable 9K720 Iskander (SS-26 Stone) surface missiles to Syria, causing Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu tries to reason with him; Israel's attacks on Syria are meant to lure Iran into responding so they can counterattack its nuclear facilities? - Russia is Magog in the Bible? On May 12 a suicide vehicle bomb in Quetta, Balochistan, Pakistan kills six and injures 40+, narrowly missing the police chief. On May 12 an explosion at the Taozigou Mine in Luzhou, China kills 27 and injures 16. On May 12 Canadian astronaut Chris Hadfield (1959-) records a cover of David Bowie's 1969 "Space Oddity" on the Internat. Space Station, altered so that Major Tom lands safely, becoming the first music video shot in space. On May 13 Pres. Obama holds a joint press conference with British PM David Cameron, calling the Benghazi investigation by the House Oversight Committee a "political circus". On May 13 Iranian pres. Imadinnajacket accompanies his hand-picked successor Esfandiar Rahim Mashaei to register for the June 14 pres. election; a violation of Iranian law, he could face 74 lashes? On May 13 after a gruesome trial that pisses-off abortion foes, Philly abortionist doctor Kermit Gosnell (1940-) is found guilty of 1st degree murder of three later-term babies who were delivered alive before he snipped their necks with scissors, and one female patient that ODed during an abortion operation; he receives three er, life sentences. On May 13 Minn. Somali Muslim Kamal Said Hassan is sentenced to 10 years in prison for his role in the Minn. Pipeline that funneled young Minn. Muslims to Somalia to fight in the civil war; Mahamud Said Omar is sentenced to 20 years; seven more are sentenced the same week. On May 13 a car bomb near a hospital in Benghazi, Libya kills 10. On May 13 a Lebanese man is sentenced to 300 lashes and 6 years in priz for helping Saudi woman Maryam the Girl of Khobar convert to Christianity in Saudi Arabia; a Saudi men gets 200 lashes and 2 years for helping her escape to Sweden. On May 13 a roadside bomb in Helman District, Afghanistan kills three Georgian soldiers. On May 13 2nd Lt. Niloofar Rhmani (1991-) becomes the first female pilot in the Afghan Air Force in 30 years. On May 13 a Yemeni Sukhoi SU-22 fighter jet crashes, causing Yemeni Gen. Rashed al-Janad to claim sabotage, pointing to another crash on Feb. 19 in Sana'a that killed 12 incl. the pilot. On May 13 (8 p.m.) French priest Father Gregoire is assaulted and battered by a madass Muslim in Saint-Ruf; on May 14 Monsignor Cattenoz, archbishop of Avignon denounces the attack, saying that "People of the Muslim faith are taking control of the district." On May 13 U.S. diplomat Ryan Christopher Fogle is arrested in Russia and expelled for being a spy; he was trying to recruit an expert on Dagestan because of the Boston Marathon Bombing? On May 14 Muslim Brotherhood leader Sheikh Yusuf al-Qaradawi visits the Gaza Strip with 50 Muslim leaders from 14 countries to express support for Hamas and diss the moderate Fatah faction of Mahmoud Abbas. On May 14 Jerusalem mufti is arrested for throwing chairs at Jews on the Temple Mount in Jerusalem, causing the Jordanian parliament on May 15 to demand that King Abdullah expel the Israeli envoy and scrap the peace treaty with Israel. On May 14 a roadside bomb in Kandahar Province, Afghanistan kills three U.S. soldiers. On May 14 an audit by the U.S. govt. finds that Australia ripped-off U.S. contractors for nearly $1B with phony taxes and fees. On May 14 the U.S. stages the first-ever successful carrier drone launch, a bat-winged X-47B stealth drone. On May 14 Fatah and Gaza announce that they've agreed to form a unity govt. within 3 mo., ending their 6-year split. On May 14 the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights claims that the death toll in Syria is between 94K and 120K, incl. 41K Alawites. On May 14 Saudi Arabia confirms six new cases of the SARS-like coronavirus in its Eastern Province, adding to 24 cases since last year that killed 15. On May 14 (7:30 p.m.) Boko Haram assassinates Rev. Ayo Oritsajafor, pres. of the Christian Assoc. of Nigeria (CAN). On May 14 the Internat. Energy Agency (IEA) releases its 2013 Medium-Term Oil Market Report (MTOMR), saying that the surge in North Am. oil production is creating a supply shock that will transform the market over the next five years as much as the rise of Chinese demand over the last 15 years. On May 14 the EU begins pushing Swiss banks to end their secrecy to go after tax evaders; ditto Liechtenstein banks. On May 15 after terrorist violence, Nigerian pres. Goodluck Jonathan declares a state of emergency in the N states of Borno, Yobe, and Adamawa; too bad, on May 18 U.S. secy. of state John Kerry butts in, with the soundbyte: "We are... deeply concerned by credible allegations that Nigerian security forces are committing gross human rights violations, which, in turn, only escalate the violence and fuel extremism." On May 15 after mortar shells hit in the area of Mount Hermon, and Arabic newspapers talk about Hezbollah opening a "new front" against them on the Golan Heights, Israel sends an unprecedented warning to the Syrian regime that if it retaliates against any Israeli airstrikes it will bring down his regime. On May 15 British PM Cameron pledges a clampdown on immigration to counter the rise of the right-wing UK Independence Party (UKIP). On May 15 Turkish PM Recep Tayyip Erdogan lays the foundation stone for a super-mosque in Lanham, Md., which will be the largest in the W hemisphere. On May 15 (Nakba Day) the Arab Am. Civic Org. raises the Palestinian flag at city hall in Paterson, N.J. to push for Palestinian statehood, starting an annual tradition until ?. On May 16 a suicide car bomber attacks a NATO convoy in Kabul, Afghanistan, killing 15 incl. two U.S. soldiers and four civilian contractors, and wounding dozens. On May 16 former Egyptian finance minister Samir Radwan says that Egypt is "suffering the worst economic crisis since the 1930s." On May 16 the Mexican Superior Court reverses a Nov. 2012 ruling against Yahoo in favor of the Mexican Yellow Pages for $2.75B, reducing it to $172.5K. On May 16 the LulzSec Hackers are sentenced to prison in the U.K. for 24-32 mo. for their 2011 cyber attacks. On May 16 New York police break a $55M cigarette smuggling ring of 15 Palestinians linked to Muslims with ties to Hamas and other Islamic groups. On May 16 topless Femen protesters crash the opening the Barbie Dreamhouse Experience in Berlin, claiming it objectifies women. On May 16 federal authorities in Idaho arrest Uzbekistan national Fazliddin Kurbanov (1982-) for conspiring with a designated terrorist org. in his home country in a scheme to use a WMD. On May 16 a report by the Asian Center for Human Rights claims that India has 3K child soldiers. On May 16 Pres. Obama breaks protocol (and exceeds his authority?) by ordering a U.S. Marine to hold an umbrella over him during a Rose Garden press conference with Turkish PM Recep Tayyip Erdogan, in which they downplay their differences over Syria and announce they want to see Bashar al-Assad pave the way for a political transition. On May 16 U.S. asst. secy. of defense Michael Sheehan tells a Senate hearing that the war against al-Qaida will last "at least 10 or 20 years" more. On May 16 Mexican Gen. Alberto Reyes assumes control over all police and military operations in the chaotic drug-ridden state of Michoacan as part of a new strategy by pres. Enrique Pena. On May 16 Moroccan Muslim Mohamed jarmoune (1990-) is sentenced to 5 years for plotting a terrorist attack on the main Milan synagogue and Jewish school. On May 17 two bombs outside a Sunni mosque in Baquba, Iraq as worshippers leave after Fri. prayers kill 43+; other attacks kill 76+ in the Bagdead area, bringing the 3-day death toll to 130+. On May 17 the U.N. Refugee Agency (UNHCR) reports that 1.5M+ have fled Syria and registered with them, incl. 1M since Jan.; meanwhile the German govt. calls for a ban on jihadists returning from Syria for 2 years. On May 17 the Office for Nat. Statistics (ONS) in the U.K. announces that an analysis of the 2011 census which shows that one in 10 people under 25 are Muslim combined with the decline in Christians means that Islam will be the dominant religion in the U.K. in 10 years. On May 17 thanks to Pres. Obama, new Dept. of Homeland Security guidelines bow to Islam, making it official policy to consider specifically Islamic criticism of the U.S. system of govt. legitimate, with the warnings "Don't use training that equates radical thought, religious expression, freedom to protest, or other constitutionally-protected activity, including disliking the U.S. government without being violent", and "Trainers who equate the desire for Sharia law with criminal activity violate basic tenets of the First Amendment"; "Don't use programs that venture too deep into the weeds of religious doctrine and history. While interesting, such details will only be of use to the most specialized law enforcement personnel; these topics are not necessary in order to understand the community"; Pres. Obama has handed the DHS over to the Muslim Brotherhood?; His Majesty's, er, Obama's Justice Dept. is on the verge of ending First Amendment rights by prosecuting all who criticize or show disrespect to Islam, like the Muslim world wants? On May 17 Colo. sheriffs from 54 of 64 counties file a federal lawsuit contesting new gun restrictions by the Obama admin. justified by recent mass shootings. On May 17 a tornado in Tex. 70 mi. W of Dallas kills 6+. On May 17 (night) district police chief Abdul Ghani is killed by two Taliban motorcyclists in Charbagh, W Farah Province, Afghanistan. On May 18 hundreds of Muslims storm the office of Chinese man Lee Ping in Pakistani-administered Kashmir for allegedly desecrating a Quran by throwing it on the ground, causing his arrest. On May 18 lawmakers in Afghanistan block legislation protecting women's rights, citing Islamic Sharia. On May 18 Palestinian pres. Mahmoud Abbas visits Egypt, giving a press conference in Cairo, where he utters the soundbyte that Israel "must choose between building settlements and negotiating peace... Israel can easily leave settlements, as it has in the past. Israel gave up settlements in Sharm el-Sheikh and the Sinai, and removed 20 of them in just 24 hours" - and you Muslims can do ditto? On May 18 a string of attacks in Iraq kill 16; eight policemen guarding a highway between Jordan and Syria are kidnapped. On May 18 U.S. drones launch their first strike in Yemen in a month, killing four militants in a vehicle carrying explosives. On May 18 Raha Muharraq (1987-) becomes the first Saudi woman to summit Mt. Everest. On May 19 the al-Qaida affiliated Al-Nusra Front defaces and virtually obliterates Prophet Abraham's Place historical site in Ayn al-Urous near Ar-Raqqah; on ? they demolished the tomb of Prophet Muhammad's companion Hajar bin Adi, pissing-off Muslims worldwide. On May 19 Kenyan police kill Al-Shabaab "terror" couple" Felix Otuko and his wife after they throw grenades and wound five officers in an overnight standoff. On May 19 the govt.-banned 3rd Ansar Al-Shari'a Conference is held in Al-Qayrawan (Kairouan), Tunisia, with attendance of 40K+, organized by Sami Essid, former head of al-Qaida in Italy. On May 19 Iran hangs alleged spies Mohammad Heidari and Kourosh Ahmadi for allegedly working for the Mossad and CIA, respectively. On May 19 three newspaper employees are stabbed to death Media House in Agartala, India. On May 20 (5:49 a.m. local time) a 6.8 earthquake strikes off the coast of Puerto Quellon, Chile. On May 20 (3:00 p.m.) the EF5 2013 Moore Tornado hits Moore, Okla. with peak winds of 210 mph (340 km/h), killing 24 and injuring 377; on Mar. 25, 2015 the fifth tornado in five years hits Moore. On May 20 the Syrian gov. captures Qusayr from insurgents, opening the route from Damascus to Lebanon. On May 20 Yahoo acquires Tumblr for $1.1B in cash, promising to "not screw it up" like they did with Flickr and Geocities, making 26-y.-o. founder David Karp $250M. On May 20 two Pakistani nationals Sheikh Waseem Ul Haq (1972-) and Tahir Saeed (1961-) are extradited to the U.S. from the U.K. to face charges of illegal pharmaceutical shipments totalling $2M, incl. $780K to U.S. customers. On May 20 a massive 2-mi.-wide EF5 tornado in Oklahoma City, Okla. kills 91 incl. 20+ children. On May 20 Russian police raid a Taliban-trained Muslim terrorist hideout in Orekhovo-Zuyevo, killing two and arresting the third, with one commando wounded. On May 20 Muslim gunmen attack a polio team in Bajur Tribal Area, Pakistan along the Afghan border, killing a policeman escorting health workers. On May 20 leaders of the Mexican Nat. Action Party (PAN) stink themselves up by openly bickering. On May 20 a report by the U.S. State Dept. says that countries around the world have been using laws against blasphemy and apostasy to suppress political opposition, singling out China, Eritrea, Iran, Myanmar (Burma), North Korea, Saudi Arabia, Sudan, and Uzbekistan. On May 20 the CSCOPE curriculum system is ditched by Tex. after complaints that it's anti-Am. and pro-Islam. On May 20 a wave of bombings in Iraq kills 70+ Shiites. On May 20 a double bombing in Makhachkala, Dagestan kills 4 and injures 44. On May 20 the U.S. signs a letter of intent with Jordan pledging $200M to aid Syrian refugees. On May 20 the U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee by 13-5 approves the Gang of Eight Immigration Reform Bill S.744 sans gay rights and other side issues; five Repubs. vote against it, three for incl. Lindsey Graham, Orrin Hatch, and Jeff er, Flake. On May 20 radio station technician Mohammad Hassin Hashemi (1982-) is found murdered in Kapisa Valley, Afghanistan 18 days after disappearing. On May 20 a week of Palestinian violence in Judea and Samaria ends with 98 rock attacks and 17 firebombings. On May 20-22 Syrian forces fire on Israeli forces in the Golan Heights, causing Israeli Lt. Gen. Benny Gantz to warn Bashar al-Assad after an Israeli military vehicle is fired upon that Israel won't allow the Golan Heights "to bedome a comfortable sphere for Assad to operate from", and that if the situation worsens, Assad "will have to bear the consequences". On May 20 a gang of Muslims use machetes to attack two men at a barber shop in Accrington, England, seriously injuring them. On May 20-24 (night) after police shoot a man wielding a knife, 200 Muslims riot in Stockholm, Sweden, burning cars and injuring seven police officers. On May 20-28 the 2013 U.N. World Health Org. (WHO) assembly meets in Geneva; on May 22 it passes the resolution "Health Conditions in the Occupied Palestinian Terrority Including East Jerusalem, and in the Occupied Syrian Golan", singling out Israel; meanwhile it ignores the bloody mess in Syria. On May 21 another wave of seven bombings in Iraq kills 12+. On May 21 NATO begins equipment withdrawal from Afghanistan. On May 21 a poll by Fritz Wenzel finds that a majority of Americans want Pres. Obama impeached for the IRS scandal, the Benghazi scandal, and the AP phone record scandal. On May 21 Egyptian troops mistakenly fire on a Bedouin funeral in Sinai, during a search for kidnapped security personnel. On May 21 Saudi Arabia finally allows women to sit in soccer stadiums in special segregated areas; there are still no public physical education or sporting facilities for women. On May 21 the Peace Corps allows gay couples to volunteer together. On May 21 far-right historian Dominique Vesser (b. 1934) commits suicide over same-sex marriage and Islamization; on May 22 FEMEN topless activist Inna Schevchenko is arrested in Notre Dame Cathedral with "May Fascists Rest in Hell" tattooed on her body after the group places a call on its Facebook page to "all European Nazism... to follow the example... and immediately commit suicide of their believes excluding theirselves from the political arena in Europe... Hurry up, there is not so much place left on the sacrificial altar of Notre-Dame de Paris." On May 21 Iranian forces raid the Central Assemblies of God Church in Tehran, arresting Rev. Robert Aserian. On May 22 (a.m.) unarmed Chechen immigrant Ibragim Todashev is brutally shot and killed by the FBI and Mass. state police in Orlando, Fla. after eight hours of questioning about Tamerlan Tsnarnaev; his father Abdulbaki Todashev calls the killing "execution-style", demanding an investigation. On May 22 in a morning Mass, Pope Francis utters the soundbyte that the good deeds of atheists might get them to Heaven. On May 22 (2:20 p.m. local time) the Woolwich Beheadings see two Allah Akbar-shouting British-Nigerian Muslim jihadists Michael Olumide Adebolajo (1984-) (Muslim convert in 2003, who changed his name to Mujaahid) and Michael Adebowale (1990-) run over British soldier (drummer) Lee Rigby (b. 1987) with their car, then hack and behead him with a machete on the streets of Woolwich (SW London), England 200 yards from an army barracks he was heading to, then tell the ITV crew filming them his political reasons for it, with the soundbyte: "We swear by almighty Allah we will never stop fighting you. The only reason we have done this is because Muslims are dying every day. This British soldier is an eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth... There are many many ayah throughout the Quran that say we must fight them as they fight us" before being shot by police, causing anti-Islamists protests by the English Defence League (EDL) et al., whose leader Tommy Robinson utters the soundbytes "We're justified in our anger", and "I' don't care if they're offended. I'm offended every day", along with a coverup attempt by the PC media led by PM David Cameron, who calls the attack a "betrayal of Islam" then holds a special meeting of the Cobra security cabinet; deputy PM Nick Clegg utters the soundbyte that the attack "flies in the face of the peace and love that Islam teaches"; London mayor Boris Johnson utters the soundbyte "It is completely wrong to blame this killing on Islam"; ex-PM Tony Blair utters the Tony Blair utters the soundbyte: "There is not a problem with Islam. For those of us who have studied it, there is no doubt about its true and peaceful nature... But there is a problem within Islam, from the adherents of an idology that is a stain within Islam... It is not the province of a few extremists... The world view goes deeper and wider than it is comfortable for us to admit""; scout leader Ingrid Loyau-Kennett (1964-) becomes a hero for talking the jihadists into stopping before police arrive; the jihadists were influenced by British radical cleric Omar Bakri Mohammed?; radical British cleric Anjem Chaudhry utters the soundbyte that most Muslims would agree with the jihadists; on May 24 British authorities arrest two in conjunction with the beheading while tightening security; on May 25 7K EDL members march in Newcastle; in Nov. 2010 Adebolajo was detained in Kenya for trying to join Al-Shabaab in Somalia; on May 26 Cameron goes on vaction in Ibiza with his family, pissing-off many. On May 22 IRS head Lois Lerner testifies before Congress on the IRS scandal targeting conservatives for audits, taking the Fifth Amendment; too bad, she gives an opening statement first, claiming she did no wrong, causing S.C. rep. Trey Gowdy to point out that she has waived her Fifth Amendment privilege. On May 22 U.S. atty. gen. Eric Holder sends a letter to Congress, affirming that U.S. drones have killed four Americans, only one of whom was "specifically targeted". On May 22 Vt. legalizes assisted suicide. On May 22 (night) hordes of termites swarm New Orleans, La. On May 23 Pres. Obama gives a Speech on Counterterrorism, at the Nat. Defense U. in Ft. McNair, acknowledging what Eric Holder claimed on May 22 about Americans killed by U.S. drones, claiming that al-Qaida is nearly defeated since he took office ans is on "a path to defeat", that no "large scale" terrorist attacks have been staged in the U.S. since he took office, and promising to reduce drone strikes in places that are not overt war zones, incl. Pakistan, Yemen, and Somalia, raising the standard for foreign targets to the same level used for U.S. citizens, viz., those who pose "a continuing imminent threat to Americans" and can't feasibly be captured; he adds that America isn't at war with Islam, and that Muslims are a fundamental part of the Am. family, with the soundbytes "Force alone cannot make us safe. We cannot use force everywhere that a radical ideology takes root, and in the absence of a strategy that reduces the wellspring of extremism, a perpetual war, through drones or Special Forces or troop deployments will prove self-defeating, and alter our country in troubling ways"; "In fact, the success of American Muslims and our determination to guard against any encroachments of their civil liberties is the ultimate rebuke to those who say that we're at war with Islam"; during his speech he's heckled over Guantanamo Bay prison by Medea Benjamin of Code Pink, saying her voice "is worth listening to" before she's dragged away; on May 26 Repubs. slam obama's revamped counterterrorism plan, with S.C. Sen. Lindsey Graham uttering the soundbyte "At a time when we need resolve the most, we're sounding retreat"; meanwhile a Pentagon official utters the soundbyte that the war against al-Qaida could last up to 20 more years. On May 23 gunmen kill four Iraqi soldiers and wound four in Taji, Iraq 12 mi. N of Baghdad, then kill three more in Karma (near Fallujah). On May 23 a pair of suicide bombers from the al-Qaida-linked Movement for Tawhid and Jihad attacks a military barracks and French-run uranium mine in Arlit, Niger (N of Agadez), killing 19 incl. 18 soldiers. On May 23 the Boy Scouts of Am. opens its ranks to gay Scouts but not scout leaders. On May 23 U.S. secy. of state John Kerry meets with Israeli pres. Shimon Peres Jerusalem; on May 24 he meets with Israeli and Palestinian leaders, telling them to take "hard decisions" to revive the peace process; on May 26 he offers $4B in private investment to build Palestine. On May 23 a court in Ukraine bans Ukraine's first-ever gay pride rally. On May 23 (7:00 p.m.) the I-5 bridge in Mount Vernon, Wash. (60 mi. N of Seattle) collapses. On May 23 white British Muslim convert Ashraf Islam (1982-) is arrested after threatening to kill Prince Harry. On May 24 (2:30 a.m.) a massive train collision in Mo. collapses a highway overpass. On May 24 a 7.4 and 6.3 earthquake strike off the coast of Tonga. On May 24 (a.m.) Pres. Obama forgets to salute a Marine guard en route to the U.S. Naval Academy to give the commencement speech, and returns to do it over and shake his hand. On May 24 the Taliban attacks an Army police and army post in Syed Karam, Paktia, Pakistan; four Taliban fighters are KIA. On May 24 two Pakistani-descent British Muslims threaten to blow up Pakistan Internat. Airlines flight from Lahore to Manchester, England, causing the airliner to be intercepted by two RAF jets and the passengers arrested after landing in Stansted. On May 24 San Antonio, Tex. Muslim Wissam Allouce (b. 1968) is charged with lying on his entry application and trying to coverup his affiliation with Hezbollah when attempting to get a job with the Dept. of Defense. On May 24 the Turkish Parliament passes anti-alcohol legislation to please Islamists. On May 24-30 the rare Dance of the Planets occurs. On May 25 a car bomb on the Balad-Samarra Highway N of Baghdad, Iraq kills five Iranian pilgrims and wounds nine in a bus. On May 25 security officials announce that at least 28 were killed and 250 wounded in Sunni-Alawite clashes in Tripoli, Lebanon during the past week. On May 25 explosives being transported by Taliban militants prematurely denotate in front of a mosque in Kabul, Afghanistan, killing 12. On May 25 a gas cylinder explodes on a school bus in Gujrat, India, killing 16+ children. On May 25 female suicide bomber Madina Alieva (b. 1987), wife of two dead Islamists detonates in Makhachkala, Dagestan, injuring 18 incl. two children and five police officers. On May 25 2M worldwide march in protest of Monsanto Corp. for its production of genetically-modified organisms (GMO). On May 25 the Taliban stages an attack in Kabul, Afghanistan, killing one policeman and losing five of their own. On May 25 a mother flushes her newborn baby ("Baby 59") down a squat toilet in Pujiang County, Zhejiang Province, China, and is rescued by the authorities; on May 30 the boy is released into the custody of his maternal grandparents; the mother is not charged. On May 25 (6 p.m.) French soldier Cedric Cordiez on "anti-terrorist duties" in La Defence, Paris is stabbed in the throat by a North African Muslim wearing a hijab; after capture, he admits that he did it "on religious grounds". On May 25 Afghan authorities intercept an explosive-ladedn tractor in Daman District of Kandahar Province, Afghanistan. On May 25 Iran tells the U.S. that it has no need for U.S. bases in Afghanistan after 2014 despite Pres. Hamid Karzai stating on May 9 that it wants nine bases. On May 25 Hezbollah secy.-gen. Hassan Nasrallah admits that Hezbollah is fighting to support Bashar al-Assad's regime, causing Sunnis to begin calling for jihad against Hezbollah and Shiites. On May 26 clashes between Syrian rebels and Kurds in Ras el-Ein, Syria near the Turkish border kill 11. On May 26 two rockets hit the Hizbollah stronghold in Chiyah in S Beirut, wounding four Syrian workers; the Free Syrian Army denies responsibility, but one officer calls it a warning. On May 26 Columbia and FARC reach their first agreement on rural land reform, leaving five points on the agenda. On May 26 12 young people are kidnapped in broad daylight in the upscale Heaven Bar in Mexico City; their bodies are found in Aug. in a mass grave in a rural area; on Sept. 25 four police officers are arrested. On May 26-27 clashes between the Philippine army and Islamic Abu Sayyaf rebels in Mindanao kill 20 soldiers and seven militants in Sulu Province. On May 27 Myanmar (Burma) pres. Thein Sein becomes the first to visit the White House since 1966; meanwhile after Buddhist attacks on Muslims, Burma's Buddhist govt. limits Muslim immigrants to limit themselves to two children. On May 27 after a 9-day offensive (begun May 19), Syrian troops gain ground in Qusair; a Syrian TV journalist is killed covering the fighting; meanwhile Turkish deputy PM Beikir Bozdag utters the soundbyte that Hezbollah ("Party of Allah") should change its name to Party of Satan after killing thousands of Syrian civilians. On May 27 a report by the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) claims that one-fifth of U.S. kids have mental disorders, costing $247B a year. On May 27 the Iranian govt. closes a Central Assemblies of God Church in Tehran and imprisons the pastor. On May 27 inspired by the Woolwich Beheaders, three Muslim inmates at Full Sutton Prison in East Yorkshire, England led by al-Qaida lifer Parviz Khan kidnap and stab the warden in a 4-hour standoff with guards after the warden calls on inmates to pray to Allah, er, God for Lee Rigby. On May 27 (night) a green-on-green attack Kandahar, Afgahnistan kills seven sleeping Afghan policemen. On May 27 (night) Palestinian pres. Mahmoud Abbas and Israeli pres. Shimon Peres meet at the World Economic Forum in Jordan. On May 28 Nigerian pres. Mahamadou Issoufou utters the soundbyte that the Islamists who staged the twin attacks in Niger the week before are also planning assaults in Chad. On May 28 the World Health Org. suspends its polio eradication campaign in Peshawar, Pakistan after two workers are shot by the Taliban. On May 28 Alexander Michael Herrera (1989-) is arrested after he tries to open the door during an Alaska Airlines flight from Anchorage to Portland. On May 28 after a reports that a Muslim had set fire to a Buddhist woman, hundreds of enraged Buddhists burn a Muslim mosque and orphanage in Lashio, Myanmar (Burma). On May 28 6-7 Somali Muslim men randomly attack two joggers in Minneapolis, Minn.. On May 28 Ethiopia announces a planned diversion of the Blue Nile to facilitate the new Renaissance Dam, causing Egyptian pres. Muhammad Morsi on May 28 to announce that Egypt won't allow their share of the Nile to be diminished by "one drop". On May 28 Vatican spokesman Monsieur Silvano Maria Tomassi tells the U.N. Human Rights Council that 100K Christians are killed each year because of their faith. On May 29 the U.S. launches its first drone strike in Pakistan in six weeks, killing Waliur Rehman, #2 cmdr. of the Pakistani Taliban, who has a $5M bounty on his head by the U.S. On May 29 (3:00 a.m.) a Taliban suicide assault penetrates the governor's compound in Bazarak, Panjshir Province, Afghanistan, killing one policeman before being wiped out. On May 29 (5:30 p.m.) a suicide at a Red Cross office in Jalalabad, Afghanistan kills the guard; the Taliban denies responsibility. On May 29 Shanghui Internat. Holdings Ltd. buys Smithfield Foods Inc. for $4.72B, becoming the largest Chinese takeover of a U.S. co. On May 29 Vincent Aubin and Bruno Boileau take part in the first same-sex wedding ceremony in France in Montpellier amid massive protests, making France country #14 to permit same-sex marriage. On May 29 the European Court of Human Rights in Strasbourg, France rejects the appeals of three British Christians who claimed workplace discrimination. On May 29 three Femen activists are arrested in Tunisia after staging the first topless demonstration in an Islamic state. On May 29 Wal-Mart agrees to pay a $81.6M fine for "environmental crimes" incl. improper disposal of hazardous waste and pesticides. On May 29 the U.S.-based Uighur Human Rights Project pub. a study that claims that China has imposed a "bewildering" array of regulations on the practice of Islam by its minority Uighur pop. On May 30 a bomb in Bahrain injures seven policemen, causing 10 suspects to be arrested. On May 30 Saudi Arabia decides to confiscate all 'V for Vendetta' masks in the country. On May 30 Lebanese-Am. Muslim Sami Samir Hassoun is sentenced in Chicago, Ill. to 23 years in prison for attempting to blow up the Chicago Cubs baseball stadium. On May 30 after an internat. outcry, Iran amends its stoning law for convicted adulterers to permit judges to impose other forms of execution; the way the law worked was that women are buried up to their shoulders, but men only up to their waists, and if you can free yourself before dying, you are spared; meanwhile on May 31 the Pakistan Council of Islamic Ideology rules that DNA tests are not acceptable as evidence in rape cases because they're not mentioned in the Quran, which requires four male witnesses (24:13). On May 30 Indonesian pres. Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono is awarded the World Statesman Award by the New York City-based Appeal of Conscience Foundation, causing protests. On May 30 Turkish authorities confiscate 2kg of sarin gas from safe houses in Adana in S Turkey 150 km from Syria. On May 30-? the Powerhouse Fire in Angeles Nat. Forest N of Santa Clarita, Calif. On May 31 Syrian Nat. Coalition pres. George Sabra utters the soundbyte that they will not take part in proposed internat. peace talks in Geneva until Hezbollah forces withdraw from the conflict. On May 31 Nigerian Christian militant group MEND begins counterattacks against Muslims to protect Christians in S Nigeria. On May 31 1.7-mi.-long Asteroid 1998 QE2 flies by the Earth; it has its own moon. On May 31-June ? anti-Islamist protests in Taksim Square in Istanbul, Turkey against plans to Islamize Gezi Park by rebuilding an Ottoman military barracks used in 1909 by Sultan Abdul Hamid II to stop liberal reforms escalate into protests against the oppression of the Erdogan govt. and in favor of a return to the reforms of Kemal Ataturk, spreading to Ankara, causing talk of a Turkish Summer; on June 11 (a.m.) riot police invade and disperse the protesters; on June 18 labor unions join with a 1-day strike. On May 31 the 50-delegate Pakistan Christian Congress (PCC) meets in Lahore, vowing to end reserved seats for minorities in parliament and fight for equal rights for Christians. On May 31 another tornado in Oklahoma City, Okla. kills five and injures 50, littering I-40 with wrecked cars. On May 31 after finding that Monsanto GMO wheat has gotten loose and spread to non-GMO fields in Ore., Japan cancels a large contract to purchase U.S. wheat. On May 31 Manssor (Mansour) Arbabsiar (1954-) is sentenced in New York City to 25 years in prison for a plot to murder the Saudi ambassador to the U.S. On May 31 R. Guy Erwin becomes the first gay priest in the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Am., becoming the 2nd denomination after the Episcopal Church. In May the Russian Pacific Fleet enters the Mediterranean for the first time in decades, forming a permanent task force. In May Chinese PM Li Keqiang gives a speech announcing that the govt. is going to allow private businesses and market forces to play a larger role in the economy to improve living conditions for the middle class and increase global competitiveness. In May Bradford County Courthouse in Fla. signs an agreement with Am. Atheists to allow them to place their Atheist Ten Commandments next to the Biblical one. In May al-Qaids sets up a complaint dept. in Raqqa, N Syria. In May Pakistan-born students Rehana Kausar (1978-) and Sobia Kamar (1983-) become the first Muslim lesbians to wed in the U.K. In May Am. rocker Tom Petty calls contemporary country music "bad rock with a fiddle". On June 1 U.S. drones in Yemen kill eight AQAP militants in their frist strike in 12 days. On June 1 British-educated al-Najah U. dean Ram Hamdullah becomes Palestinian Authority PM (until ?). On June 1 the govt. of Iraq announces the breakup of an al-Qaida chemical weapons cell. On June 2 a new Pakistan Nat. Assembly is sworn in, becoming the first transition of power between democratically-elected civilian govts. in the nation's 66-year history. On June 2 the Egyptian supreme court rules that the Maglis al-Shura election law and other laws governing the election of the Islamist-dominated Senate (Shura Council) and constitution panel are illegal and have no legal authority, and that a new parliament must be elected. On June 2 the Gulf Cooperation Council unanimously declares Hezbollah a terrorist org. On June 2 an appeals court in Hamm, Germany rules that anybody who marries according to Muslim Sharia in a Muslim country and seeks a divorce in Germany must abide by the original terms. On June 2 (night) Hezbollah ambushes Syrian rebels in Ain el-Jawzeh 3km E of Baalbeck, killing 12. On June 3 Iran cuts off aid to Hamas for renouncing Bashar al-Aassad. On June 3 a suicide bomber at a boys' h.s. in Paktia Province, Afghanistan kills 10 Afghan students, two U.S. soldiers, and a policeman. On June 3 the U.S. Supreme (Roberts) Court rules 5-4 in Md. v. King that police can take DNA from arrestees without a warrant, with Anthony Kennedy calling it "a legitimate police booking procedure"; Antonin Scalia sides with the women (Ginsburg, Sotomayor, Kagan) in dissenting. On June 3 AQAP cmdr. Qasim al-Rimi releases an audio "Message to the American Nation", blaming the people as well as the govt., and promising mass casualties until the U.S. stops "attacking and oppressing" Muslim countries. On June 4 the Obama admin. imposes new sanctions on Iran, targeting its currency and auto industry. On June 4 the EU in Brussels balks at request by the U.K., U.S., and Israel to blacklist Hezbollah, with several govts. claiming that it would increase instability in the Middle East, and/or that its terrorist side hasn't been proven. On June 4 heavy rains in C Europe cause flooding in Prague, Czech., Passau, Germany and other cities, forcing thousands to evacuate, and killing 10. On June 4 a large U.S. military force disembarks at Aqaba, Jordan to be deployed on the Syrian border. On June 4 Obama sock puppet U.S. atty. William C. "Bill" Killian of Tenn. holds a public meeting in Manchester, Tenn. to a packed house and hostile crowd of 2K, giving a speech titled "Public Disclosure in a Diverse Society" threatening federal prosecution to anybody threatening Muslims, coming close to adding mere criticism or insulting of Islam a la Sharia, with the soundbytes "Some inflammatory material on Islam might run afoul of federal civil rights laws", and "We need to educate people about Muslims and their civil rights, and as long as we're here, they're going to be protected"; he makes the crowd listen to local Muslims lecturing down to them; activist Pamela Geller leads a protest against the event. On June 5 the strategic border town of Qusayr is captured by Bashar al-Assad's forces allied with Hezbollah, ramping up Sunni calls for jihad against Hezbollah and all Shiites; on June 6 al-Qaida leader Ayman al-Zawahiri calls for the overthrow of the Assad regime, followed by jihad against Israel "to liberate Palestine in order to set up an Islamic state, even if the West hates that and calls it terrorism and extremism." On June 5 Ft. Hood jihadist Maj. Nidal Hasan (1970-) appears in court as his own lawyer, uttering the soundbyte that he did it to protect "the leadership of the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan, the Taliban", exposing the Obama admin., which refused to charge him with terrorism and treason, allowing him to boast about it in court with impunity; on Aug. 6 his court-martial begins; on Aug. 28 after being convicted of 13 counts of premeditated and 32 counts of attempted murder, a panel unanimously recommends the death sentence; on Sept. 4 after he is forced to shave his Islamic beard upon arrival at Ft. Leavenworth, Kan., his lawyer threatens a lawsuit. On June 5 radical Hindus beat 20 Christian pastors in Andhra Pradesh, India, accusing them of forceful conversion of Hindus to Christianity. On June 6 the U.S. House of Reps votes along party lines 224-201 to reject Pres. Obama's policy of ending deportation of immigrants who were brought to the U.S. illegally as children. On June 6 a Taliban suicide attack in Helmand Province, Afghanistan kills six Georgian soldiers, causing Georgia to close three bases in Helmand Province. On June 6 Syrian troops recapture the crossing between Syria and the Golan Heights; meanwhile Israeli forces are put on alert on the Syrian border. On June 6 the Washington Post reports that the U.S. govt. has been running the secret Project Prism that mines data directly from Google, Facebook, Microsoft, Apple, and other servers. On June 6 Austria announces that it's pulling its U.N. peacekeeper force out of the Golan Heights after battles there between Syrian forces and rebels; on June 7 the U.N. rejects an offer from Russia to replace its Golan peacekeepers - not Gog and Magog Time? On June 6 Russian police arrest Yulay Davlatbayev in Moscow, alleging that his Islamist cell is planning a series of attacks. On June 7 Turkish PM Recep Tayyip Erdogan returns from the U.S., and is greeted by 10K supporters at the airport in Istanbul, telling them that the protests must end. On June 7 U.S. drones kill six in N Waziristan. On June 7 ?, dressed in black with a vest and carrying an AR-15 shoots and kills seven and injures two near Santa Monica College minutes after Pres. Obama's motorcade passes by, and is later hunted down and killed by police. On June 7 an Iraqi Sunni bomber rams his car into a bus carrying Iranian Shiite pilgrims in Baghdad, Iraq, killing 9+. On June 7 six men in burkas armed with axes rob Selfridges Dept. Store in London. On June 7 a Muslim mob attacks the Roman Catholic Jisu Niloy Seminary in Bolakipur, India, beating the rector and some students. On June 7 Taliban cmdr. Bahadar (Mutaqi) Khan is killed in Shawal, North Waziristan as he is preparing to lead his fighters into Afghanistan. On June 7 the gov. of N.H. signs a bill granting 14 slaves who petitioned the N.H. legislature for it back on Nov. 12, 1779 their freedom. On June 7-8 Pres. Obama and new Chinese Pres. Xi Jingping have a summit at Sunnylands Retreat in Palm Springs, Calif.; Obama urges Jingping to cooperate on cybersecurity. On June 8 British PM David Cameron et al sign the Global Nutrition for Growth Compact, pledging $4.15B by 2020 to fight malnutrition. On June 8 Afghan soldiers fire on U.S. troops in E Afghanistan, killing two plus a civilian, and wounding three; meanwhile an Afghan policeman kills seven colleagues at a checkpoint in Helmand Province. On June 8 Boko Haram jihadists in Maiduguri, Nigeri pull their assault rifles from a coffin and kill 13 before being killed by security forces, who kill another eight. On June 9 the 2013 IRS Scandal begins when U.S. Rep. (D-Md.) Elijah Cummings releases portions of an IRS interview transcript that House Oversight and Govt. Reform Committee chmn. Darrell Issa (R-Calif.) previously refused to release, revealing abuses of the Be on the Look Out List (established Aug. 2010) targeting conservative and Tea Party groups for audits, causing an attempt to link it to Pres. Obama; on Sept. 23 after refusing to testify before Congress, IRS exempt orgs. div. head Lois Lerner retires after an internal investigation finds her guilty of neglect of duties. On June 9 a pro-Hezbollah rally in Martyr Square in Beirut, Lebanon is attacked by anti-Hezbollah protesters, injuring 11. On June 9 a Taliban attack on the Kabul Airport in Afghanistan sees seven gunmen killed. On June 9 Booz Allen employee (ex-CIA/NSA worker) Edward Joseph Snowden (1983-) goes public as the source of numerous leaks about the top secret NSA PRISM surveillance program (established 2007) and how it records U.S. telephone metadata and Internet clicks en masse, taking his chances with prosecutors, er, fleeing to Red China, er, Ecuador via Russia, causing a mixup about whether he is a hero or traitor; "I can't in good conscience allow the US government to destroy privacy, internet freedom and basic liberties for people around the world with this massive surveillance machine they're secretly building." On June 9 (7 p.m.) (Sun.) a Muslim on a motorcycle throws a bomb into the Earthquake Miracle Church in Mombasa, Kenya, injuring 15. On June 9 15-y.-o. Mohammad Qataa (1998-) is executed in front of his parents by Nusra Front Islamists in Amman, Syria for cursing Muhammad. On June 10 the flooding Elbe River breaches a levee and surges into E Germany. On June 10 a wave of car bombings in Iraq kill 57+. On June 10 two boys in Afghanistan are beheaded by the Taliban for trading food with police. On June 10 the U.S. Senate by 66-27 passes a $500B 5-year farm bill that sets aside $76B a year for food stamps. On June 10 Taliban suicide bombers in Kabul and Qalat kills five Taliban members in Kabul, and another in Qalat, along with wounding 15 civilians and three policemen. On June 10 Pres. Obama names Daniel Baer as U.S. ambassador to the Org. for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) in Vienna, becoming the first open homosexual U.S. ambassador to a multilaterial inst.; he follows by naming four more openly homosexual foreign ambassadors within a week, making eight. On June 10 a report by the Special Inspector Gen. for Afghan Reconstruction (SIGAR) claims that the U.S. has given the Afghan army over $1B in ammunition, plus $288M to the Afghan police. On June 11 the Obama admin. drops its opposition to over-the-counter sales of the morning-after pill sans age restrictions. On June 11 two suicide bombers in Al-Marjeh Square in Damascus, Syria kill 14 and injure 31. On June 11 a Taliban suicide bomber in the Afghan Supreme Court in Kabul kills 14-16 civilians. On June 11 nearly 15M in Egypt sign an Anti-Morsi Petition to hold early pres. elections to oust him. On June 11 Mahmoud Abdel Gawad, an envoy from Al-Azhar U. in Egypt calls on Pope Francis I to declare Islam a "peaceful religion" as a requirement for restoring interfaith ties; too bad, he adds that he "will not take part in any meeting with Israelis". On June 11 Hamas forces arrest a Salafi preacher in Tel al Hawa, Gaza City, the first since early May. On June 11 U.S. Rep. (R-Kan.) Mike Pompeo tells the U.S. House that Muslim leaders in the U.S. are "potentially complicit" in terrorist acts if they fail to speak out against them. On June 11 by 436-0 Russia passes a law banning "propaganda of non-traditional sexual relations" among minors, incl. any that tries to equate straight and gay relationships, along with material on gay rights. On June 11-20 the Black Forest Fire in Colo. burns 14,280 acres, destroys 511 homes and kills two, causing 38K to be evacuated from 13K homes, becoming the most destructive fire in Colo. history (until ?). On June 12 the Obama admin. "strongly objects" to a proposed amendment to the Nat. Defense Authorization Act sponsored by La. Repub. Rep. John Fleming that protects Christians from being punished for keeping a Bible on their desks or objecting to homosexuality; earlier officials at Ft. Campbell sent out an email instructing officers to treat the "religious right in America" as a "domestic hate group" a la the KKK for opposition to homosexuality. On June 12 the U.S. and Colombia meet in the Pentagon to discuss an Action Plan on Racial and ethnic Equality. On June 13 the U.N. reports the death toll in Syria since 2011 as almost 93K; meanwhile anon. Obama admin. officials announce that it has concluded that Bashar al-Assad's regime crossed the red line and used chemical weapons against the rebels, and finally authorizes military support for the rebels despite al-Qaida connections; meanwhile on June 14 Syria denies it used chemical weapons, calling it a frame-up, and Russian foreign affairs adviser Yuri Ushakov says the info. provided by U.S. officials "didn't look convincing"; on June 11 ex-pres. Bill Clinton disses Obama for inaction, saying that if he refuses to act, he will look "like a total fool"; meanwhile anybody questioning why the U.S. should arm rebels who are mainly pro-al-Qaida and/or Muslim Brotherhood is blacked-out. On June 13 the U.S. Supreme (Roberts) Court unanimously rules in Assoc. for Molecular Pathology v. Myriad Genetics Inc. that human genes cannot be patented, but permits patenting of synthetic DNA; meanwhile it fails to announce rulings on affirmative action, voting rights, and gay marriage. On June 13 the Inst. for Economics and Peace (IEP) reports that global peace has declined 5% since 2008, and the least peaceful country on Earth in 2012 was Afghanistan. On June 13 the U.S. Census Bureau reports that for the year ending last July 1 the number of deaths of non-Hispanic white Americans exceeded births for the first time in a cent., indicating that the total number will begin declining by the end of the decade, and they will become a nat. minority within three decades; meanwhile 188K immigrate from abroad. On June 13 U.S. Sen. (R-Ky.) Rand Paul utters the soundbyte: "There is a war on Christianity. Not just from liberal elites here at home, but worldwide. And your government, or more correctly, you, the taxpayer, are funding it. You are being taxed to send money to countries that are not only intolerant of Christians, but openly hostile. Christians are imprisoned and threatened with death for their beliefs." On June 13 (3:00 p.m.) Qari Mohammad Halim, the Taliban shadow district gov. of Dasht-e-Archi District in Kunduz Province, Afghanistan is killed by Afghan security forces. On June 13 Pres. Obama's Nat. Security Council meets with Sheikh Abdallah Bin Bayyah (1935-) in the White House to discuss countering the legitimacy of al-Qaida and/or the arming of Syrian rebels; too bad, Big Bad Bayyah is a Muslim Brotherhood member affiliated with the Internat. Union of Muslim Scholars of Yusuf al-Qaradawi, who issued a fatwa in 2004 calling on Muslims to "resist" U.S. soldiers in Iraq. On June 14 the 2013 Iranian pres. election sees 686 candidates apply and only eight allowed to run, of whom two drop out in the last days; Iranian supreme leader Assahollah Ali Khamenei utters the soundbyte: "Recently I have heard that a U.S. security official has said they do not accept his election. Okay, the hell with you"; he also utters the soundbyte: "The U.S. president is being elected from only two parties while Zionist regime is controlling everything behind the scenes. In Iran, there have been many presidents being elected in a pure democratic process from ordinary people even without any affiliation to a party"; on June 15 moderate cleric Hassan Rouhani (1948-) (former head of the nuclear negotiating team) wins with 19M of 37M votes (50.7%), defeating nat. security adviser Saeed Jalili and Tehran mayor Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf; Rouhani was involved in the 1994 bombing of a Jewish community center in Buenos Aires? On June 14 a military judge orders the first closed session of Pres. Obama's secret war court, involving a pre-trial hearing over the USS Cole bombing. On June 14 a Tunisian court sentences rap artist Alaa Yacoub (1989-) to two years in jail for calling police "dogs" in a song. On June 14 the Norwegian parliament votes to conscript women into the armed forces, becoming the first Euro and first NATO country with compulsory military service for both genders. On June 14 the Ecuadorian nat. assembly passes the Ecuadorian Communications Law, clamping down on free speech. On June 15 Lashkar-e-Jhangvi stages a suicide assault on female univ. students in Quetta, Pakistan, killing 14 on a bus and 11 at a hospital. On June 15 dozens of rockets are fired at Camp Liberty for Iranian dissidents near Baghdad Airport, killing two and injuring three dozen, drawing condemnation from the U.N. and the Obama admin. On June 15 hottest team in paradise, Saudi women's rights activists Wajeha Al-Huweidar and Fawzia Al-'Uyouni were convicted of trumped-up charges and sentenced to 10 mi. in prison, followed by a 2-year ban on leaving the real prison, Saudi Arabia. On June 15 Egyptian pres. Mohammad Morsi attends a rally in Syria packed with hardcore Islamists that calls for jihad against the "infidels" (incl. non-Islamist Muslims and Shiites) in Syria, becoming the tipping point turning the army against him? On June 15 spoiled rich drunk teenie Ethan Anthony Couch (1997-) plows his car into a group of people standing in the street, killing four and injuring nine; in Dec. after his attys. raise the "Affluenza Defense", Judge Jean Hudson Boyd gives him 10 years probation plus therapy, starting a firestorm of controversy; too bad, in Dec. 2015 he skips to Mexico, and is arrested on Dec. 28 in Puerto Vallarta with his rich mother, who are both extradited back to the U.S. On June 16 Egyptian pres. Mohammad Morsi appoints Adel el-Khayyat, a co-founder of Gamaa Islamiya, which claimed responsibility for the 1997 Luxor Massacre as gov. of Luxor, pissing-off the tourist industry. On June 16 (night) a huge explosion rocks the Damascus Airport in Syria; rebel fighters blame Israel. On June 17 the G8 Summit in Belfast, Northern Ireland focuses on Syria, with Pres. Obama and Russian PM Vladimir Putin backing opposite sides, and Putin getting in a soundbyte about how Western govts. can back cannibals. On June 17 Salafi preacher Abu Islam is sentenced to 11 years in jail in Egypt for burning a Bible, insulting Christianity, and threatening public security. On June 17 the U.S. Supreme (Roberts) Court rules 5-4 in Salinas v. Tex. that prosecutors can use a person's silence in court against them if it comes before he's read his Miranda rights; Justice Alito was the force behind this insane travesty? On June 17 the Obama admin. announces the selection of defected Syrian gen. Salim Idriss as the sole conduit of U.S., Saudi, and Qatar military assistance to rebels. On June 17 a CNN/ORC Poll shows Pres. Obama's approval dropping 8 pts. to 45%, and his disapproval rating climbing to 54%, with only 49% believing he's honest, the first time he rates below 50%. On June 18 NATO formally hands over command of security to Afghan forces; a suicide bomber attempts to kill Afghan Hazara politician Ustad Haji Mohammad Mohaqiq in W Kabul just before the ceremony (his 4th assassination attempt), killing three and injuring 20 incl. four guards; about 100K troops incl. 68K from the U.S. are set to withdraw by Dec. 31; on June 19 after the U.S. announces that it will meet with the Taliban, Afghan PM Hamid Karzai suspends security talks with the U.S. when the Taliban office in Qatar refused to drop the title "Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan". On June 18 Boko Haram militants fire on Ansarudeen School in Maiduguri, Nigeria, killing nine students, the 2nd school attack in three days. On June 18 AP obtains details of the Pentagon's plans for training women for elite combat roles, incl. Army Ranger training by 2015, and Navy SEAL training in 2016. On June 18 clashes between armed supporters of Salafi Sheikh Ahmad al-Assir and members of the Sous family in Abra (near Sidon), Lebanon kill one and injure four. On June 18 the U.S. deploys 1.5K Marines to Al-Anad military base in Yemen. On June 18 300 Western converts to Islam incl. 6-7 Italians fighting to overthrow Bashar al-Assad are captured in Syria. On June 18 (night) a rocket attack on Bagram Air Base in Afghanistan kills four NATO coalition service members. On June 18 the Russian Duma votes overwhelmingly to ban gay adoption for couples abroad, and for singles living in countries where same-sex marriage is legal. On June 19 Al-Shabaab militants attack a U.N. base in Mogadishu, Somalia, killing 15. On June 19 Pres. Obama visits Berlin, speaking at the Brandenburg Gate and meeting with German chancellor Angela Merkel. On June 19 a rare total solar eclipse of Jupiter. On June 19 FBI dir. Robert Mueller testifies beore the U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee, saying that al-Qaida is a "terrorist threat" to the U.S. On June 19 several political parties in Tunisia sign a nat. charter against terrorism. On June 19-July 12 the 2013 Alberta Floods in S and C Alberta, Canada displaces 100K, kills five, and causes $5B damage, becoming the worst flood in Alberta history (until ?), and the costliest disaster in Canadian historyy until the 2016 Fort McMurray Wildfire. On June 20 after massive demonstrations, officials in Brazil reverse a 10-cent transit fare hike, only to face a 1M-person protest on June 21 in scores of cities, with some military police officers joining protesters in Sao Paulo. On June 20 Del. gov. Jack Markell signs the Gender Identity Nondiscrimination Act, giving equal protection to transgender people. On June 20 the U.S. House of Reps votes 225-200 to legalize the farming of industrial hemp. On June 20 six Muslim siblings assault and attempt to kidnap white lesbian Sarah Harrison (1977-), who is in a relationship with their sister Nazma Ditta (1984-) as she leaves her workplace in Blackburn, Lancashire, England; in Jan. 2014 they are sentenced to 3-6 years in prison. On June 21 Spanish authorities arrest a ring of eight suspected al-Qaida members in Ceuta, Spain, who are training jihadist fighters for Syria. On June 21 a suicide attack inside a Shiite mosque in Peshawar, Pakistan kills 15+. On June 21 tens of thousands of pro-Morsi Islamists demonstrate in Cairo, Egypt ahead of anti-Morsi protests. On June 22 French journalists Pierre Torres and Nicolas Henin are kidnapped in Syria, making four. On June 23 Islamic Jundullah jihadists kill 10 incl. nine foreign tourists at a hotel in a base camp in Kashmir near Mt. Nanga Parbat in Gilgit-Baltistan. On June 23 police remove a flagpole from the Taliban office in Qatar. On June 23 Syrian Ahrar al-Sham Brigade rebels renew the fight for Aleppo, detonating a car bomb that kills 12 soldiers; meanwhile Syrian hermit priest Francois Murad (b. 1964) is beheaded by Syrian rebels. On June 23 a mob of Takfiri Sunni extremists in Abu Mussalam, Egypt near Cairo kills Shiite Sheikh Hassan Shehata and four followers. On June 23 a Sudanese Muslim stabs six people with a large knife in Tel Aviv, Israel. On June 23 Egyptian army chief Abdel-Fattah al-Sissi warns that the army will "not watch the country descend into uncontrollable conflict" or allow "an attack on the will of the people". On June 23 Iraq passes the Provincial Powers Law to encourage decentralization. On June 23 Syrian clergyman Father Francois Mourad is killed in the Christian village of Jisr al-Shughur in Ildib Province. On June 24 Qatar emir Sheikh Hamad bin Khalifa al-Thani announces that he's transfering power to his son Crown Prince Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad al-Thani. On June 24 bombs in and around Baghdad, Iraq kill 42+. On June 24 U.S. secy. of John Kerry warns Russia that it's "on notice" regarding accused traitor-spy Edward Snowden, demanding that they quit harboring him. On June 24 the Am. Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) releases a policy statement recommending pediatricians to create offices that are "teen-friendly and welcoming to all adolescents, regardless of sexual orientation or behavior", and to do more to fight "heterosexism" and "homophobia". On June 24 Pope Francis tells the Internat. Jewish Committee on Interreligious Consultations (IJCIC): "Because of our common roots, a true Christian cannot be anti-Semitic." On June 25 (a.m.) the Taliban stages a suicide attack near the pres. palace in Kabul, Afghanistan as talks with the U.S. get more iffy. On June 25 the U.S. Supreme (Roberts) Court rules 5-4 in Shelby County v. Holder to strike down Section 4 of the 1965 U.S. Voting Act, designating "covered jurisdictions" of the U.S. that must have changes to their voting laws cleared by the federal govt., because the "pervasive... flagrant... widespread... rampant" discrimination in 1965 is kaput, and "today's statistics tell an entirely different story"; the real statistics prove otherwise? On June 25 Pres. Obama gives a Speech on Climate Change, announcing an extensive plan to prepare for global warming and tackle pollution, incl. the first-ever federal regs. on heat-trapping gases from power plants "to put an end to the limitless dumping of carbon pollution", and dissing climate change deniers with the soundbyte "We don't have time for a meeting of the flat-earth society"; he announces that he's instructing the State Dept. to approve the Keystone XL Pipeline only if it won't increase greenhouse gas emissions. On June 25 French police arrest six suspected radical Islamists in Paris. On June 25 FEMEN topless protesters jump on the car of Tunisian PM Ali Laryedh in Brussels, Belgium; meanwhile the European Commission urges Tunisia to reform criminal laws from its prior authoritarian regime. A new meaning for "to have and to hold" in America? On June 26 the U.S. Supreme (Roberts) Court rules 5-4 in U.S. v. Windsor to strike down the 1996 U.S. Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA) for violating the Fifth Amendment by depriving people of equal liberty, meaning that legally married (in their state) gay married couples can't be treated differently than legally married straight couples by the federal govt.; John Roberts, Antonin Scalia, Ruth Bader Ginsburg, Stephen Bryer, and Elena Kagan are opposed by Anthony Kennedy, Clarence Thomas, Samuel Alito, and Sonia Sotomayor; John Roberts writes for the majority that the private proponents of Calif. Proposition 8 don't have standing to defend the measure in federal courts, but that same-sex couples are entitled to federal benefits; Anthony Kennedy writes the soundbyte that DOMA "violates basic due process and equal protection principles applicable to the federal government", and calls it "an intrusion on states' traditional role defining marriage", adding "DOMA undermines both the public and private significance of state-sanctioned same-sex marriages, for it tells those couples, and all the world, that their otherwise valid marriages are unworthy of federal recognition"; Pres. Obama calls DOMA "discrimination enshrined in law", uttering the soundbyte: "It treated loving, committed gay and lesbian couples as a separate and lesser class of people. The Supreme Court has righted that wrong, and our country is better off for it. We are a people who declared that we are all created equal, and the love we commit to one another must be equal as well"; Obama announces that he has directed his admin. to "review all relevant federal statutes to ensure this decision, including its implications for federal benefits and obligations, is implemented swiftly and smoothly", adding "The laws of our land are catching up to the fundamental truth that millions of Americans hold in our hearts: when all Americans are treated as equal, no matter who they are or whom they love, we are all more free"; he calls the plaintiffs in the Calif. Proposition 8 case from Air Force One en route to Senegal to congratulate them, with the soundbyte: "It's because of your leadership things are heading the right way." On June 26 Iran burns 100 tons of drugs, complaining of lack of Western cooperation in drug enforcement efforts. On June 26 the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights announces that 100K+ have been killed in Syria since the start of the uprising in Mar. 2011. On June 27 former PM (2007-10) Kevin Michael Rudd (1957-) becomes PM of Australia (until ?). On June 27 Pres. Obama visits Senegal. On June 27 the U.N. Security Council extends the peacekeeping force in the Golan Heights for 6 mo., requesting secy.-gen. Ban Ki-moon to ensure that it has the ability to fulfill its mandate. On June 27 the U.S. Senate by a 68-32 desk vote (incl. all 54 Dems. and 14 Repubs.) passes the 1.2K-page omnibus U.S. Border Security, Economic Opportunity, and Immigration Modernization Act of 2013 (S.744), pushed by Nev. Dem. Sen. Harry Reid, passing it to the Repub.-controlled House, with Ariz. Repub. Sen. John McCain uttering the soundbyte: "Shouldn't we give them the same chance that we've given wave after wave of immigrants?"; meanwhile House Speaker John A. Boehner utters the soundbyte that the bill is "dead on arrival", adding "The House is not going to take up and vote on whatever the Senate passes", calling it too weak on border security, pointing to the failure of the 1986 Reagan amnesty, even though McCain said on June 25 that the Senate bill's Corker-Hoeven Amendment would transform the U.S.-Mexico border into "the most militarized border since the fall of the Berlin Wall". On June 27 New England Patriots tight end (#81) (since 2010) Aaron Josef Hernandez (1989-2017) is arrested and charged with the first degree murder of his friend Odin Lloyd, a semi-pro football player who was dating the sister of Hernandez' fiancee; in 2015 he is found guilty, and sentenced to life without parole; he is also indicted for the 2012 double homicide of Daniel de Abreu and Safiro Furtado, and acquitted in 2017; five days later he is found dead hanging in his cell, which is ruled a suicide; since his murder conviction is under appeal, it is vacated; his autopsy reveals a whopping case of CTE from playing football. On June 27 anti-jihad bloggers Pamela Geller and Robert Spencer are banned from entering the U.K. by spineless home secy. Theresa May, calling it a "blow against freedom", with the soundbyte "The nation that gave the world the Magna Carta is dead." On June 27 after pressure from CAIR, ACLU, Seattle mayor Mike McGinn et al., the FBI removes Seattle, Wash. bus ads titled "Faces of Global Terrorism", listing the 16 top terrorists, all Muslim. On June 27/28 (night) pro and anti-Moris protesters clash in Alexandria, Egypt, killing one U.S. citizen and injuring dozens of others, causing Egyptian clerics to warn of a coming civil war. On June 28 after the U.S. Supreme Court ruling striking down DOMA, the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals lifts its stay on same-sex marriage, making Calif. state #11, causing a rush of applications. On June 28 after a 2-week siege, Syrian rebels capture a major army outpost in Daraa, Syria. On June 28 Vatican official Monsignor Nunzio Scarano is arrested for bringing 20M euros in cash into Italy from Switzerland on an Italian govt. plane; he was already under investigation for a money-laundering lot involving the Vatican Bank. On June 28 (Serbian nat. holiday) Albanian Muslim jihadists attack a column of school buses in Kosovo. On June 28 Eugene K. Pettis becomes the first African-Am. pres. of the 95K-member Fla. Bar Assoc., 2nd biggest in the U.S. On June 29 a suicide bomber in the Bab Sharqi Christian neighborhood in Damascus, Syria kills four, #23 in Syria for the year. On June 29-30 the 240-mi.-wide 100 mph June 2012 North Am. Derecho (Sp. "straight ahead") "land hurricane" devastates 10 states from Ill. to the U.S. East Coast, killing 22 and causing $2.9B in property damage, leaving 4M without power. On June 29 a Muslim roadside IED in S Thailand kills eight soldiers. On June 30 topless FEMEN protesters invade a mosque in Stockholm, Sweden, shouting "No Sharia" and "Free Women", and are allegedly called "whores from Hell". On June 30 millions protest in Cairo, Egypt and other cities, calling for pres. (since June 30, 2012) Mohammed Morsi to resign, attacking the HQ of the Muslim Brotherhood; seven are killed incl. two in Cairo; U.S. ambassador to Egypt (since June 30, 2011) Anne Woods Patterson (1949-) is singled-out by the crowds for being to cozy with Mubarak and the Muslim Brotherhood; on July 1 the Egyptian army threatens to intervene in 48 hours and topple Morsi; on July 1-2 several Egyptian ministers resign incl. PM Hisham Qandil, while Pres. Obummer, er, Obama refuses to withdraw support for Morsi, saying he came to power in a "legitimate" election, putting U.S. Marines in Spain and Italy on standby to protect U.S. citizens on July 2, causing Morsi to rebuff the ultimatum, putting the country on edge; on July 3 Egyptian armed forces CIC and defense minister (since Aug. 12, 2012) Gen. Abdel Fatah Saeed Hussein Khalil el-Sisi (1954-) arrests and removes Morsi from power, suspending the Egyptian constitution, and making chief justice Adly Mahmoud Mansour (1945-) the interim pres. (until June 30, 2016); on July 3 the military shuts down three Islamist TV stations incl. one operated by the Muslim Brotherhood; on July 3 pissed-off Pres. Obama utters the soundbyte that he's "very concerned" about the overthrow, and is ordering his admin. to review U.S. military aid; on July 3 Syrian pres. Bashar al-Assad utters the soundbyte: "The summary of what is happening in Egypt is the fall of what is called political Islam"; on July 4 liberal Egyptian diplomat Mohamed ElBaradei says that he worked hard to convince Western powers to oust Morsi for bungling Egypt's transition to an inclusive democracy, and on July 6 he is named interim PM (until ?); meanwhile Egyptian-born al-Qaida leader Muhammad al-Zawahiri announces a jihad to save Morsi, and on July 5 tens of thousands of Islams begin protests in Cairo, which turn violent at night, killing 30 and injuring 1K+ throughout the country. On June 30 Pres. Obama visits Cape Town, South Africa, announcing a multi-billion dollar plan to double electricity in sub-Saharan Africa, and visiting Robben Island, where Nelson Mandela was imprisoned for 18 years; meanwhile Mandela lies gravely ill in a Johannesburg hospital. On June 30 three bombings in Pakistan kill 49 as British PM David Cameron visits Islamabad pledging to help fight extremism, with the clueless soundbyte: "The enemies of Pakistan are enemies of Britain, and we will stand together and conduct this fight against extremism and terrorism together." On June 30 a missile hits Muhammad al-Baqir Mosque in Qaterji, Aleppo, Syria, killing 10 incl. several children. On June 30 the Yarnell Hill Forest Fire SW of Prescott, Ariz. burns 2K acres and kills 19 firefighters, becoming their highest death toll since 1983. In June Sony BMG v. Tenenbaum is upheld by the U.S. First Circuit Court of Appeals, charging Boston U. swtudent Joel Tenenabum (1983-) $675K for illegally downloading 30 songs, which comes to $22.5K/song. In June U.S. unemployment remains at 7.6% while adding 195K jobs. In June according to the U.N. Food and Agricultural org. (FAO), Mexico officially becomes the world's fattest nation, with a 32.8% adult obesity rate, passing the U.S. (31.8%). In early July Red China and Russia hold massive war games. On July 1 Eric Michael Garcetti (1971-) becomes Dem. mayor #42 of Los Angeles, Calif. (until ?), becoming its first elected Jewish mayor, 2nd straight Mexican-Am. mayor, and youngest mayor (until ?); too bad, he makes campaign promises he doesn't keep, incl. getting rid of the homeless problem, causing impeachment efforts in 2019. On July 1 Del. becomes state #12 to legalize same-sex marriage. On July 1 Croatia joins the EU. On July 1 China accuses the U.S. of encouraging "terrorism" in Xinjiang by encouraging Muslim violence in Uighuristan. On July 1 DHS head Janet Napolitano issues a directive ordering the U.S. Immigration Service to consider same-sex visa petitions. On July 1 the pop. of Azaz, N Syria protests the entry of fighters for the Islamic State of Iraq and ash-Sham (ISI); on July 5 there is a counter-protest. On July 1 S.D. becomes the first U.S. state to allow teachers to possess firearms at school. On July 2 (a.m.) Taliban militants detonate a truck bomb at a NATO supplier compound in Kabul, Afghanistan, killing five security guards. On July 3 a U.S. drone strike in Sarai Darpa Khel, North Waziristan, Pakistan kills 16 militants and injures two. On July 3 the plane of Bolivian pres. Evo Morales is delayed as he tries to leave Europe over suspicions that he is hiding Edward Snowden aboard, pissing-off Latin Am. leaders. On July 3 Islamists take over the town of Dalga, Minya Province, Egypt, pop. 120K incl. 20K Coptic Christians, targeting their homes and businesses. On July 3 the Calif. Senate by a partisan (Dem.) 21-9 vote by passes AB 1266, a transgender rights bill for students in public schools. On July 3 the Center for Immigration Studies releases a Report on U.S. Immigration and Employment, which reports that 22.4M immigrants held jobs on Jan. 1, up 5.3M since 2000, vs. 113.5M native-born workers, down 1.3M from 2000. On July 4 the Statue of Liberty, closed since Hurricane Sandy reopens. On July 4 Muslim Brotherhood leader Mohamed Badie and his deputy Khairat el-Shater are ordered arrested by the Egyptian prosecutor for inciting violence outside their Cairo HQ; meanwhile the Muslim Broterhood begins targeting Christian Copts for blame in Morsi's ouster, launching a month of pogroms. On July 5 China and Pakistan sign an Economic Corridor Agreement linking NW China to the Arabian Sea. On July 5 more bombings against Shiites N of Baghdad in Iraq kill 19+ and injure 38, making 2K killed since Apr. 1. On July 5 suicide bombers in S Afghanistan kill 18 Afghan police in two attacks. On July 5 the Syrian army launches a heavy barrage on Homs, Syria. On July 5 after an outcry, the cabinet of Malaysia decides to withdraw a proposal to allow the conversion of minors to Islam with just one parent's approval. On July 5 Popes Benedict XVI and Francis I issue a religious co-text, saying that faith should serve the "common good" and restating their opposition to same-sex marriage. On July 6 (1:15 EDT) the Lac-Megantic (Lac-Mégantic) Rail Disaster in the Eastern Townships region of Quebec, Canada sees an unattended 74-car freight train carrying crude oil roll down a 1.2% grade from Nantes and derail, causing multiple tank cars to explode, killing 42 (five missing) and destroying half of the downtown area incl. 30 bldgs. in the town center, becoming the 4th deadliest rail accident in Canadian history (until ?), and deadliest non-passenger train accident (until ?); footage from the disaster is used in the 2018 film "Bird Box", causing an outcry. On July 6 Korean Asiana Airlines Flight 214 (Boeing 777) en route from Singapore and Seoul crashes on landing in San Francisco, Calif., killing two of 291 passengers and 16 crew; rookie pilot Lee Kang-kook had never landed a 777 before, although he had 10K hours on other planes; co-pilot Lee Jeong-min had 3K hours on the 777. On July 6 90+ gay Girl Scouts and their families march in the San Francisco, Calif. Gay Pride Parade for the first time ever. On July 6 Qatar expels Egyptian Muslim Brotherhood leader Yusuf al-Qaradawi and closes their offices, becoming a big blow to the Islamist cause. On July 6 Boko Haram ("Western education is forbidden") militants burn a school in Mamudo, Nigeria, killing 30+ of 1.2K children. On July 6 CAIR-CAN changes its name to Nat. Council of Canadian Muslims. On July 6 (night) a referee fatally stabs a soccer player in Maranhao, Brazil, then is stoned to death and his body quartered and decapitated by angry fans. On July 6 (night) an oil train derails in Lac-Megantic, Quebec, Canada, killing three, causing 2K to evacuate. On July 7 (a.m.) the Egyptian army fires on Muslim Brotherhood supporters praying outside the Repub. Nat. Guard HQ in Cairo where ex-pres. Morsi is being held, killing 51+ and injuring 400+. On July 7 100+ Muslim guerillas attack army troops in S Philippines, killing 12+. On July 7 Muslim terrorist bomb the Buddhist shrine Mahabodhi Temple in Bodh Gaya, India. On July 7 Muslim Brotherhood followers attack Coptic Christians in Luxor, Egypt, killing four and injuring 32. On July 7 ex-Iranian pres. Imadinnajacket gives a farewell speech, saying that publicizing Holocaust denial was his greatest achievement; "That was a taboo topic that no one in the West allowed to be heard. We put it forward at the global level. That broke the spine of the Western capitalist regime." On July 7 a train en route from Novosibirsk to the Black Sea derails in Kuschevsky, Russia , injuring 100+. On July 7 after he is expelled from the U.K., Jordan charges Muslim preacher Abu Qatada as a suspected al-Qaida terrorist. On July 7 Benjamin Medrano (1966-) is elected mayor of Fresnillo, Zacatecas, becoming Mexico's first openly gay elected mayor. On July 8 Pope Francis makes his first trip as pontiff to Lampedusa Island, Italy to visit Muslim asylum seekers on the first day of Ramadan, uttering the soundbyte "The Church is close to you in the search for a more dignified life for you and your families." On July 8 the worst thunderstorm in ? years in Toronto, Canada cuts power to 300K and leaves 1K passengers stranded on a commuter train. On July 9 a Muslim militant bomb in Ban Rawo, Thailand kills injures eight soldiers. On July 9 an Afghan soldier opens fire on Slovak troops at Kandahar Airfield in Afghanistan, killing one and wounding 2+. On July 9 a roadside bomb in W Afghanistan kills 17 aboard a motorcycle-drawn cart. On July 9 the U.N. Committee on the Rights of the Child demands that the Vatican release info. on child abuse cases by clergy. On July 9 Femen leader Inna Shevchenko (model for a new French postage stamp honoring Marianne, the feminine symbol of France) issues a tweet reading: "what can be more stupid than Ramadan? What can be more uglier than this religion?", stirring a firestorm of controversy. On July 10 after Mohamed ElBaradei's nomination is withdrawn, former finance minister Hazem el-Beblawi is named Egyptian PM (until ?); meanwhile dozens of pro-Mursi demonstrators are killed by the Egyptian army outside the Repub. Guard HQ in Cairo, causing a group of Saudi intellectuals to go against their own govt. and pub. a comminique condemning the shooting; on Aug. 8 56 Saudi clerics pub. another communique condemning Morsi's ouster. On July 10 Dubai pledges a $3B aid package for ever-broke Egypt, dwarfing the $1.5B a year aid received from the U.S., which is in jeopardy because of the military takeover. On July 10 Pakistani security chief Bilal Shaikh is killed in a suicide attack in Karachi. On July 11 after a deadly crime wave in Chicago Ill. Rep. Booby Rush calls for the Nat. Guard to be called in to stop the "mayhem". On July 11 a poll by Quinnipiac U. finds that only 40% of U.S. voters approve of Pres. Obama's approach to foreign affairs, and 52% disapprove; 48% disapprove of his handling of Syria. On July 11 Syrian rebel Free Syrian Army cmdr. Abu Bassir Al Ladkani is assassinated by al-Qaeda, causing them to declare war. On July 11 the comedy drama series Orange Is the New Black (OITNB) debuts on Netflix for ? episodes (until ?), based on the 2010 Piper Kerman memoir "Orange Is the New Black: My Year in a Women's Prison" about Litchfield (FCI Danbury) Prison, starring Taylor Schilling (1984-) as Piper Chapman; it becomes the first TV series nominated for both outstanding comedy series (2014) and outstanding drama series (2015) at the Emmys. On July 12 DHS head Janet Napolitano resigns to become pres. of the U. of Calif. On July 12 by a 127-31 vote, formerly Roman Catholic Ireland legalizes abortion when physicians deem the woman's life at risk. On July 12 a suicide vehicle rams a peacekeeping convoy in Mogadishu, Somalia killing two civilians. On July 12 (10 p.m.) a bomb in a full cafe ending the Ramadan fast in Kirkuk, Iraq kills 19 and wounds 26+. On July 12 12K Palestinians hold a pro-Morsi demonstration in Kafr Kanna, Israel; meanwhile a huge banner of Morsi is hung over the entrance to Al-Aqsa Mosque Plaza in Jerusalem. On July 12 gay men hold protests in 52 U.S. cities calling for an end to the FDA's gay blood bank ban. On July 13 the disbanded Egyptian upper house of parliament demands the reinstatement of ousted pres. Mohammed Morsi, while his supporters vow to stay on the streets. On July 13 a 6-person jury acquits white (German-Peruvian with some black descent) neighborhood watch volunteer George Michael Zimmerman (1983-) in the Feb. 26, 2012 shooting death of 17-y.-o. African-Am. Trayvon Benjamin Martin (1995-2012) in Sanford, Fla., causing nationwide riots and protests and launching the Black Lives Matter movement to be founded on Twitter with the hashtag #BlackLivesMatter. On July 13 (night) riots in Belfast, Northern Island are caused by pro-British Protestant marches, continuing nightly until ?. On July 15 the Egyptian govt. freezes the assets of 14 Muslim Brotherhood leaders accused of inciting violence. On July 15 Zetas drug cartel leader Miguel Angel Trevino Morales is captured by Mexican Marines in Nuevo Laredo. On July 15 the Nigerian military announces that its 2-mo. offensive in NE Nigera has "substantially achieved" the goal of destroying most Boko Haram bases. On July 15 the world's last commercial electric telegraph system, Bharat Sanchar Nigam Ltd. shuts down. On July 15/16 overnight classes between Morsi supporters and police in Cairo, Egypt kill seven and injure 261. On July 16 the EU issues an Embargo on Israel for its 28 member states, barring them from dealings with Jewish settlements in the West Bank and East Jerusalem in any territories occupied by Israel since June 1967, causing Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu in an emergency cabinet meeting to utter the soundbyte: "We will not accept any outside diktat about our borders." On July 16 Egyptian interim PM Hazem el-Beblawi swears-in a new cabinet that incl. women and Christians but no Islamists. On July 16 clashes between Kurds and Jahbat al-Nusra in Ras al-Ain, Syria kill 4+. On July 16 a roadside bomb in Lebanon is the first retaliation against Hezbollah for supporting the regime in Syria. On July 16 Bangladeshi Islamist leader Ghulam Azam is sentenced to 90 years for crimes against humanity, causing a Muslim riot in Dhaka that kills four and injures dozens. On July 16 23 children die after being served a free school lunch laced with insecticide in Grandaman, Bihar, India, causing a riot; headmistress Meena Kumar is arrested; her hubby ?, who sold the oil to the school is also arrested. On July 17 U.S. secy. of state John Kerry meets with Arab leaders in Amman, Jordan, where the Israeli-Palestinian dispute is called "the core issue of instability in the region". On July 17 Iranian pres.-elect Hassan Rouhani utters the soundbyte that it is "laughable" that Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu said that Tehran is getting close to the "red line" over its nuclear program, deriding Israel's ability to strike Iran. On July 17 the Thomas Aquinas Ferry in Cebu, Philippines collides with a cargo ship and sinks, killing 24+ of 870 passengers and crew. On July 18 police fire on Kashmiri protesters in Srinagar, India, killing 4+ and injuring dozens. On July 18 the city of Detroit, Mich. (pop. 700K) files for the largest bankruptcy in U.S. history, with $20B owed to 100K+ creditors ($25K per capita); there are only 27K manufacturing jobs left, vs. 296K in 1950. On July 18 two weeks after Qatar is removed as leader in place of a group of tribal, secular Muslim Brotherhood reps, Saudi Arabia becomes the sole patron of the Syrian Nat. Coalition (SNC). On July 18 a policeman in Trappes, France (near Versailles) stops a Muslim woman and asks her to remove her niqab, after which her French-born Muslim convert husband tries to strangle him and he is arrested, triggering Muslim riots by 10K of the town's 30K inhabitants that last until ? On July 18 the U.S. announces a $200M program to help women in Breaking Bad Afghanistan. On July 19 after shuttling between Amman and the West Bank, John Kerry announces that new Israeli-Palestinian talks will soon begin in Washington, D.C., restarting the 2008 talks; in return Israel will release some "hardcore" Palestinian prisoners. On July 19 Turkish PM Recep Tayyip Erdogan utters the soundbyte: "Strong Turkey is making its influence felt more in this region every day. Our agenda was determined by others in the past, but there is no longer a Turkey whose agenda is determined by others. There is now a Turkey that determines the agenda. That is to say, there are so many developments taking place in Iraq and Syria. It will be all good at the end. Don't forget, whatever happens, happens for some good. What's important is that Turkey continues its path with its strong economy." On July 19 U.S. Rep. (R-Tex.) Louis Gohmert utters the soundbyte on the House Floor that we are witnessing "the rise of a new Ottoman Empire in the Middle East, which, unfortunately, the Obama Administration has helped jumpstart"; he adds that the rising of the people of Egypt against a radical Islamist Muslim Brotherhood government has caused the "grand scheme of building a great caliphate" to become a "huge problem", and calls on the U.S. govt. to once again be seen as supporting and defending those seeking true infidel freedom and democracy. On July 19 the senate of N.C. passes a law prohibiting courts from recognizing foreign laws, esp. Sharia; on Aug. 26 gov. Pat McCrory lets it become law sans his signature. On July 21 (night) jihadists of the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant assault two Iraqi jails in Abu Ghraib and Taji, Iraq, killing 26 policemen and freeing 500+ prisoners. On July 22 (7:45 a.m. local time) two earthquakes (5.6, 5.9) in Dingxi,Gansu, C China kill 95 and injure 2.3K. On July 22 after Arnold Schwarzenegger talks Austrian chancellor Werner Faymann into it, the 28-member EU unanimously declares the military wing of Hezbollah a terrorist org.; 6 of the 28 refuse to label all of Hezbollah as a terrorist org.; it also calls for the release of ousted Egyptian pres. Mohammad Morsi; Hizbullah issues the soundbyte that it has no military arm, but is one org.; the Legal Forum for Israel's Internat. Div. sends the EU a petition signed by 1K lawyers, ambassadors, and academics from 30 countries protesting their actions. On July 22 after an internat. outcry, the Soldtenkaffee Nazi-themed cafe in Bandung, West Java closes. On July 22 Buenos Aires, Argentina experiences its first major snow since June 22, 1918. On July 23 former Office for Civil Rights dir. and Md. Dept. of Labor secy. Thomas Edward "Tom" Perez (1961-) (of Dominican descent) becomes U.S. labor secy. #26 (until Jan. 20, 2017). On July 23 an attack at a police station in Daqahliya, Egypt in the Nile Delta kills one and injures 29. On July 23 (anniv. of the 1952 Egyptian rev.) Egyptian interim pres. Adly Mansour gives a speech calling for nat. reconciliation, which the Muslim Brotherhood and El Nour Party reject; on July 24 Egyptian military chief Field Marshal Abdel Fattah el-Sissi gives a speech calling for mass demonstrations to support the army and police to help them deal with "violence and terrorism", meaning supporters of Morsi; on July 26 hundreds of thousands oblige with patriotic demonstrations across Egypt; on July 27 (Sat.) more demonstrations see police and armed civilians fire on protesters on the same parade ground where Pres. Anwar Sadat was assassinated, killing 70+ and injuring 800+; Pres. Obama makes no comment, but John Kerry calls for Egypt's leaders "to step back from the brink"; the U.S. declines to declare a coup. On July 23 the Great 2013 Jihadi Jailbreak occurs starting with 500-1K from Taj Prison and Abu Graibh Prisons in Afghanistan, followed on July 27 by 117 from Koufia Prison in Benghazi, followed on July 29 by 243 Taliban from Dera Ismail Khan Prison in Pakistan; they are all coordinated? On July 24 German businessman Rudolf M. et al. are put on trial for smuggling specialized valves to Iran that can be used to make nukes. On July 25 (a.m.) leftist Tunisian Arab nationalist Popular Front Coalition opposition leader Mohammed Brahmi (b. 1955) is assassinated outside his home, becoming the 2nd assassination this year after Chokri Belaid. On July 25 jihadists on pickup trucks open fire on a checkpoint in Shura, Iraq 35 mi. S of Mosul, killing nine policemen. On July 25 a speeding train derailment in Santiago de Compostela, Spain kills 78. On July 25 Pope Francis kicks off World Youth Day at Copacabana Beach in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil; on July 25 he receives reps of the Afro-Brazilian Candomble religion in the Municipal Theatre, a first; on July 28 (a.m.) he addresses 3M at a final Mass at Copacabana Beach, and utters the soundbyte "Who am I to judge a gay person?" to reporters on the plane back to Rome, er, "If a person is gay and accepts the Lord and has good will, who am I to judge them?", adding that this only applies if they don't engage in active homosexuality, adding "The tendency is not the problem... they're our brothers." On July 25 the U.S. govt. files a grand jury indictment against SAC Capital Advisors, a $15B hedge fun run by billionaire Steven A. Cohen, accusing it of "insider trading... on a scale without known precedent in the hedge fund industry." On July 26 U.S. secy. of state John Kerry utters a blooper, referring to the country of Palestine. On July 26 Syrian opposition leaders led by Syrian Nat. Coalition (SNC) pres. Ahmed Jarba come to the New York City to lobby the U.N. Security Council for support. On July 26 double suicide bombers on motorcyles detonate outside Shiite mosques in Parachinar, Pakistan, killing 57 and injuring 167; the Ansarul Mujahideen claims credit. On July 26 (eve.) the Pakistani Taliban attack a busy market in a town near the Afghan border, killing 50+ and injuring 100+. On July 26 U.S. federal election regulators vote to treat political contributions from same-sex couples the same way as married hetero couples. On July 26 Pres. Obama issues an executive order that overrides Congress and authorizes $148M to be sent to the Palestinian Authority, calling it "the most immediate and efficient means of helping the Arabs of Palestine maintain and build the foundations of a viable, peaceful Palestinian state"; he did ditto in Mar. for $600M. On July 26 an ABC News/Washington Post Poll finds that 67% of Americans think that the Afghanistan war was not worth the cost; 28% think it was; 43% think it has contributed to the country's long-term security; 53% favor keeping a residual force, and 43% want total evacuation. On July 27 elections in Kuwait are held to elect a new 50-member parliament for the 2nd time in 8 mo. On July 27 an bombing attack on the Turkish embassy in Mogadishu, Somalia kills six and injures nine; al-Shabaab claims responsibility. On July 27 a jail break at Koyfiya Prison near Benghazi, Libya sees 1K escape; meanwhile protesters storm the offices of political parties in Libya's main cities. On July 28 Mexican vice adm. Carlos Miguel Salazar is ambushed and killed by drug cartel members in Michoacan, Mexico. On July 28 an armed robbery at the Carlton Hotel in Cannes, France nets $53M worth of jewelry. On July 28 a U.S. drone strike in the Shawal Valley of North Waziristan Pakistan kills eight militants incl. three Arab al-Qaida trainers from Lashkar al Zil (Shadow Army). On July 29 (7 p.m.) two trains collide head-on in Switzerland, injuring 44. On July 29 a wave of bombings in and around Baghdad, Iraq kills 36+. On July 29 Palestinian Nat. Authority leader Mahmad Abbas makes his first official visit to Cairo since the ouster of Muhammad Morsi; on July 30 he tell reporters in Egypt the soundbyte "In a final resolution, we would not see the presence of a single Israeli, civilian or soldier on our lands"; on July 30 Hamas leader Salah Al-Bardaweel produces documents showing that Abbas and Fatah are running an anti-Hamas propaganda campaign in Egypt, which Fatah calls "fabricated and falsified". On July 29 a Boko Haram bomb attack in two churches in Kano City, Nigeria kills 45+. On July 29/30 (night) the Pakistani Taliban attacks the prison in Dera Ismail Khan, Pakistan, freeing 200+ Sunni prisoners, and killing Shiite prisoners. On July 30 (a.m.) the defense ministry of Tunisia issues a warning about al-Qaeda-allied extremists staging an imminent terrorist attack after eight soldiers were murderedand mutilated in Jebel Chaambi and their uniforms and equipment were stolen. On July 30 a series of bombs in bars in Kano, Nigeria kills 28+. On July 30 the Inst. for Science and Internat. Security (ISIS) report that claims that Iran will have the "critical capability" to produce weapons-grade plutonium by mid-2014 without being detected. On July 31 after Imam Talib Shareef of Masjid Muhammad Mosque opens Congress with a Muslim prayer to Allah, five Repubs. cross the aisle to vote with all 54 Dems. to break a filibuster (53-42), and B. Todd Jones becomes the first dir. of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives to be confirmed by the U.S. Senate; prior to 2006, the pres. appointed the dir. directly. On July 31 Saudi intel chief Bindar bin Sultan meets secretly with Russian pres. Vladimir Putin, and offers a $15B Russian arms deal if Putin will drop his backing of Bashar al-Assad, which he declines; they agree that the entire Middle East from North Africa to Chechnya and Iran to Syria has turned into an open U.S.-Russian faceoff, and that it is "not unlikely that things will take a dramatic turn in Lebanon, in both the political and security senses in light of the major Saudi decision to respond to Hezbollah's involvement in the Syrian crisis". In July the death toll in Iraq is 1,057 Iraqis killed and 2,326 wounded, the highest since June 2008 (975 killed). In July the U.S. unemployment rate drops to 7.4%, adding 162K jobs. On Aug. 1 Minn. becomes state #13 to legalize same-sex marriage. On Aug. 1 the Egyptian govt. offers "safe passage and protection" for supporters of ousted pres. Mohammed Morsi if they end their two sit-ins in Cairo. On Aug. 1 despite intense U.S. pressure, Russia grants 1-year asylum to whistleblower Edward J. Snowden, pissing-off the Obama admin. bigtime, and causing Pres. Obama to cancel a planned Moscow summit, the first time since 1960. On Aug. 1 the U.S. House of Reps by 400-20 passes a crackdown on Iran's oil exports by 1M barrels over the next year, pissing-off Russia. On Aug. 1 former Goldman Sachs trader Fabrice Tourre is found guilty by a federal jury on six counts of civil securities fraud. On Aug. 1 after Argentine prosecutor Alberto Nisman pub. a 500-page report on the 1994 bombing of the AMIA Jewish center in Buenos Aires, the U.S. State Dept. writes a letter to U.S. Sen. (R-Ill.) Mark Kirk saying that it has asked the U.S. intel community to take a new look at Iran's terrorist activities in Latin Am. On Aug. 2 (Muslim holiday of Eid al-Fitr) Pope Francis speaks at the Cathedral of Rio de Janeiro, giving a Speech to World Muslims, calling for "mutual respect" between Christianity and Islam, and an end to "unfair criticism" - did I say what I think I said? On Aug. 2 76 U.S. Senators sign a letter to Pres. Obama calling for Iran sanctions despite the election of new PM Hassan Rouhani. On Aug. 3 suicide bombers in a car outside the Indian consulate in Jalalabad, Afghanistan kill eight and injure 22. On Aug. 3 a car plows down pedesrians at the boardwalk at Venice Beach, Calif., killing one and injuring 11. On Aug. 3 deposed Egyptian PM Mohamed Morsi begins cracking and offering to talk with the Nat. Salvation Front, but keeps up the daily sit-ins; on Aug. 4 UAE foreign minister sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed joins the high-level talks in Cairo as a mediator, along with Qatar, the U.S., the EU, and the African Union; too bad, on Aug. 8 the mediation talks fail, with interim pres. Adly Mansour blaming the Muslim Brotherhood for the "failure" of the talks, warning that his govt. won't make any concessions to them. On Aug. 3 new Iranian pres. Hassan Rouhani is officially sworn-in in Tehran, giving a speech vowing to lift the "oppressive sanctions" crippling the economy, receiving official backing from Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. On Aug. 4 (Sun.) the U.S. closes its embassies in the Muslim World after receiving an unspecified terror threat from Ayman al-Zawahiri and AQAP, incl. a planned attack on Yemeni oil pipelines and ports; Yemen deploys tanks and special forces outside the U.S. embassy in Sana'a; too bad, the disclosure of the messages causes the terrorists to quit using their comm channel, hurting U.S. intel. On Aug. 4 46 U.S. reps send a letter to Turkish PM Recep Tayyip Erdogan blasting him for making anti-Semitic statements, and calling on him to "publicly condemn the use of anti-Semitic rhetoric by government officials." On Aug. 4 two militant attacks in North Nigeria kill 35+. On Aug. 4 according to Human Rights Watch on Oct. 11, 20 groups of Syrian rebels launch an offensive in Latakia Province, Syria that kills 190+ civilians seizes 200+ hostages, some remaining in captivity until ?. On Aug. 4 (night) a bomb at the front door of the Ekayana Buddhist Vihara in West Jakarta, Indonesia injures one of 300 devotees. On Aug. 5 S Thai Muslim leader Imam Yacob Raimanee of Pattani Central Mosque is assassinated. On Aug. 5 a bombing in a busy commercial street in Cotabato, Philippines kills six and injures 29+. On Aug. 5 Turkish Army Gen. Ilker Basbug is sentenced to life in prison for the Ergenekon Conspiracy, becoming a big V for Turkish PM Recep Tayyip Erdogan in his war against the secularist deep govt.; 16 more are sentenced to life; all but 17 of 275 defendants are convicted. On Aug. 5 Amazon.com founder Jeff Bezos purchases the Washington Post for $250M. On Aug. 5 the U.S. Postal Service ends Sat. mail delivery in order to save $2B a year. On Aug. 5 Samantha Jane Power (1970-), wife (since 2008) of Cass Sunstein becomes U.S. U.N. ambassador #28 (until Jan. 20, 2017). On Aug. 6 U.S. federal prosecutors file the first charges in the 9/11/2012 Benghazi Consulate Attack on Libyan militia leader Ahmed Khattalah. On Aug. 6 Syrian rebels led by the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant capture the Minnigh Airbase in Aleppo; meanwhile a large weapons cache is destroyed in Homs; it's really a tactical nuclear strike? On Aug. 7 the Syrian army ambushes rebel troops near Adra, Syria E of Damascus, killing 62; it recaptures the rebel district of Khaldiyeh in Homs. On Aug. 7 a motorcycle bomb in Karachi, Pakistan kills 11 child soccer players and injures 24+. On Aug. 7 a massive fire engulfs Nairo Airport in Kenya. On Aug. 7 a Muslim attack on the Coptic Evangelical church in Ain Shams, Egypt (near Cairo) kills 10-y.-o. Jessi Paulis Issa and injures dozens leaving Sunday school class. On Aug. 7 Pres. Obama addresses Marines at Camp Pendleton, Calif., telling them that the Afghanistan War has entered its final chapter. On Aug. 8 a suicide bomber at a funeral in Quetta, Pakistan kills 30 incl. 21+ policemen. On Aug. 8 an explosion in a graveyard in Ghani Khel, Nangarhar, Afghanistan kills 10+ women. On Aug. 8 gunmen ambush a van carrying Turkish Airlines crew in Beirut, Lebanon, kidnapping a pilot and co-pilot. On Aug. 8 Pres. Obama hosts Internet execs and civil liberties leaders for a closed-door meeting on govt. surveillance, stirring fears of a coming police state. On Aug. 8 Pres. Obama posth. awards the Pres. Medal of Freedom to black gay civil rights activist Bayard Rustin (1912-87). On Aug. 10 a bombing wave in Bagdead, Iraq kills 33 celebrating Eid al-Fitr. On Aug. 10 the U.S. State Dept. condemns attacks on Kurdish civilians in the Aleppo area of Syria by groups affiliated with al-Qaida. On Aug. 11 First Dog Bo is airlifted on his own heli on a First Family vacation to Martha's Vineyard. On Aug. 12 U.S. atty. gen. Eric Holder announces a push by the U.S. Dept. of Justice to overhaul federal minimum sentencing laws, esp. those aimed at blacks, er, low-level drug offenders. On Aug. 12 Calif. gov. Jerry Brown signs a law ordering public schools to accomodate transgender students, incl. use of bathrooms, effective Jan. 1, affecting 6.2M students. On Aug. 14 (Bloody Wed.) the 2013 Rabaa Massacre sees Egyptian forces clear the pro-Morsi camps, killing 600-817 civilians incl. 149 in Rabaa al-Adawiya Square, causing Egyptian vice-pres. Mohammad ElBaradei to resign in protest; on Aug. 14 pissed-off Pres. Obama holds a press conference, and cancels joint military exercises; on Aug. 14-16 the Muslim Brotherhood attacks Coptic churches and monasteries throughout Egypt, incl. Gharbeya, Giza, Suez, Fayoum, Beni Suef, Minya, Asyut, Sohag, and Qena. On Aug. 14 the Al Nusra Battalion assassinates Col. Mohammed al Komi along the Cairo-Ismailia Rd. in Egypt as part of its program of killing "apostates" and "criminals". On Aug. 14 Doctors without Borders announces that it's leaving Somalia in frustration after 20+ years. On Aug. 14 U.S. federal Tenth Circuit Court of Appeals judge Vicki Miles-LaGrange rules that Okla.'s Nov. 2010 law banning Islamic Sharia is unconstitutional. On Aug. 14 WWE wrestler Darren Young (Fredrick Douglas "Fred" Rosser) becomes the first prof. wrestler to come out as gay. On Aug. 14-16 the Bahrain Tamarod (Tamarrod) sees more protests. On Aug. 15 a car bomb in S Beirut, Lebanon kills 20 and injures 212, becoming the deadliest since Rafik Hariri's 2005 assassination. On Aug. 17 Mohammed al-Zawahri, brother of Ayman al-Zawahri is arrested in Giza, Egypt near Cairo. On Aug. 17 Egyptian troops storm a mosque in Cairo, Egypt and battle Muslim Brotherhood supporters; 173 are killed throughout Egypt in violence; meanwhile govt. rep. Mostafa Hegazi announces that the govt. is considering "dissolving" the Muslim Brotherhood movement; meanwhile EU high rep. for foreign affairs Catherine Ashton strongly condemns the violence, saying that it has left Egypt "in a state of emergency and heading into an uncertain future", calling on the Egyptian govt. to "exercise utmost restraint and on all Egyptian citizens to avoid further provocations and escalation." On Aug. 18 Muslim Brotherhood supporters attempt to escape from a prison outside Cairo, Egypt, and 38 are killed. On Aug. 18 Libyan interior minister Col. Mohammad al-Sheikh resigns after less than 2 mo. in office; meanwhile the Barqa Youth Movement declares E Libya an autonomous federal province subject to Islamic Sharia. On Aug. 19 British authorities announces the arrest of the biggest child sex ring in U.K. history, 45 men in West Yorkshire. On Aug. 19 Saudi foreign minister Prince Saud Al-Faisal issues a Statement on Egypt, warning the West that "we will not hesitate to help Egypt" throw off the Muslim Brotherhood. On Aug. 19 U.S. Joint Chiefs of Staff chmn. Gen. Martin Dempsey writes a letter to Rep. Eliot Engel (D-N.Y.), telling him that the Obama admin. opposes any military intervention in Syria because even if they win the rebels won't support U.S. interests, and there would be no strategy for peace. On Aug. 19 Turkish officials Bekir Bozdag and Huseyin Celik ask Org. for Islamic Cooperation (OIC) chief Ekmeleddin Ihsanoglu to resign for failing to speak out against the coup in Egypt. On Aug. 20 Qatar-owned Al Jazeera launches its U.S. affiliate, while the Arab World disses them for supporting the Muslim Brotherhood. On Aug. 20 the Egyptian govt. arrests Muslim Brotherhood supreme leader Muhammad Badie; meanwhile madass Muslim Brotherhood supporters attack and damage 82 churches across Egypt by Aug. 21. On Aug. 20 Pakistani authorities bust al-Qaida's internat. technical hub in Lahore, Pakistan, which is linked to the abduction of U.S. aid worker Warren Weinstein. On Aug. 21 a chemical weapons attack in the outskirts of East Ghouta, Syria (near Damascus) by ? kills 494+ (1,429?), becoming the worst in the 21st cent. (until ?); on Aug. 22 the Syrian army bombs the same rebel-held suburbs; on Aug. 23 Pres. Obama calls the chemical attack a "big event of grave concern", and on Aug. 23 utters the soundbyte "We do have to make sure that when countries break international norms on chemical weapons they are held accountable"; on Aug. 30 U.S. secy. of state John Kerry releases a report that claims that 1,429 were killed incl. 426 children, that Assad's regime is responsible, and that the U.S. won't wait for U.N. weapons inspectors to finish work before deciding to take military action. On Aug. 21 after far-right extremists mount protests in Berlin on Aug. 20 against the resettling of 400 refugees from Afghanistan, Serbia, and Syria in a former h.s., Angela Merkel visits Dachau, becoming the first German chancellor to visit it, uttering the soundbyte: "How could Germans go so far as to deny people human dignity and the right to live based on their race, religion, their political persuasion or their sexual orientation? Places such as this warn each one of us to help ensure that such things never happen again"; too bad, she fails to recognize that Islam is the real far-right? On Aug. 21 the U.S. sanctions Jamia Taleem-Ul-Quran-Wal Hadith Madrassa in NW Pakistan for ties to al-Qaida; in Oct. Russian diplomatic sources claim that the attack was done by a Saudi black ops team; famed journalist Seymour Hersh alleges that a secret agreement was made in 2012 between the Obama admin. and Turkey, Saudi Arabia, and Qatar to have rebels stage a sarin gas attack in Syria and frame Assad. On Aug. 21 Michael Brandon Hill brings an AK-47 and 500 rounds of ammo to Ronald McNair Discovery Learning Center in Decatur, Ga., and is talked into surrendering by Antoinette Tuff, who becomes a big hero. On Aug. 21 after news breaks that the NYPD has designed mosques as terrorist orgs. for purposes of surveillance, New York City mayoral candidate Bill de Blasio tweets the soundbyte that he is "deeply troubled NYPD has labelled entire mosques & Muslim orgs terror groups with seemingly no leads. Security AND liberty make us strong." On Aug. 21 Facebook launches Internet.org to spread Internet connectivity to the two-thirds of the world's pop. that still don't have it; privacy is a secondary concern? On Aug. 22 outgoing FBI dir. Robert Mueller gives an interview to Pierre Thomas of ABC News, warning of U.S.-based jihadis bringing jihad home from Syria. On Aug. 22 hundreds of striking teachers in Zocalo Plaza in Mexico City try to block the entrances to the Congress and Senate to prevent lawmakers from voting on a set of rules to apply their newly-overhauled education system. On Aug. 23 bombs explode outside two mosques in Tripoli, Lebanon, killing 27 and wounding 350+, becoming the deadliest attack since the Lebanese civil war. On Aug. 23 U.S. warships begin heading towards Syria while Pres. Obama considers military options. On Aug. 25 a bomb attack on a bus carrying air force personnel to their base in Sana'a, Yemen kills 6+ and injures 25. On Aug. 25 yet another Bloody Sunday sees insurgent attacks around Iraq kill 41+. On Aug. 25-7 Oman Sultan Qaboos bin Said visits Iran, causing speculation that Oman is going to mediate between Iran and the U.S. On Aug. 26 (6:30 a.m.) a Taliban suicide assault at the Afghan army base in Kapisa, Afghanistan kills two Taliban fighters and injures 10. On Aug. 26 Israeli forces raid a refugee camp in N Jerusalem, killing three. On Aug. 28 Iranian supreme leader Ali Khameini utters the soundbyte that a U.S. attack on Syria would be a "disaster for the region... Such warmongering is like a spark in a gunpowder depot, and its dimensions and consequences cannot be estimated"; on Aug. 28 Iranian Rev. Guards cmdr. Mohammad Ali Jafari utters the soundbyte: "Syria will become a second Vietnam for the U.S." On Aug. 28 hundreds land in Israel in the Final Ethiopian Aliyah, bringing to an end the decades-long effort of the Jewish Agency. On Aug. 28 Syrian ambasssador Bashar Jaafari demands that U.N. weapons inspectors investigate alleged rebel chemical attacks on Aug. 22, 24, and 25 in Jobar, Sahnaya, and al-Bahariya. On Aug. 29 the largest-ever fast-food strike in the U.S. targets 58 cities, with workers demanding $15 an hour. On Aug. 29 Edward Snowden releases a document to the Washington Post exposing the funding of the huge U.S. spy network, which spies on Russia, Cuba, Red China, Iran, and yes, Israel. On Aug. 29 after the Obama admin. reveals its plan to "punish" Syria for using chemical weapons, the British Parliament votes to nix British participation despite PM Gordon Brown's support due to doubts as to who really used them. On Aug. 29 the U.S. Treasury Dept. announces that legally-married same-sex couples must file jointly, and may request refunds back to 2010. On Aug. 29 the U.S. govt. announces that it will no longer stand in the way of states legalizing marijuana as long as they keep it away from children and federal property. On Aug. 29 Saudi Arabia passes its first-ever Domestic Abuse Law. On Aug. 29 an ambush by the Taliban in Farah Province, Afghanistan kills 15 Afghan policemen. On Aug. 30 pro-Morsi anti-military protests in Cairo, Egypt see crowds only in the thousands, sporting a new 4-finger R4BIA symbol. On Aug. 30 Peruvian pres. Ollanta Humala announces a state of emergency in the S Andean region of Puno afer it's hit with the coldest temperatures in a decade, killing 250K alpacas. On Aug. 30 a suicide bomber in a mosque in Kunduz Province, Afghanistan kills 20 incl. district chief Sheikh Sadruddin. On Aug. 30 the first reported U.S. drone strike in Yemen in 20 days kills AQAP cmdr. Kaid al Dhabab and two other fighters. On Aug. 30 Tunisia sentences two rappers to 21 mo. in prison for "insulting the police". On Aug. 30 (Fri.) night Pres. Obama flops on his decision to attack Syria. On Aug. 31 Pres. Obama gives a Speech on Syria in the White House Rose Garden, saying that he's decided and ready to punish Syria with a military action, but calling on Congress to approve it first to abide by the Constitution - smartest move of his career? In Aug. Germany becomes the first country to recognize Bitcoin. In Aug. floods in Pakistan affect 7,693 villages and 1.47M people, destroying 21,133 houses. In Aug. India launches the INS Vikrant, its first home-built aircraft carrier, making it nation #5. In Aug. Sham al-islam is formed in Salma, Syria by Brahim Benchekroune (Abu Ahmad al-Muhajir), spreading to North Africa, with the soundbyte: "We consider democracy to be kufr against God Almighty and a doctrine that is in contradiction to God's Sharia." In Aug. the U.S. unemployment drops to 7.3%, adding 169K jobs. In Aug. Belgium begins buying U.S. Treasury bonds (until ?), buying $215B worth by May 2014, equal to half the country's GDP. On Sept. 1 the Million Muslim March, organized by the Am. Muslim Political Action Committee. On Sept. 1 an IED blast in Boya, North Waziristan kills 9+ soldiers. On Sept. 1 gunmen using U.S. weapons attack Iranian dissident haven Camp Ashraf in Iraq, killing 52; on Oct. 30 a report claims that the Iraqi govt. was complicit; the U.S. govt. denies it. On Sept. 2 militants attack a U.S. base in Torkham, Afghanistan near the Pakistan border, shutting down a supply road while losing three militants. On Sept. 2 Vatican spokesman Monsignor Mario Toso warns that U.S. intervention in Syria could result in a world war. On Sept. 3 a series of car blasts in Shiite neighborhoods in Baghdead, Iraq kills 49+. On Sept. 3 al-Qaida linked terrorists stop a bus en route from Tartus to Ras al-Ain, Syria, beheading all 24 passengers incl. a mother and infant. On Sept. 3 Antioch Patriarch Gregory III says that a U.S. strike on Syria would be "a criminal act which will only reap more victims." On Sept. 3 Sweden announces that it is granting blanket asylum to all Syrian refugees, putting it in line to become the first Muslim country in Europe? On Sept. 3 Pres. Obama meets with Swedish PM Frederik Reinfeldt in Stockholm in the first-ever bilateral meeting between the nations' two top leaders. On Sept. 3 Syrian pres. Bashar al-Assad tells a French newspaper: "For us, a strong man prevents rather than starts a war. Obama is weak because he is facing pressure from within the United States." On Sept. 3 Egyptian security forces carry out strikes in the Sinai Peninsula, killing 8+ Islamic militants. On Sept. 3 the World Bank pays the Palestinian Authority $72.2M for continuing support. On Sept. 3 Somali pres. (since 2012) Hassan Sheikh Mohamud survives an assassination attempt in Merca, Somalia. On Sept. 3 the first-ever minaret in Copenhagen, Denmark is built as part of a $26M grant from Qatar to build the biggest mega-mosque in Scandinavia. On Sept. 3 U.S. Vice Adm. Tim Giardina, 2nd highest nuclear weapons cmdr. in the U.S. military is fired for transferring nukes in S.C. without a paper trail; on Oct. 11 the USAF announces that Maj. Gen. Michael Carey, also in charge of nuclear weapons is suspended for personal misbehavior, causing a scandal, with conspiracy theorists warning of a possible false flag attack. On Sept. 4 Jabhat al-Nusra and other Islamists briefly capture the historic Aramaic-speaking Christian town of Ma'loula, Syria. On Sept. 4 after being appointed by Pres. Obama in June, and confirmed by the Senate on July 29, 6'8" former U.S. deputy atty. gen. (2003-5) James Brien "Jim" Comey Jr. (1960-) becomes FBI dir. #7 (until May 9, 2017). On Sept. 4 at the G-20 Summit Pres. Obama utters the soundbyte that not he but "the world set a red line" on Syria's actions, adding "My credibility's not on the line. The international community's credibility is on the line, and America and Congress' credibility is on the line"; Russia hands out bugged goodie bags? On Sept. 4 Ibrahim Boubacar Keita (1945-) becomes pres. of Mali (until Aug. 19, 2020). On Sept. 4 Syrian deputy foreign minister Faisal Muqdad says that Syria is ready for a U.S. military strike and has taken "every measure" to retaliate, and "The Syrian government will not change position even if there is World War III." On Sept. 4 Afghan pres. Hamid Karzai issues the soundbyte that the Taliban defames Islam by killing Muslim scholars and damaging mosques; on Sept. 5 (a.m.) the Shiite Shia Dashte Barche Mosque in W Kabul is attacked by Taliban fighters wearing police uniforms. On Sept. 5 an unsuccessful assassination attempt on Egyptian interior minister Mohammed Ibrahim in Cairo becomes the first since Morsi was toppled in July; on Sept. 8 Ansar Jerusalem (Ansar Bayt al Maqdis) takes credit. On Sept. 5 elections in Australia are a V for the anti-immigration Liberal-National Party coalition over the Labor Party for the first time in six years. On Sept. 5-6 the G20 Summit in St. Petersburg sees Pres. Obama and Pres. Putin spar on Syria; meanwhile Pope Frances utters the soundbyte that the G20 leaders should abandon the "futile pursuit" of a military solution in Syria. On Sept. 6 a U.S. drone strike in North Waziristan, Pakistan kills four suspected Haqqani Network fighters incl. cmdr. Mullah Sangeen Zadran, shadow gov. of Paktika Province. On Sept. 6 Iranian pres. Hassan Rouhani surprises Israel by offering Rosh Hashanah greetings to all Jews, followed by foreign minister Javad Zarif tweeting that he "never denied" the Holocaust, and "The man who was perceived to be denying it is now gone." On Sept. 6 (11:27 p.m. EDT) (03:27 GMT) NASA launches its LADEE Moon probe; a few hours later its reaction wheels shut down, which is corrected on Sept. 7. On Sept. 7 militants detonate a car bomb and suicide bomber at The Village restaurant in Mogadishu, Somalia, killing 15+ and wounding 20+. On Sept. 7 a U.S. Congressional panel posts Syria attack videos online showing gross scenes of suffering from the Aug. 21 attack outside Damascus. On Sept. 8 the biggest offensive by the Egyptian army in the Sinai Peninsula since the 1973 Yom Kippur War begins against Islamist terrorists (ends ?). On Sept. 8 Anthony John "Tony" Abbott (1957-) of the conservative Liberal Party is elected PM #28 of Australia, taking office on Sept. 18 (until Sept. 15, 2015). On Sept. 8 the Internat. Olympics Committee (IOC) selects Tokyo to host the 2012 Summer Olympic Games, passing over Turkey. On Sept. 8 the Taliban stages a car bomb and gun attack outside an Afghan intel office in Kabul, Afghanistan, killing four soldiers and wounding 80; meanwhile Afghan officials accuse NATO of killing civilians in an airstrike in E Afghanistan that kills 10+. On Sept. 8 Bangladesh charges four bloggers with defaming Islam, facing up to seven years in jail each. On Sept. 9 elections in Norway are a V for the Conservative Party of Erna Solberg over the incumbent Labour Party of PM Jens Stoltenberg. On Sept. 9 Syrian pres. Bashar al-Assad gives an interview to Charlie Rose of CBS-TV, saying that there is no evidence that his regime used chemical weapons on his own people, and that if the U.S. attacks, it and its allies should "expect every action" in response, adding "Not necessarily from the government"; meanwhile secy. of state John Kerry utters the soundbyte that Assad can resolve the crisis by turning "every single bit" of his chemical weapons arsenal over to the internat. community by the end of the week, which becomes a plot-twister when it is welcomed by Syrian foreign minister Walid al-Moallem, and accepted after negotiations with Russian foreign minister Sergei Lavrov; the idea was originated by Polish foreign minister Radoslaw Sikorski. On Sept. 9 Hindu-Muslim violence in Muazaffarnagar, India kills 28+. On Sept. 9 (early a.m.) 300 Muslim rebels take Zamboanga, Philippines, killing nine, and hold it against police and military until ?; on Sept. 20 Philippine pres. Benigno Aquino III issues an ultimatum to the rebels to surrender or else. On Sept. 9 the 1000-year 2013 Colo. Front Range Flood begin with heavy rain along the Colo. Front Range in 17 counties from Colorado Springs to Fort Collins, giving Boulder County 17 in. of rain by Sept. 15 (vs. the avg. annual precipitation of 20.7 in.), causing Colo. Gov. John Hickenlooper to declare a disaster emergency in 14 counties on Sept. 12, expanded to 14 on Sept. 15; the flood kills eight and causes 11K evacuations, with 19K homes damaged and 1.5K destroyed, along with 30 state highway bridges. On Sept. 10 the Philippine army blocks the Moro Nat. Liberation Front (MNLF) from entering the city of Zamboanga, Philippines, killing 8+ and taking 20 hostages. On Sept. 10 Quebec releases a proposed Charter of Quebec Values to ban govt. workers from wearing "overt and conspicuous" religious symbols, and require the public to uncover their faces when dealing with the govt. On Sept. 10 the Al-Aqsa Martyrs Brigade announces that it will resume terrorist attacks on Israelis starting on Sept. 13 because of Jewish visits to the Temple Mount. On Sept. 11 (9/11) (a.m.) an explosion at the Libyan Foreign Ministry in Benghazi. On Sept. 11 al-Qaida leader Ayman al-Zawahiri sends an audio message calling for more strikes on U.S. soil to "bleed" America's finances. On Sept. 11 (9/11) 1M-2M bikers roll through Washington, D.C., while the announced Million Muslim March fizzles, with less than a dozen Muslims showing up. On Sept. 12 (11?) Am.-born Islamist terrorist Omar Hammami is murdered by his rivals in Al-Shabaab in Somalia. On Sept. 12 (a.m.) 104 women incl. 20+ illegal aliens are arrested on Capitol Hill while protesting for amnesty and immigration reform. On Sept. 12 Calif. passes a law approving driver's licenses for illegal aliens. On Sept. 12 liar thug ex-KGB Russian pres. Vladimir Putin pub. an op-ed in the New York Times, claiming that the rebels not Assad's regime set off the chemical weapons, and dissing Pres. Obama for saying that the U.S. is exceptional, claiming that it's dangerous to think so. On Sept. 12 (night) gunmen attack a NATO oil tanker convoy in Soorab, Kalat, Pakistan, killing a driver and torching eight vehicles. On Sept. 13 (a.m.) a bomb at the U.S. consulate in Herat, Afghanistan kills three and injures 10. On Sept. 13 (a.m.) a fire at a psychiatric hospital N of Moscow, Russia kills 37. On Sept. 13 230km-wide Asteroid 324 Bamberga flies by Earth. On Sept. 13 Pakistani sen. Mushahid Hussain Sayed announces that the U.S. and NATO will keep 20K troops in Afghanistan in nine bases. On Sept. 13 Central African Repub. (CAR) pres. Michel Djotodia announces the "dissolution" of the 25K-man Islamist Seleka rebel coalition that put him in power on Mar. 24; when they won't dissolve, he calls them bandits, raping the countryside and engaging in selective attacks on Christians. On Sept. 13 Obabiyi Aishah Ajibola is crowned the first Muslimah World (Muslim alternative to Miss World) in Jakarta, Indonesia. On Sept. 14 the U.S. and Russia reach a deal on Syria to force it to account for and destroy its chemical weapons by July 2014 after allowing internat. inspectors in by Nov., leaving open the possibility of U.N. sanctions on military action for violations. On Sept. 14 militants of the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) capture an air defense base in Hama, Syria. On Sept. 14 Muslims lay the foundation for the first mosque in Slovenia. On Sept. 15 the Pakistani Taliban assassinate Pakistani maj. gen. Sanaullah Niaza and two soldiers in Dir. On Sept. 15 9+ NATO fuel tankers headed for Afghanistan are destroyed by a blast in Quetta, Pakistan. On Sept. 15 Nina Davuluri (1989-) of N.Y. becomes the first Miss America of Indian descent, spurring a racist backlash against "Miss Al-Qaida"; she becomes the first contestant to perform a Bollywood dance routine. On Sept. 16 (8:16 a.m.) the Washington Navy Yard Shooting sees 34-y.-o. African-Am. Navy reservist (Buddhist) Aaron Alexis (b. 1979) of Ft. Worth, Tex. enter the Naval Yard in Washington, D.C. near the White House and shoot and kill 12 employees and injure three with a Remington 870 12-gauge shotgun before being killed, becoming the 2nd deadliest mass murder on a U.S. military base after the 2009 Fort Hood Shooting. On Sept. 16 a suicide car bomber at a police station in Chechnya kills three police and injures five. On Sept. 16 Iranian vice-pres. Ali Akbar Salehi addresses the opening session of the 57th Gen. Conference of the IAEA in Vienna, issuing the soundbyte that Iran now wants to cooperate more closely. On Sept. 16 U.N. inspectors release their Report on the Alleged Use of Chemical Weapons in the Ghouta Rea of Damascus on Aug. 21, 2103, concluding that sarin gas was used, but not fingering either side conclusively; on Sept. 19 Russian deputy foreign minister Sergei Ryabkov pooh-poohs the report, and claims that Assad has given them evidence that the rebels did it; on Sept. 20 a video of the rebel al-Reeh al-Sarsar Brigade doing it emerges. On Sept. 16 Pres. Obama waives a ban on arming terrorists to allow aid to Syrian rebels, who are mainly Islamist jihadists. On Sept. 16 Iranian pres. Hassan Rouhani addresses a nat. gathering of Rev. Guard cmdrs., issuing the soundbyte: "You, the uninvited guest in our region, leave the region and then you will see that it becomes heaven", accusing the West of hatching plots incl. the Syrian civil war, and "has plans for the whole region". On Sept. 16 after their permits are ruled invalid, Israeli authorities demolish Bedouin homes in Khirbet al-Mahkhul, then maltreat French diplomat Marion Fesneau-Catain, causing an internat. incident. On Sept. 16 the supernatural drama series Sleepy Hollow debuts on Fox Network, based on the short stories of Washington Irving, set in Sleepy Hollow, N.Y., starring Surrey, England-born Thomas James "Tom" Mison (1982-) as the resurrected Capt. Ichabod Crane, who chases the resurrected Headless Horseman Abraham Van Brunt. On Sept. 16-20 the Workshop on Human Space Technology is organized by the China Manned Space Agency and U.N. Office for Outer Space Affairs. On Sept. 17 a suspected bomb maker is killed in Antananarivo, Madagascar when his bomb blows up prematurely. On Sept. 17 a court in Novorossiysk, Russia rules that (a trans. of) the Quran is hate literature, and orders it placed on the federal extremist materials list, pissing-off Russian Islamist clerics, who warn of unrest if they don't reverse da decision. On Sept. 17 the action comedy series Brooklyn Nine-Nine debuts on Fox Network for ? episodes (until ?), about the 99th Precinct of the NYPD in Brooklyn, starring has-to-be-black Andre K. Braugher (1962-) as Capt. Raymond "Ray" Holt, Andrew "Andy" Samberg (1978-) as Det. Jacob "Jake" Peralta, Terry Alan Crews Jr. (1968-) as Sgt. Terry Jeffords, and Dennis Dirk Blocker (1957-) (son of Dan Blocker) as Det. Michael Hitchcock. On Sept. 18 (8:45 a.m.) two Taliban motorcycle gunmen kill senior Afghan election official Mohammad Amanullah then brag about it on Twitter. On Sept. 18 seven illegal aliens handcuff themselves to the White House to protest lack of legal status and call for an end to deportations. On Sept. 18 for a 2nd time the U.S. House of Reps. overwhelmingly (402-22) passes legislation to establish a special envoy on the Middle East to focus on religious minorities incl. Christians; too bad, Pres. Obama opposes it; the first vote in 2011 was passed by 402-20. On Sept. 18 a madass Muslim repeatedly stabs firefighter Dominic Parker (b. 1968) in the head at a cafe in Toronto, Canada, killing him. On Sept. 18 the Internat. News pub. an article claiming that in the past 18 mo. the Taliban has collected at least 650M rupees in ransoms from kidnapping businessmen in Islamabad and Rawalpindi, Pakistan. On Sept. 18-19 Hurricane Manuel hits NW Mexico, killing 80+. On Sept. 19 al-Qaida Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) militants capture the strategic Oncupinar border crossing between N Syria and Turkey after pushing moderate rebels out of Azaz; meanwhile a truce is reached between ISIS and the Syrian Nat. Coalition, who says that the push for an Islamist state undermines their struggle for a free Syria. On Sept. 19 after a rally by thousands of pro-Mori supporters shouting "Down with Sisi", the Egyptian army retakes Islamist-held Kerdassa, Egypt, killing 55 and losing Egyptian police gen. Nabil Farag (Nabeel Farrag). On Sept. 19 a Tex. appeals court overturns the money laundering conviction of former House Majority leader Tom DeLay, cancelled his 3-year sentence. On Sept. 19 Iran releases two dozen+ political prisoners incl. human rights atty. Nasrin Sotoudeh, but fails to release Am. pastor Saeed Abedini. On Sept. 19 (17:25 GMT) a 5.3 earthquake near the Fukushima Nuclear Plant in Japan. On Sept. 19 the Repub.-controlled U.S. House votes by 217-210 to cut food stamps (SNAP) by $40B over 10 years starting in 2014. announce a push for tough new requirements for coal-fired power plants to stave off alleged global warming, although environmentalists admit that even if they were all shut down, global CO2 would only be reduced by 0.2%. On Sept. 19 Pres. Obama's buddies at the Hamas-connected Council of Am.-Islamic Relations (CAIR) pub. Same Hate, Same Target, claiming that anybody critical of Islam is a bigoted "Islamophobe"; on Sept. 20 U.S. Inspector Gen. Michael Horowitz reveals that the FBI has been engaging in outreach activity with CAIR despite a 2008 policy banning it, causing U.S. Rep. (R-Va.) Frank Wolf to demand that the agents be punished; meanwhile on Sept. 19 prominent blogger Pamela Geller pub. an article revealing that 501c(3) nonprofit CAIR failed to file required Form 990s for three consecutive years. On Sept. 19 Tunisian interior minister Lofti Bin Jeddo utters the soundyte that Tunisian girls on "sex jihad" had returned after being sexually "swapped between 20, 30, and 100 rebels and they come back bearing the fruit of sexual contacts in the name of sexual jihad and we are silent doing nothing and standing idle." On Sept. 19 Pope Francis utters the soundbyte that the Church has become "obsessed" with gays, abortion, and contraception to the detriment of its basic mission to be a "home for all", and that the Church can share its views but should not "interfere spiritually" with fags and dikes, er, gays and lesbians. On Sept. 20 al-Qaida militants kill 56 soldiers and policemen in two attacks at al-Nashama and Maifaa in S Yemen. On Sept. 20 clashes between anti-Indian protesters and govt. forces in Srinagar, Kashmir injure 7+. On Sept. 20 Taliban fighters ambush Afghan policemen in Badakhshan Province, Afghanistan, killing 20+. On Sept. 20 the Repub.-dominated U.S. House votes to defund Obamacare, attaching it to a bill to keep the govt. in operation, knowing that when it's rejected by the Senate the federal govt. could shut down. On Sept. 20 the Obama admin. announces a policy change that limits access to the Gitmo military commission hearings to five leftist orgs. only, kicking out right-of-center Judicial Watch. On Sept. 20 an IAEA resolution backed by the Arab League and Iran criticizing Israel for its nuclear arsenal is defeated 43-51-32; meanwhile a draft resolution submitted by Egypt passes, calling for all Middle East countries to join the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty et al.; meanwhile Israeli strategic affairs minister Yuval Steinitz utters the soundbyte "There is no more time to hold negotiations" with Iran over its nukes, adding "If the iranians continue to run, in another half a year they will have a bomb capability", and Benjamin Netanyahu's office issues the soundbyte "One must not be fooled by the Iranian president's fraudulent words. The Iranians are spinning in the media so that the centrifuges can keep on spinning." On Sept. 20 Abdel hameed Shehadeh (1990-) is sentenced by a federal court in Brooklyn, N.Y. to 13 years for lying to the FBI about plans to team up with the Taliban or al-Qaida. On Sept. 20 Pakistan passes amendments containing sweeping changes to its antiterrorism laws, incl. empowering security forces to hold suspects for 90 days without court approval, and the creation of new antiterrorism courts. On Sept. 20 Canada revokes the charitable status of the Islamic Society of North Am. for giving $280K to an org. linked to terrorism in Pakistan. On Sept. 20 42-y.-o. Palestinian Nidal Amar lures and kidnaps Israeli soldier Sgt. Tomer hazan (b. 1993) in Beit Amin (near Qalqiliya), West Bank, then murders him. On Sept. 20 Spiegel Online reports that Iran pres. Hassan Rouhani is prepared to dismantle the Fordo Nuclear Plant to pacify the West. On Sept. 20 Norwegian Progress Party leader Christian Tybring-Gjedde makes news for refusing to renounce the phrae "creeping Islamization", first used by party leader Siv Jensen in 2009. On Sept. 21 (noon) after telling Muslims that they can leave unharmed, 15 Al-Shabaab gunmen attack the upscale Westgate Shopping Center in Nairobi, Kenya, killing 68 incl. six soldiers and 62 civilians incl. 31 Americans and three Brits, and injuring 250+ in a standoff with the army that ends on Sept. 24; on Sept. 23 British PM David Cameron utters the soundbyte: "These appalling terrorist attacks that take place, where the perpetrators claim they do it in the name of a religion - they don't. They do it in the name of terror, violence and extremism and their warped view of the world"; rumors spread that it is led by 7/7 fugitive British "White Widow" Samantha Lewthwaite (who rented a house near the mall), and incl. British Muslims Liban Adam and Ahmed Nasir Shirdoon, along with Am. Muslims from Ill., Maine, Ariz., Minn., and Kan.; victims are slaughtered if they can't prove they're Muslim; non-Muslims suffer horrific torture; the last jihadist sets fire to the bodies of his comrades to stop identification; Nigerian pres. Uhuru Kenyatta's nephew is killed; al-Shabaab uses Twitter to broadcast the entire event blow-by-blow; on Sept. 27 Al-Shabaab leader Ahmed Abi Mohamed Godane utters the soundbyte that there will be an "abundance of blood" until Kenyan troops leave Somalia; an Al-Shabaab Operations Manual discovered in 2011 on the body of dead al-Qaida cmdr. Fazul Abdullah Mohammed in Mogadishu lists targets incl. shopping malls in the London suburbs of Golders Green and Stamford Hill. On Sept. 21 two suicide bomber at two Shiite funerals in Baghdad, Iraq kill 92+. On Sept. 21 an Afghan soldier stages a green-on-blue attack in Paktia Province, Afghanistan, killing three ISAF special forces troops. On Sept. 21 Afghan Taliban co-founder Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar is released from jail in Pakistan to negotiate a peace deal with the Afghan govt. On Sept. 21 billionaire George Soros (b. 1930) marries health care consultant Tamiko Bolton (1971-), his 3rd marriage. On Sept. 22 (Sun.) Bundestag elections in Germany are a V for the conservative bloc of pres. Angela Merkel, with 41%; Cemile Giousouf (1988-) (daughter of Turkish immigrants) becomes the first Muslim German MP (until ?); Senegal-born Karamba Diaby (1962-) becomes the first black German MP (until ?). On Sept. 22 a suicide attack on the historic All Saints Church in Peshawar, Pakistan during a Sun. service attended by 600 kills 75+ and injures 100+. On Sept. 22 U.S. drones kill seven militants in North Waziristan, Pakistan, #2 this mo. On Sept. 22 Israeli Sgt. Gabriel Koby (b. 1993) is killed by a sniper in Hebron, causing Israel to permit the immediate resettlement of the nearby Beit Hamachpela (House of the Patriarchs) near the Cave of the Patriarchs. On Sept. 22 voters in the Italian-speaking region of Ticino, Switzerland ban full-face veils, pissing-off the Muslim community and Amnesty Internat. On Sept. 22 the crime drama series The Blacklist debuts on NBC-TV for ? episodes (until ?), starring James Todd Spader (1960-) as Raymond "Red" Reddington, "the Concierge of Crime", a U.S. Navy officer turned high-profile criminal, who surrenders to the FBI after eluding capture for decades, and barters a list of the world's most dangerous criminals for immunity on the condition he work with rookie FBI profiler Elizabeth Keen, played by Megan Boone (1983-); "Never trust a criminal... until you have to." On Sept. 23 an Egyptian court bans the Muslim Brotherhood and orders it assets confiscated; it moves its HQ to London; meanwhile the Islamic Council Alliance is formed to replace it. On Sept. 23 Bank of America, Hewlett-Packard, and Alcoa are dropped, and Goldman Sachs, Visa, and Nike are added to the 30-stock Dow Jones Industrial Avg. On Sept. 24 Pres. Obama gives a speech to the U.N. Gen. Assembly, focusing on the Middle East, defining the Obama Doctrine of avoiding long entanglements and nation-building equally with isolationism, with the soundbytes: "The United States has a hard-earned humility when it comes to our ability to determine events inside other countries", and "I believe America must remain engaged for our own security. I believe the world is better for it. Some may disagree, but I believe that America is exceptional, in part because we have shown a willingness, through the sacrifice of blood and treasure, to stand up not only for our own narrow self-interest, but for the interests of all", saying that "There must be a strong Security Council resolution to verify that the Assad regime is keeping its commitments", and saying that the U.S. doesn't seek regime change in Iran, and leaving the door open for nuclear talks, with the soundbyte "I firmly believe the diplomatic path must be tested"; he adds that Israel security depends on a Palestinian state, and claims "a growing recognition within Israel that the occupation of the West Bank is tearing at the democratic fabric of the Jewish state", causing Israeli minister Yisrael Katz to utter the soundbyte: "I believe this is one of the most disturbing statements that a United States president has ever made"; later, after snubbing a meeting invitation from Obama, Iranian pres. Hassan Rouhani gives a speech to the U.N. Gen. Assembly, denying that Iran ever sought to develop nukes, and dissing the "warmongers", with the soundbyte "Iran poses absolutely no threat to the world or the region"; Israel boycotts it, with PM Benjamin Netanyahu uttering the soundbyte that the speech is "cynical", and he's just stalling for time to build nukes; British foreign minister William Hague meets with Iranian foreign minister Mohammad Javad Zarif, thawing two years of ice. On Sept. 25 a dinner party with Iranian pres. Hassan Rouhani is attended by Louis Farrakhan at the One UN Hotel in New York City. On Sept. 24 U.S. Sen. (R-Tex.) (2013-) Rafael Edward "Ted" Cruz (1970-) begins a filibuster against Obamacare (Affordable Care Act), promising to keep speaking "until I am no longer able to stand"; he lasts 22 hours; on Sept. 27 the Senate by 79-19 incl. 25 Repubs. passes a spending bill with full funding for Obamacare; on Sept. 29 the House passes a bill keeping the govt. funded but delaying Obamacare one year; on Sept 30 the Senate votes 54-46 tables all proposals, holding firm to their demand to fund Obamacare. On Sept. 24 Brazilian pres. Dilma Rousseff gives a speech at the U.N. Gen. Assembly which breaks U.N. protocol to blast the U.S. for spying on Brazilian interests, as revealed by Am. journalist Glenn Greenwald (1967-). On Sept. 24 the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) stages a suicide attack in Haditha, Iraq, killing nine policemen. On Sept. 24 Boko Haram gunmen attack travellers on the Maiduguri-Damaturu road near Benisheik, Borno, Nigeria, killing 161. On Sept. 24 (4:29 p.m.) (11:29 GMT) a 7.8 earthquake off the coast of Pakistan creates a new island off Gwadar. On Sept. 25 the main Syrian rebel factions reject the authority of the Western-backed Syrian Nat. Council and Free Syria Army, demanding a Sharia state. On Sept. 25 a grenade attack at a market in North Eastern Province, Kenya kills one and injures four. On Sept. 25 despite opposition by the NRA et al., U.S. secy. of state John Kerry signs the U.N. Arms Trade Treaty. On Sept. 25 the Chinese Communist Global Times newspaper announces that China has the military capability to strike anywhere in the W Pacific incl. Japan, SE Asia, and Australia. On Sept. 25-30 a reunion of 100 people from South Korea and 100 from North Korea is held at a North Korean mountain resort. On Sept. 26 (early a.m.) Islamic militants burn a Christian church in Dorawa, Nigeria, killing the pastor and his son. On Sept. 26 (a.m.) a twin suicide attack by three Pakistan-based LeT militants in Jammu and Kashmir kills 10 incl. an army officer. On Sept. 26 militants attack police and govt. bldgs. in N Iraq, killing 33. On Sept. 26 an Afghan soldier in Paktia, E Afghanistan fires on his NATO trainers, killing one and injuring several. On Sept. 26 two explosions on a busy street in Sana'a, Yemen injure 20. On Sept. 26 the U.N. Security's five permanent members agree on the core elements of a resolution requiring Syria to give up its chemical weapons, but the U.S. and Russia disagree on details, keeping it from being finalized until Sept. 27; meanwhile on Sept. 26 U.S. secy. of state John Kerry meets with Iranian foreign minister Javad Zarif, becoming the highest level organized meeting between the U.S. and Iran since 1979. On Sept. 26 an attack by Saudi-backed Salafists in Saravan, Iran kills 14 Iranian border guards and injures five. On Sept. 26 Turkish EU affairs minister Egemen Bagis utters the soundbyte that Turkey is unlikely to ever become a member of the EU, but might enter into a Norwegian-type relationship with it. On Sept. 26 the city council of Reykjavik, Iceland approves a permit for the first mosque in Iceland. On Sept. 27 Palestinian riots erupt in the West Bank, Gaza Strip border, and Jerusalem on the 13th anniv. of the Second Intifada. On Sept. 27 after Hillary Clinton's policy adviser Jake Sullivan arranges it, Pres. Obama speaks on the phone with Iranian pres. Hassan Rouhani, becoming the first pres.-to-pres. communication since 1979; they agree to pursue a deal on Iran's nukes - leading directly to WWIII? George Soros is behind it? On Sept. 27 Pres. Obama declares the month of Nov. Nat. Muslim Appreciation Month, with the soundbyte: "The Muslim community deserves our full acceptance and respect. We have killed millions of Muslims overseas since the September 11th attacks. They are not all bad. In fact most of them are good. So from now on, November will be a month to celebrate the Muslim community, the Sunnah and the Quran"; the traitor, er, chief executive then announces that he will be pushing Congress to make it easier for Muslims to get a green card and earn citizenship, with the soundbyte: "There are too many background checks in place and I plan to fix that." On Sept. 27 U.S. secy. of state John Kerry and Turkish secy. of state Ahmet Davutoglu announce the establishment of the Global Fund for Community Engagement and Resilience, funded by $200M over 10 years to combat violent Muslim extremism by undercutting its ideological and recruiting appeal - that's the biggest load of crap I ever saw? On Sept. 27 Bolivian pres. Evo Morales gives a speech at the U.N. Gen. Assembly, calling for the U.N. to be moved out of the U.S., and calling Pres. Obama a war criminal who should face an internat. trial; "They arranged for the president to be killed, and they usurped Libya's oil." On Sept. 27 the U.N. Human Rights Council adopts a Resolution to End Child Marriage, which is co-sponsored by 107 countries; India refuses; it also overwhelmingly adopts a resolution banning intimidation and reprisals against individuals who cooperate with U.N. human rights mechanisms; too bad, on Dec. 18 it suspends it. On Sept. 27 a poll finds that 6 in 10 U.S. Hispanics feel closer to the Dem. Party than in the past, while only 3 in 10 feel closer to the Repub. Party; 48% have negative associates about the Repubs. vs. only 22% about the Dems. On Sept. 27 MasterChef Junior debuts on Fox-TV (until ?), starring chef-judges Gordon Ramsay (1966-), Joe Bastianich (1968-), and Chicago, Ill.-based Graham Elliot (Bowles) (1977-), who loves to wear square white eyeglasses. On Sept. 27-29 the Eastern Christians in Light of the Arab Spring Conference in Amman, Jordan, attended by 50+ bemoans their persecution by Muslims. On Sept. 28 explosions in outdoor markets in and around Baghdead, Iraq kill 23+. On Sept. 28 a shoe is thrown at the car of Iranian pres. Hassan Rouhani by 60 hardliners as he arrives in Tehran from his U.N. trip; another 200-300 shout "Thank you, Rouhani." On Sept. 28 Malaysian PM Najib Tun Razak gives a speech at the U.N. Gen. Assembly, warning that Islamic violence is tearing the Muslim World apart, with the soundbyte: "I believe the greatest threat to Muslims today comes not from the outside world, but from within." On Sept. 29 (1 a.m.) Boko Haram militants murder 65 sleeping Yobe State Agriculture College students in Gujba, Nigeria. On Sept. 29 Turkish chief justice Hasim Kilic gives a speech at Alparslan U., pointing to violence in Muslim countries, with the soundbyte: "If this is what it means to be a Muslim, then I am no Muslim." On Sept. 29 the Al Nushrah Front and the Free Syrian Army take the Daraa Border Crossing to Jordan. On Sept. 29 a suicide attack in Erbil, Kurdistan kills 62 policemen and injures 42, plus 20 civilians, becoming the first suicide attack in Kurdistan in six years. On Sept. 29 a car bomb on a crowded street in the oldest bazaar in Peshawar, Pakistan kills 40 and injures 90. On Sept. 29 a Syrian air strike on a school in rebel-held Raqqa, Syria kills 16+, mostly students. On Sept. 29 Syrian foreign minister Walid Moallem rejects negotiations with the U.S.-based Nat. Coalition of Syrian Opposition and Rev. Forces, and utters the soundbyte "There is no civil war in Syria", calling it a fight against terrorism; meanwhile its spokesman Khalid Saleh announces that it is preparing for the Geneva II Conference on Syria, and will provide support for U.N. teams destroying Syria's chemical weapons; meanwhile 43 rebel groups in Syria form the Army of Islam, rivaling the Free Syrian Army. On Sept. 29 Iran passes a law permitting men to marry their adopted daughters as young as 13 y.o. On Sept. 29 Yunka Mihura (20) and Joana Palhares (18) are arrested in Sao Sebastiao, Brazil for kissing during an evangelical event. On Sept. 29 Michelle Ashford's period drama series Masters of Sex debuts on Showtime for ? episodes (until )?, based on the 2009 book by Thomas Maier, starring Michael Christopher Sheen (1969-) as Dr. William Mastur, er, Masters, and Elizabeth Anne "Lizzy" Caplan (1982-) as Virginia Johnson. On Sept. 29-30 the U.S. stages two drone strikes in North Waziristan, Pakistan, pissing-off the Pakistani govt. On Sept. 30 Miami Beach, Fla.-born Ronald "Ron" Dermer (1971-) succeeds Michael B. Oren as Israeli ambassador to the U.S. #18 (until ?). On Sept. 30 a wave of bombings in Shiite neighborhoods in Baghead, Iraq kill 51+ and injures dozens. On Sept. 30 AQAP fighters dressed in govt. uniforms capture a military base in Mukallah, Yemen in Hadramout Province. On Sept. 30 a series of bombings in Irbil, Kurdistan kills six. On Sept. 30 Turkish PM Recep Tayyip Erodgan gives a speech announcing that the ban on wearing the hijab in state institutions will be ended. On Sept. 30 the Vatican announces the decision to canonize Popes John XIII and John Paul II next Apr. 27. On Sept. 30 6-y.-o. Lulu becomes the first transgender child in Argentina to have her name officially changed under the May 2012 Gender Identity Law. On Sept. 30 the 2013 Fiscal Year U.S. Budget Deficit is $680.276B vs. $1.089193T in 2012, $1.296791T in 2011, $1.294204T in 2010, and $1.415724T in 2009; in 2008 when Bush was pres. it was $454.798B. In Sept. the anti-Western Al-Tahaluf al-Islami (Islamic Alliance/Coalition) incl. Jabhat al-Nusra and Ahrar al-Sham is formed in Aleppo, Syria to oppose pro-West Syrian rebel groups. In Sept. the 58km Kirkuk Trench in Iraq is begun to defend it from terrorist attacks. In Sept. the U.S. unemployment rate falls to 7.2%, lowest since Pres. Obama was elected in Nov. 2008, adding 148K jobs; too bad, a record 90.6M adult Americans are not in the labor force anymore. In Sept. the first commercial hemp crop in almost 60 years is harvested in Colo. In Sept. 39.9K of the new hires in the U.S. tech industry since Jan. are women, outnumbering men for the first time ever. On Oct. 1 after Congressional deadlock over funding Obamacare, the U.S. begins a partial shutdown, incl. the Statue of Liberty; a group of WWII vets storm the WWII Memorial in the Washington, D.C. Mall after they find it barricaded; meanwhile Obamacare itself begins. On Oct. 1 a mortar shell lands near the Chinese embassy in Damascus, Syria, injuring one, pissing-off the Chinese govt. On Oct. 1 Syrian Muslim rebels attack the historic Chrisian town of Sednaya, Syria N of Damascus. On Oct. 1 Washington, D.C. mayor Vincent C. Gary issues a proclamation declaring Oct. as America's Islamic Heritage Month. On Oct. 1 an agreement is signed to officially recognize Islam in Lower Saxony, Germny. On Oct. 1 a U.N. Report on the Libyan Brigades details widespread torture of jailed Libyans. On Oct. 2 (dawn) the Islamic State of Iraq and al-Sham (ISIS) begins a battle in Bab al-Salam on the Turkish border against Syria's Northern Storm Brigade in order to solidify its own border from Raqqa. On Oct. 2 the 45th anniv. of the 1968 Tlatelolco Massacre in Mexico City, Mexico sees demonstrators clash with police, injuring 40. On Oct. 2 the Obama admin. begins a disengagement from Syria, cutting off non-lethal aid to the Syrian rebels; meanwhile al-Qaida blocks the receipt of any aid in N Syria. On Oct. 2 the $15M Hutchins Center for African and African American Research at Harvard U. opens, headed by Henry Louis "Skip" Gates Jr. On Oct. 2 gunman attack the Russian embassy in Tripoli, Libya; no injuries. On Oct. 3 a rickety trawler carrying 500+ African migrants is set afire when they pour gasoline on a blanket and light it as a signal, then capsizes 1/4-mi. off Sicily, killing 111+; on Sept. 8 senior EU official Cecilia Malmstrom calls for expanded patrols of Mediterranean waters to prevent such disasters. On Oct. 3 (Day 3 of the govt. shutdown) Conn. black woman Miriam Carey (b. 1979), allegedly with mental problems goes beserk in her black Infiniti on Capitol Hill in Washington, D.C., charging DC authorities and ending up gunned down and killed; she had an 18-mo.-o. infant in her back seat; it is Obama's love child? On Oct. 3 Iranian cyberwarfare program head Mojtaba Ahmadi is assassinated in Tehran. On Oct. 3 Hamid Karzai's buddy Ustad Abdul Rab Rasul Sayyaf (1946-), who brought al-Qaida to Afghanistan announces his candidacy for the Afghan presidency. On Oct. 3 (German Unity Day) 100K participate in an open house in mosques in Germany, while politicians call for more of the 4M Muslims (mainly from Turkey) to have the vote. On Oct. 3 the U.N. Gen. Assembly elects Iran to a senior seat on the U.N. nuclear disarmament committee as rapporteur, causing Israel to strenuously object. On Oct. 3 Pres. Obama holds a press conference to announce that he's using his private funds to open the federally-funded Internat. Museum of Muslim Cultures during the govt. shutdown. :) On Oct. 3 former Detroit, Mich. mayor Kwame Kilpatrick is sentenced to 28 yearsin prison for "astonishing... devastating" corruption. On Oct. 3 Abdirisak Aden and Mahamed Hasan win a religious discrimination case in Bedford, becoming the first religious discrimination case won by Muslims in England. On Oct. 4 Turkish pres. Abdullah Gul issues a warning to the Muslim World, saying they face the possibility of returning to the darkness of the Euro Middle Ages because of sectarian violence. On Oct. 4 mentally-ill N.J. man John Constantino (1949-) sets himself on fire with gasoline on the Nat. Mall in Washington, D.C., and is put out by the crowd before being airlifted to MedStar Washington HospitalCenter, where he dies hours later. On Oct. 4 the Times of Israel reports that Beith Shalom Synagogue in Surabaya, Java, last Jewish synagogue in Indonesia was destroyed early in the year; it was sealed in 2009 after anti-Israel protests by hardline Muslims; only 20 Jews remain in Indonesia, world's largest Muslim nation. On Oct. 4 Chinese state media announce that the govt. employs 2M people to monitor microblogs. On Oct. 5 the Day of Dignity and Respect features 150+ protests in 40 states by millions, er, 50K to pressure Congress into passing Obama's immigration reform legislation; too bad, the federal govt. shutdown upstages them. On Oct. 5 thousands protest in the streets of Tehran, Iran, shouting "Death to Israel and America", smudging the shine of Hassan Rouhani's charm mission. On Oct. 5 Georgia and Moldova sign a pledge of cooperation in their Euro integration process; meanwhile outgoing Georgian pres. Mikheil Saakashvili is reelected as chmn. of the United Nat. Movement at its congress in Tbilisi. On Oct. 5 a U.S. Navy SEAL team attacks an Al-Shabaab stronghold in Barawe, Somalia, killing leader Abu Zubeyr (Ahmed Abdi Godane). On Oct. 5 the Zamzam Initiative is launched by moderate Muslim Brotherhood members in Jordan "to renew the Islamic discourse and present Islam as a cultural framework that encompasses the nation while emphasizing religious, sectarian, political and racial pluralism"; Muslim Brotherhood brass boycotts it. On Oct. 5 a contract security guard in S Afghanistan kills a senior ISAF member in a green-on-blue attack. On Oct. 5 Pres. Obama utters the soundbyte that Iran is still "a year or more away" from building a nuke. On Oct. 5 Irish voters reject a proposal to abolish the senate despite backing by PM Enda Kenny. On Oct. 5 (early a.m.) U.S. forces raid Baraawe, Somalia looking for al-Qaida leader Abdikadir Mohamed Abdikadir, but fail to capture him; in Tripoli, Libya they capture al-Qaida leader Anas al-Libi (Nazih Abdul-Hamed al-Ruqai), known for his role in the 1998 Tanzanian and Kenyan U.S. embassy attacks, with a $5M bounty on his head, then questioning aboard USS San Antonio, causing U.S. secy. of state John Kerry on Oct. 6 to utter the soundbyte that al-Qaida "can run, but can't hide"; meanwhile pissed-off Libya demands his return, causing U.S. officials to claim that it authorized the raids. On Oct. 5 Calif. gov. Jerry Brown signs the Calif. Trust Act, prohibiting illegal aliens from being turned over to ICE authorities for possibile deportation unless they have been charged and/or convicted of a serious offense; on Oct. 7 he vetoes a bill that would make Calif. the first state to allow illegal aliens to serve on juries, saying that the responsibility should come only with citizenship; altogether he signs eight immigration reform bills incl. one permitting illegal aliens to get a law license. On Oct. 5 (night) a 9-y.-o. Israeli girl is shot in the neck and seriously injured by a Palestinian terrorist in Benyamin, Israel. On Oct. 6 (Sun.) two suicide bombers in N Iraq at a police station and primary school kill 15 incl. children; another blast in the Turkmen Shiite village of Qabat near the Syrian border injures 44. On Oct. 6 mortar fire in the Qassaa Christian neighborhood of Damascus, Syria kills eight and injures 24. On Oct. 6 a Taliban suicide attack in Zhari District, Kandahar, Afghanistan kills four U.S. soliders. On Oct. 6 (40th anniv. of the 1973 Arab-Israeli War) clashes in Cairo, Egypt between Morsi supporters and security forces kill 48, plus nine more in other cities; 200+ Muslim Brotherhood supporters are arrested in Cairo; meanwhile Egyptian interim pres. Adly Monsour announces the renewal of the Egyptian nuclear power program. On Oct. 6 a protest in Biru, Tibet is shut down by Chinese police, who fire on the crowd and use tear gas. On Oct. 6 Saudi Arabia begins issuing the first-ever law licenses to women. On Oct. 6 Hollyweird actor Steven Seagal attends a gala concert in Grozny, Chechnya for the birthday of pres. Ramzan Kadyrov; in May he visited him Kadyrov at his residence, causing Kadyrov to say that Seagal is "almost a Chechen". On Oct. 7 (4 a.m.) Boko Haram militants lure fellow Muslims to a mosque in Damboa, Nigeria, then kill seven. On Oct. 7 (12th anniv. of the U.S.-led NATO invastion) Afghan pres. Hamid Karzai gives an interview to the BBC's Newsnight, saying that NATO created "no gains" for Afghanistan, and that Afghan women have nothing to fear from a return of the Taliban; he also disses the Bilateral Security Agreement, pointing to repeated violations of Afghan sovereignty, and rules out signing a security deal with the U.S. until the issue is resolved. On Oct. 7 700K line the funeral procession of ultra-Orthodox Rabbi Ovadia Yousef in Jerusalem. On Oct. 7 Egyptian interim pres. Adly Mansour makes his first visit to ally Saudi Arabia, followed by a short visit to Jordan, which is condemned by the Muslim Brotherhood. On Oct. 8 the Dow Jones Industrial Avg. slumps 160 points, then rebounds by 322 points on Oct. 10. On Oct. 8 despite the federal govt. shutdown, the Obama admin. authorizes the Camino Americano: March for Dignity and Respect at the Nat. Mall in Washington, D.C.; eight lawmakers are arrested. On Oct. 8 Morsi supporters destroy a satellite dish in the Mahdi District of Cairo, calling it an "infidel mouthpiece". On Oct. 8 English Defense League (EDL) co-founders Tommy Robinson and Kevin Caroll announce that they're resigning because the org. has been infiltrated by racists and anti-Semites; too bad, they join the Muslim-front Quilliam Foundation, with Robinson uttering the soundbyte: "I believe that the revolution needs to come from within the Islamic community and they need to stand up, and I believe this is a step forward not a step back." On Oct. 9 Pres. Obama nominates economist Janet Louise Yellen (1946-) to succeed Ben Bernanke as chmn. of the Federal Reserve; she is confirmed next Jan. 6 by 56-26, taking office on Feb. 1 (until ?). On Oct. 9 the Obama admin. announces that it's scaling back assistance to Egypt, incl. suspending $260M in cash aid and holding delivery of F-16 aircraft, M1A1 tank parts etc. On Oct. 10 Libyan PM Ali Zeidan is briefly kidnapped, accusing a "political party" of organizing it; on Oct. 11 a car bomb explodes outside the Swedish consulate in Benghazi, Libya. On Oct. 10 31 Muslim bombs planted on ATMs explode in the four southernmost provinces of Thailand incl. Yala, Pattani, Narathiwat, and Songkhla. On Oct. 10 the EU signs a 45B Euro currency swap agreement with China. On Oct. 10 Turkey's Council of Ministers announces a decision to confiscate the assets of 349 persons and 67 legal entities linked to al-Qaida and the Taliban. On Oct. 12-14 Hezbollah deputy Ali Fayyed of the Lebanese Parliament visits France, telling them that the EU was wrong in July to list its military wing as a terrorist org. On Oct. 11 (a.m.) dozens of truck drivers block the inner loop of the Washington, D.C. Beltway to protest Obamacare; 3K drivers were originally planned. On Oct. 11 the U.N. Security unanimously votes to extend the NATO-led force mandate through 2014, probably the last extension; meanwhile U.S. secy. of state John Kerry makes an unnanounced visit to Kabul for talks with Afghan pres. Hamid Karzi over the looming end of Oct. deadline for completing a security deal to allow U.S. troops to remain after the end of the NATO-led mission. On Oct. 11 a 2nd boat carrying 250 immigrants from North Africa capsizes 60 mi. S of Lampedusa Island between Sicily and Tunisia, killing 50+. On Oct. 11 a court in Iran sentences Miriam Naqqash to four years in prison for converting from Islam to Christianity, claiming she is guilty of "endangering national security by spreading religious propaganda in the country". On Oct. 11 Am. Muslims Humayoun Ghoulan Nabi (27) and Ismail Alsarabbi (32) of Queens, N.Y. are charged with "building a small army" to help the Taliban, with one saying that he was so angry about the killing of Osama bin Laden that he wanted to "kill and cut [U.S. soldiers] to pieces". On Oct. 11 (night) Israeli reserve col. Sariya Ofer is murdered in his home in B'rosh Habika, Jordan Valley by two Palestinians who use metal rods and axes, becoming the 3rd Israeli killed in the West Bank in the last mo.; Ofer's brother Maj. Yitzchak Ofer was KIA on Oct. 11, 1973 in the Yom Kippur War. On Oct. 12 World Bank Pres. Jim Yong Kim issues the soundbyte: "We're now five days away from a very dangerous moment. I urge U.S. policymakers to quickly come to a resolution before they reach the debt ceiling deadline. Inaction could result in interest rates rising, confidence falling, and growth slowing." On Oct. 12 Pres. Obama delivers his weekly radio address, with the soundbyte that Congress needs to end the govt. shutdown so it can pass comprehensive immigration reform; meanwhile Obama meets with 16-y.-o. Pakistani hero-activist Malala Yusfzai, who utters the soundbyte that U.S. drone strikes are "fueling terrorism" and asks him to stop them. On Oct. 12 the Syrian army opens the road between Hama and Aleppo, and regains full control of 40 villages; the Muslim-Muslim fighting goes on despite the Muslim holy days. On Oct. 12 the Egyptian daily Al Youm al-Sabaa reports a secret meeting between the Muslim Brotherhood and al-Qaida in Jordan. On Oct. 12-13 Cyclone Phailin hits the E coast of India, causing 550k to be evacuated. On Oct. 13 (Sun.) the anti-Muslim-immigration Nat. Front Party of Marine le Pen wins a V in local elections in Var (near Toulon), France. On Oct. 13 Syrian Nat. Council pres. George Sabra announces that they're boycotting the proposed peace conference in Geneva, and would quit the Syrian Nat. Coalition if it participated. On Oct. 13 another green-on-blue attack in E Afghanistan kills one ISAF soldier. On Oct. 13 the Million Vet March sees WWII vets attack the "barrycades" surrounding the WWII and Lincoln Memorials on the Nat. Mall in Washington, D.C. On Oct. 13 EBT (SNAP food stamp) cards stop working in 17 U.S. states, causing a mini-panic. On Oct. 13 a riot outside a vegetable warehouse in Biryulovo, Moscow, Russia begins after an Azerbaijani Muslim immigrant allegedly stabs ethnic Russian Yegor Shcherbakov (b. 1988), causing 1.2K to be arrested by Oct. 14; Russia is in danger of going Muslim by the middle of the cent.? On Oct. 13 tribal leader Faisal al-Mikhlafi is assassinated in Taiz, Yemen. On Oct. 13 Malaysian Muslim Lawyers Assoc. pres. Datuk Zainul Rijal Abu Bakar urges the govt. to ignore the Coalition of Malaysian NGOs (Comango) for recommending reforms to improve Malaysia's human rights record, saying it would usurp Islam and Malaysian sovereignty. On Oct. 13 the Sunday Times of Britain pub. an article revealing that £1.95bn in Euro aid to the Palestinian occupied territories in 2008-12 may have been lost to corruption, according to the Luxembourg-based European Court of Auditors. On Oct. 14 TLW announces the NASA Knowledge Ark Project, a plan for NASA to save civilization after an atomic war by setting up a long-lived Internet in space; on Oct. 25 six astronauts hold a conference hosted by astrophysicist Neil deGrasse Tyson, calling for a global effort to defend the Earth from asteroids. On Oct. 14 a car bomb in Darkush, Syria near the Turkish border kills 27+ incl. three children. On Oct. 14 bomb is found in Mamora, Beirut in the same area that a car bomb killed 20 2 mo. earlier. On Oct. 14 a stampede during a festival in Ratangarh, Madhya Pradesh, India kills 115. On Oct. 14 (eve.) seven members of Ansar al-Sharia are killed in Sirte, Libya when their bomb goes off prematurely. On Oct. 15 a 7.2 earthquake in the C Philippines kills 4+. On Oct. 15 Arsala Jamal, gov. of Logar Province in Afghanistan is assassinated by a bomb planted in his microphone inside a mosque while speaking for Eid al Adha prayers. On Oct. 15 Capt. William Swenson is awarded the Medal of Honor by Pres. Obama. On Oct. 15 Tex. Lt. Gov. David Dewhurst calls for Pres. Obama's impeachment for abusing his authority over immigration and Obamacare, as well as his screwup in the 2012 Benghazi Consulate Scandal. On Oct. 15 Great Raft Brewing Co. in Shreveport, La. sells its first beer, going on to produce Southern Drawl, Reasonably Corrupt, and Commotion Pale Ale brands. On Oct. 16 the U.S. Senate announces a last-min. deal to end the govt. shutdown before the Oct. 17 date on which it would default on its loans; House stenographer Dianne Reidy is forcibly removed from the House chamber during the voting after ranting about God and the Freemasons, incl. the soundbyte "The House is divided"; on Oct. 18 the U.S. debt ceiling jumps to $17T. On Oct. 16 the Turkish army announces that it fired on al-Qaida-linked fighters over the N Syrian border for the first time ever. On Oct. 16 the U.N. appoints Sigrid Kaag of Netherlands to head the Syrian chemical weapons removal project. On Oct. 16 a Taliban suicide bamber in Dera Ismail Khan, Pakistan kills provincial minister Israrullah Gandapur and seven others. On Oct. 16 Canadian Muslim Mohamoud Jimale (1968-) is arrested for leaving a suspicious package on Parliament Hill in Toronto ahead of a speech by PM Stephen Harper. On Oct. 17 Chad and Saudi Arabia are elected for 2-year terms to the 15-member U.N. Security Council, causing UN Watch to call for the U.S., EU, and Ban Ki-moon to protest because of their human rights abuses; after protests, Saudi Arabia declines their seat; Chile, Lithuania, and Nigeria are also elected, effective Jan. 1; on Dec. 6 Jordan is elected instead. On Oct. 17 Syrian intel official Maj. Gen. Jameh Jameh (Jama'a Jama'a), blacklisted by the U.S. and EU for the 2005 assassination of Lebanese PM Rafik Hariri is killed in an ambush by Syrian rebels, causing the Syrian air force to retaliate by bombing Deir al-Zor on Oct. 18. On Oct. 17 the first Global Slavery Index is pub. by the Walk Free Foundation, claiming that 29M around the world live in slavery on every continent. On Oct. 18 it is revealed by Page Six that Arnold Schwarzenegger announced that he will try to part the waves and run for the White House in 2016. On Oct. 19 an AQAP suicide car bomber on a military training base in Abyan, S Yemen kills 12 soldiers and injures six. On Oct. 19 a car bomb outside the military intel bldg. in Ismailia, Egypt injures 5+. On Oct. 19 a suicide bomber at a cafe in Baladweyne, Somalia 210 mi. N of Mogadishu kills 16+ and injures 33. On Oct. 19 Tunisian forces kill nine alleged terrorists in Mt. Taouyer, Tunisia 40 mi. W of Tunis, and seize two tonnes of explosives. On Oct. 20 an internat. conference in Geneva to end the Syrian civil war is announced for late Nov.; meanwhile a suicide bomber in Hama, Syria kills 30+. On Oct. 20 Egyptian police fire tear gas at hundreds of Morsi supporters at Al-Azhar U. in Cairo, Egypt. On Oct. 20 Boko Haram Islamists in military uniform block the highway near Logumani, Nigeria near the border with Cameron, killing 19 Christians, 14 by hacking to pieces. On Oct. 20 Christian pastors Charles Matole and Ebrahim Kidata are murdered in Kenya. On Oct. 20 four Christians are sentenced in Rasht, Iran to 80 lashes each for drinking wine during a communion service. On Oct. 21 (a.m.) a 12-y.-o. male student opens fire at Sparks Middle School near Reno, Nev., killing a teacher and injuring two students before committing suicide - we've got a thing that's called radar love? On Oct. 21 Islamist militants invade Sadad, Syria, massacring 45 Christians. On Oct. 21 the French govt. summons U.S. ambassador Charles Rivkin after an article in Le Monde accuses the NSA of massive spying on French citizens; on Oct. 28 an article in Le Monde claims that the spying ws really done by Israel. On Oct. 21 (2:00 p.m.) female suicide bomber (recent Muslim convert) Naida Asyalova detonates in a bus in Volgograd, Russia, killing six and injuring 37, causing Russian pres. Vladimir Putin on Oct. 22 to accuse foreign rivals of using Islam "to weaken our state and create conflicts on Russian soil that can be managed from abroad". On Oct. 21 the residents of Mouadamiya, Syria send a letter to the world to "save us from death". On Oct. 21 N.J. gov. Chris Christie drops an appeal, making N.J. state #14 to allow same-sex marriage - the sound of a unisex hand clapping? On Oct. 21 New York City mayor Michael Bloomberg receives the first-ever $1M Genesis Prize AKA the "Jewish Nobel Prize". On Oct. 22 Sultan Hassanal Bolkiah of Brunei announces the gradual introduction of harsh Sharia punishments, incl. stoning, amputation, and flogging. On Oct. 22 Saudi intel chief Prince Bandar bin Sultan announces a "major shift" in relations with the U.S. in protest at its inaction in Syria, lack of support for Bahrain, and overtures to Iran. On Oct. 22 Amnesty Internat. claims that U.S. drone strikes killed a Pakistani grandmother and 18 civilian laborers lst year. On Oct. 22 Israeli U.N. ambassador Ron Prosor addresses the U.N. Security Council, saying that Iranian pres. Hassan Rouhani's strategy should be called SLY, for Smile, Lie, Yield minor concessions. On Oct. 22 300 al-Qaida prisoners attempt to escape from Sana'a Prison in Yemen. On Oct. 22 mayoral elections in Jerusalem see incumbent Ramez Jaraisi defeated by his deputy Ali Salam by 22 votes. On Oct. 23 India accuses Pakistan of attacking 50+ Indian border posts overnight in disputed Kashmir, calling it their most serious cease-fire violation in a decade. On Oct. 23 announces that pres. Angela Merkel had angrily called Pres. Obama to ask him if the NSA was tapping her cell phone based on leaks by Edward Snowden that claims they did it to 35 countries. On Oct. 23 a planned visit by Brazilian pres. Dilma Rousseff to the White House is canceled after documents leaked by Edward Snowden reveal heavy U.S. spying on Brazil, pissing them off, and causing them to announce the BRICS Cable, a new Internet system independent of the "U.S.-centric Internet". On Oct. 24 Lee Harvey Oswald's ex-wife Marina Oswald sells her wedding ring for $90K at auction in Boston, Mass.; the one he left before the JFK assassination, inscribed with a tiny hammer and sickle. On Oct. 24 the U.S. Census Bureau reports that means-tested govt. benefit recipients in 2011 outnumbered full-time year-round workers by 108,592,000 to 101,716,000. On Oct. 24 billionaire leftist internat. mystery man George Soros (1930-) announces his backing for Hillary for U.S. pres. in 2016, which means mucho since he backed Obama and looky. On Oct. 25 Syrian govt. troops ambush rebels near Damascus, Syria, killing 40+. On Oct. 25 Ukrainian immigrant Pavlo Lapshyn is sentenced to 40 years in prison for a terror campaign against Muslims in Britain. On Oct. 26 a green-on-blue attack in a military base in Kabul, Afghanistan kills an Afghan soldier and injures two NATO soldiers; #5 in five weeks. On Oct. 26 gunmen in Dura, S Baghdad, Iraq kill a family of seven. On Oct. 26 a Rally Against the NSA and its spying on Capitol Hill in Washington, D.C. is attended by 2K, with protesters carrying signs saying "Stop Mass Spying", "Thank you, Edward Snowden", and "Unplug Big Brother". On Oct. 27 drug cartels blow up nine electrical power plants in Michoacan, Mexico, then use the blackouts to burn gasoline stations. On Oct. 27 10 car bomb blasts in Iraq kill 55, incl. 40+ in a Shiite neighborhood of Baghdad. On Oct. 27 a bus carrying people to a wedding is bombed in Andar District, Afghanistan, killing 20+. On Oct. 27 multiple blasts rock the Gandhi Maidan Rally in Patna, India, killing five. On Oct. 27 thousands of Islamists rally in Kashmir, Pakistan against India and its occupation of the Himalayan region. On Oct. 27 the CBS-TV show 60 Minutes broadcasts a report with security contractor Morgan Jones (Dylan Davies), who claims to have entered the U.S. compound last Sept. 11 and seen the body of ambassador Chris Stevens in a hospital; on Nov. 8 after the story falls apart, Lara Logan apologizes, admitting "We were wrong." On Oct. 28 (12:05 p.m.) a possible terrorist attack in Tiananmen Square in Beijing, China kills five and injures 38; Uighur Muslims are suspected. On Oct. 28 the Egyptian govt. announces the arrest of 27 suspected of involvement in the attempted assassination last month of interior minister Mohamed Ibrahim. On Oct. 28 Hamas stages a rocket attack on Israel, causing Israeli jets on Oct. 30 to blow up two concealed rocket launchers in the Gaza Strip. On Oct. 28 U.S. drones kill two Al-Shabaab militants in Jilib, Somalia. On Oct. 28 Hillary Clinton speaks at the Vanguard Luncheon of the Jewish United Fund of Chicago, Ill., uttering the soundbyte: "Jordan can't possibly vet all the Syrian refugees and the jihadists who are coming in with them"; she is paid $400K. On Oct. 29 Israel ends its 1.5-year boycott of the Islamist-dominated U.N. Human Rights Council, sending reps to a session to discuss its human rights record. On Oct. 29 U.N.-Arab league envoy Lakhdar Brahimi visits Syria, warning of its "Somalization". On Oct. 29 the U.S. Marine Corps (USMC) announces that four women (in a batch of ?) have passed the infantry test for the first time ever. On Oct. 29 Turkey opens the Marmaray Railroad Tunnel, the first-ever underground tunnel linking Europe and Asia - ready for the coming jihad? On Oct. 29 Hillary Clinton speaks at the Goldman Sachs Builders and Innovators Summit, uttering the soundbyte: "I would like to see more successful business people run for office. I really would like to see that because I do think, you know, you don't have to have 30 billion, but you have a certain level of freedom. And there's that memorable phrase from a former member of the Senate: You can be maybe be rented but never bought." On Oct. 30 a suicide bomber detonates in front of the Riadh Palm Hotel in the tourist resort of Sousse, Tunisia, injuring only himself; a 2nd bomber is arrested before he can detonate. On Oct. 30 HHS secy. Kathleen Sebelius apologizes for the "miserably frustrating experience" people are having with the govt. Obamacare enrollment Web site HealthCare.gov, an expensive Thanksgiving turkey that crashes minutes before her testimony, and only signs up six people on its first day; meanwhile deep-blue-state Pres. Obama gives a speech at Faneuil Hall in deep-blue Boston, Mass., admitting that it looks like he lied when he said that everybody could keep their existing plan if they liked it, when millions face cancellation, saying that they will end up with a better plan somehow; on Nov. 7 after more fit hits the shan, Obama apologizes again, with the soundbyte "I am sorry that they are finding themselves in this situation based on assurances they got from me"; on Nov. 27 the Obama admin. announces that it's delaying sign-up for small businesses by 1 year - the govt. knows what's best for you and I can lie to get you to vote it in? On Oct. 30 Israel releases 26 Palestinian prisoners in preparation for peace talks. On Oct. 30 pro-Muslim Brotherhood riots at Al-Azhar U. in Egypt are quelled by police. On Oct. 30 Iraq PM Nouri al-Maliki visits the White House, asking for U.S. help in fighting terrorism. On Oct. 30 the Pakistani govt. announces that only 3% of the people killed in U.S. drone strikes since 2008 were civilians. On Oct. 30 U.S. spokesman Martin Nesirsky announces that he has received assurances from the U.S. govt. that its communications "are not and will not be monitored". On Oct. 30 a hospital in Muslim-dominated S Thailand apologizes for a photo showing Muslim nurses flashing a victory sign in front of slain bomb squad officer Sgt. Nimit Deewong (b. 1978). On Oct. 30/31 a U.S. drone strike in North Waziristan, Pakistan kills three militants. On Oct. 31 the Org. for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) announces that Syria has destroyed all of its declared chemical weapons production and mixing facilities on schedule. On Oct. 31 Israel strikes a military base near Latakia, Syria; meanwhile a gun battle in a tunnel complex near Khan Younis in S Gaza kills four terrorists and injures five IDF soldiers. On Oct. 31/Nov. 1 (night) a U.S. drone strike kills Pakistan Taliban (Tahreek-e-Nafaz-e-Shariat-e-Mohammadi) chief Hakimullah Mehsud (b. 1979) in North Waziristan along with five others, causing the Taliban to vow "unprecedented" revenge; on Nov. 7 it elects new chief Mullah ("the Butcher of Swat") Maulana "Radio Mullah" Fazlullah (1974-), son-in-law of founder Sufi Muhammad. In Oct. China surpasses the U.S. as the world's largest importer of crude oil; on Oct. 12 Bernhard Zand pub. an article in Der Spiegel calling on China to "take on responsibility as a world power". In Oct. the U.S. secretly deploys troops (trainers and advisers) to Somalia, becoming the first since 1993. In Oct. billionaire George Soros becomes co-chmn. of the nat. finance council for the Ready for Hillary super-PAC working for her 2016 Dem. pres. run. In Oct. Norfolk, Va.-born Nadia Crow becomes the first African-Am. TV news anchor in Utah, at KTVX-4 in Salt Lake City. On Nov. 1 Pres. Obama signs Executive Order No. ?, ordering the federal govt. to prepare for climate change - you can call me any day or night? On Nov. 1 unemployed assault rifle-packing drifter Paul A. Ciancia (b. 1990) shoots up Los Angeles Internat. Airport (LAX) in Calif., killing TSA agent Gerardo I. Hernandez (first-ever KIA on duty) and injuring several before being killed by officers - I didn't like the way you frisked my grandmother? On Nov. 2 U.S. secy. of state John Kerry makes his first visit to Cairo, Egypt since the removal of Mohammed Morsi, saying that the U.S. govt. endorses the interim govt.'s promise to restore full democracy; meanwhile students linked to the Muslim Brotherhood attack the Church of the Virgin Mary in Zaytoun, Cairo, but are prevented from entering by some young Christians sans injuries. On Nov. 2 after reports of blasphemy, a Muslim attacks a minority Hindu neighborhood in Pabna, Bangladesh, burning down 26 houses. On Nov. 3 (Sun.) U.S. state secy. John Kerry meets with Saudi King Abdullah in Riyadh. On Nov. 3-11 195 mph Typhoon Haiyan (Super Typhoon Yolanda) kills 6.3K+ in the Philippines and causes $2.98B property damage, becoming the strongest landfalling tropical cyclone ever recorded other than Typhon Meranti. On Nov. 4 tens of thousands stage an anti-U.S. protest outside the U.S. embassy in Tehran, Iran. On Nov. 4 (Nat. Unity Day) thousands march in cities across Russia, protesting immigration, mainly Muslim. On Nov. 4 Richard Shoop (b. 1993) of Teaneck, N.J. shoots up Garden State Plaza Mall in Paramus, N.J., then commits suicide. On Nov. 4 Russian pres. Vladimir Putin rescinds his 2011 order for cooperation with NATO on its missile defense shield. On Nov. 5 (Tues.) after campaigning for economic equality under the slogan "Tale of Two Cities", populist Dem. Bill de Blasio (Warren Wilhelm Jr.) (1961-) is elected mayor of New York City, and is sworn-in as mayor #109 on Jan. 1 (until ?), becoming the first Dem. since 1989, succeeding Michael Bloomberg, going on to end the stop-and-frisk policy of the NYPD, institute deescalation training, and require them to wear body cameras, turning the NYPD Union against him. On Nov. 5 plans for a Geneva 2 Conference peace summit on Syria collapse, with U.N./Arab League special envoy Lakhdar Brahimi blaming it on the Syrian opposition's perpetual disarray. On Nov. 5 the house of reps in Ill. votes 61-54 to legalize same-sex marriage, with lawmakers citing Pope Francis' recent comments in support; on Nov. 20 Dem. Gov. Pat Quinn signs it, making Ill. state #16. On Nov. 5 (Tues.) the 2013 Colo. Secession Vote sees 11 of 64 Colo. counties, incl. 10 in the NE corner unsuccessfully attempt to secede from Colo. and its evil leftist Denver-Boulder Axis and become the new state of North Colorado, with the 11th county in the NW corner (Moffatt County) joining Wyo. On Nov. 5 Donald Trump is presented with the T. Boone Pickens Award by The American Spectator at the annual Robert L. Bartley Dinner, giving a speech in which he brags about his ability as a negotiator, along with his "love of this country", which is "going in the wrong direction", dissing foreign countries for "laughing at us", and blasting Obamacare, speaking of what could happen "if you let this great country go", predicting that the Repubs. will have many opportunities in the 2016 U.S. pres. election but worrying about them not sticking together. On Nov. 6 Russian Duma member Vladimir Pligin utters the soundbyte that there's no place for Sharia in Russia, breaking ranks with Western govts. who blow, er, bow to it daily. On Nov. 6 U.S. Navy Cmdr. Jose Luis Sanchez is charged with accepting cash, hookers, and Lada Gaga concert tickets from a foreign defense contractor in exchange for classified info. On Nov. 6 the Internat. Rescue Committee awards George Soros its Freedom Award; meanwhile he pledges $1M (10 cents per capita) for Syrian humanitarian aid, while U.N. secy.-gen. Ban Ki-moon complaining that the min. required is $4.4B. On Nov. 7 Twitter.com launches its IPO. On Nov. 7 a 7-power conference in Geneva incl. Iran meets to discuss their nuclear program. On Nov. 7 the U.S. Senate by 64-32 passes the ENDA gay rights anti-discrimination bill, sending it to the House, where it's DOA. On Nov. 7 Russian pres. Vladimir Putin signs a law making the families of terrorists financially responsible to victims. On Nov. 7 after Swiss forensic tests prove that Yasser Arafat died from radioactive polonium poisoning in 2004, Israeli energy minister Silvan Shalom denies responsibility, suggesting it might have been anybody. On Nov. 7 a group of Egyptian lawyers submits a complaint to the Internat. Criminal Court charging Pres. Obama with crimes against humanity for being an accessory to the Muslim Brotherhood in its widespread violence in Egypt. On Nov. 8 Pres. Obama signs an Executive Order on Climate Change, giving himself unlimited powers? On Nov. 8 yet more clashes between anti and pro Morsi supporters in Cairo, Egypt kill two. On Nov. 8 U.S. secy. of state John Kerry visits Israel; as Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu sees him off at Ben Gurion Airport, he informs him that he knows that the U.S. is about to sign "a very bad deal" with Iran that retreats from lines they themselves had drawn. On Nov. 9 Category 5 Typhoon Haiyan hits the Philippines, killing 6K, injuring 27K, leaving 1.8K missing, and leaving 4M homeless after damaging 1M homes in the Philippines; it is so severe that scientists begin calling for a new Category 6? On Nov. 10 France steps in and halts the Iran nuclear deal, with foreign minister Laurent Fabius uttering the soundbyte that France won't accept a "sucker's deal"; on Nov. 11 Iran signs a joint statement on future cooperation with the IAEA. On Nov. 10 the Brave German Woman Heidi Mund confronts a Muslim imam invited to give the Islamic call to prayer inside the Memorial Church of the Reformation in Speyer, Germany, uttering Martin Luther's famous 1521 statement: "Here I stand. I can do no other", along with "Save the church of Martin Luther", proclaiming that Jesus Christ is Lord over Germany; she is thrown out of the church to allow him to continue. On Nov. 11 (9th anniv. of the death of Yasser Arafat) the Fatah-packed Tamarod (Tamarrud) movement in Gaza holds protests to bring down Hamas; too bad, they never happen despite media coverage of the announcements. On Nov. 11 a mortar attack by FSA rebels on the Christian St. John of Damascus School kills nine children and injures 27. On Nov. 12 the U.S. Army hosts the Chinese Red Army in Hawaii for "simulating humanitarian assistance and disaster relief to a fictional third country". On Nov. 12 the Syrian branch of the Muslim Brotherhood announces the formation of a new political party, with a Christian deputy leader. On Nov. 12 the U.N. Gen. Assembly elects China, Russia, Saudi Arabia, Vietnam, Cuba, and 9 others to 3-year terms to the 47-member Human Rights Council, causing a firestorm of controversy - the fox guarding the henhouse? On Nov. 12 the Chinese Communist Party Central Committee votes to give the market a "decisive role" in their economy, and to consolidate new decision-making authority in the hands of reformer (wannabe Gorbachev?) pres. Xi Jinping. On Nov. 12 the senate of Hawaii votes to legalize same-sex marriage, making Hawaii state #15; after being signed by Gov. Neil Abercrombie on Nov. 13, it takes effect Dec. 2, with Pres. Obama uttering the soundbyte that the move "exemplifies the values we hold dear as a nation." On Nov. 12 Jeff Koons' sculpture Balloon Dog (Orange) sells for $58.405M at auction by Christie's in New York City. On Nov. 13 the lameass Obama admin. finally designates Boko Haram as a terrorist group, as well as its splinter group Ansaru. On Nov. 13 16-y.-o. Palestinian Hussein Sharif Rawarda stabs Israeli army trainee Eden Atias (b. 1994) as he sleeps on a bus en route to Tel Aviv, causing Hamas to applaud him. On Nov. 13 Christian missionary David Dina Mataware is murdered by Boko Haram in Ashigashia, Cameroon near the Nigerian border; French priest Georges Vandenbeusch is kidnapped, then released on Jan. 1 on compassionate grounds after he tends to sick militants; he denies it, saying "They have no compassion for anyone." On Nov. 13 a Gallup Poll reveals that a record 47% of the Am. pop. doesn't believe that Pres. Obama is an honest and trustworthy man, vs. 50% who do; on Mar. 14-16, 2008 it was 29% who didn't believe, 63% who did. On Nov. 13-14 the GridEx U.S. Electric Grid Failure Drill tests the U.S. power grid. On Nov. 14 after a massive backlash, Pres. Obama folds and resigns, er, announces that Americans can renew their existing health plans for one year even if they don't meet Obamacare coverage standards, with the soundbyte that he "fumbled" the rollout. On Nov. 14 after being totally turned off by Pres. Obama, Egyptian CIC Gen. Abdel-Fattah El-Sisi meets with a Russian delegation on military cooperation. On Nov. 14 the U.S. puts a $1M bounty on wildlife traffickers, and prepares to destroy its stockpile of illegal ivory. On Nov. 14 Albania refuses a request from the U.S. to host Syria's chemical weapons stockpile for destruction. On Nov. 15 China announces a loosening of its 1979 one-child policy, allowing couples in which at least one parent is an only child to have to offspring. On Nov. 15 despite a veto threat, the House votes 261-157 (incl. 39 Dems.) to defy Pres. Obama and let Americans keep their health plans for one year even if they don't comply with Obamacare; the Senate On Nov. 15 the U.S. State Dept. announces that it has been offering rewards of up to $10M since Jan. for info. leading to the arrest of persons involved in the 9/11/2012 attack on the U.S. consulate in Benghazi, Libya. On Nov. 15 attendees at the Convention on Conventional Weapons (CCW) debate whether "killer robot" development should have the plugged pulled. On Nov. 15 a Gallup Poll reveals that 61% of Americans don't believe the Lone Gunman Theory about JFK. On Nov. 16 a suicide car bomber in a compound in W Kabul, Afghanistan kills 6+ and injures 22 near a giant tent where 2.5K tribal elders and civic leaders are set to gather and debate a security pact on Nov. 21. On Nov. 16 a group off nine Muslim jihadists armed with axes and knives attack a police station in Serikbuya, China, killing two and injuring two. On Nov. 17 a massive bomb blast in an admin. bldg. in an army transport base in Harasta, Syria NE of Damascus kills 31+ troops incl. three gens. and a brig.-gen. On Nov. 17 French Pres. Francois Holland visits Jerusalem and Ramallah, promising to help prevent Iran from obtaining nukes. On Nov. 17 several tornadoes touch down in C. Ill., killing 6+ and causing widespread damage, delaying a Chicago Bears football game. On Nov. 17 a Tatarstan Airlines Boeing 737 crashes in gusty weather in C Russia, killing all 44 passengers and six crew aboard. On Nov. 17 Mustafa Noah, Libyan deputy intel chief is abducted from the airport parking lot in Tripoli as a gen. strike against military rule shuts down the city. On Nov. 17 Egyptian senior nat. security officer Lt. Col. Mohammed mabrouk is attacked in Cairo by Ansar Jerusalem (Ansar Bayt al Maqdis) gunmen. On Nov. 18 days before a meeting set by the country's elite to debate it, Afghan pres. Hamid Karzai rejects a key provision of the proposed U.S.-Afghan Security Pact, putting it in jeopardy; an Nov. 19 after Afghan pres. Hamid Karzai demands it as a condition for support, U.S. nat. security adviser Susan Rice announces that Pres. Obama won't make a written apology to the Afghan people for "mistakes" made, as John Kerry puts it in a phone call to AP. On Nov. 18 the Dow Jones Industrial Avg. briefly passes the 16K mark. On Nov. 18 French pres. Francois Hollande makes the first-ever French pres. visit to the tomb of Yasser Arafat in Ramallah, West Bank. On Nov. 18-Dec. 7 the Lockheed Martin NASA Mars Atmosphere and Volatile Evolution (Maven) Mars Orbiter is launched to study Mars' upper atmosphere and its interaction with the Sun, with two instrument suites supplied by the Lab for Atmospheric and Space Physics of the U. of Colo. On Nov. 19 (a.m.) designated al-Qaida terrorist Mohammad Al Ahmady of Yemen, dir. of the Geneva-based NGO Al Karama is expected to brief Reps. Alan Grayson (D-Fla.), Barbara Lee (D-Calif.), and Jan Schakowsky (D-Ill.); too bad, the State Dept. denies him a visa. On Nov. 19 twin blasts from a car bomb and motorcycle suicide bomber near the Iranian embassy in Beirut, Lebanon kill 23 and injure 146; the Abdullah Azzam Brigades claim responsibility. On Nov. 19 an Al-Shabaab suicide car bomb attack at a police station in Beledweyne, Somalia kills 21+. On Nov. 19 the NASA MAVEN (Mars Atmosphere and Volatile Evolution Mission) robotic Mars explorer is launched from Cape Canaveral. On Nov. 19 more protesters in Tahrir Square, Cairo calling for an end to military control as well as the Muslim Brotherhood in favor of democracy; on Nov. 20 a car bomb in Al-Arish, Sinai kills 11 Egyptian soldiers and injures 34, causing defense minister Gen. Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi to vow to avenge them; another explosive device thrown at a police checkpoint in N Cairo injures four policemen. On Nov. 21 (early a.m.) a U.S drone strike in Hangu, Pakistan kills 6+ and injures several, becoming the first in the settled area outside the tribal regions. On Nov. 21 after the Repubs. filibuster one Obama judicial nominee after another, the Dem.-controlled U.S. Senate votes 52-48 to invoke the Nuclear Option, requiring only a simple majority vote to confirm pres. nominations except for Supreme Court nominations, while leaving the filibuster option intact for legislation, with Chancellor, er, Pres. Obama explaining that "There is a pattern of obstruction in Congress"; too bad, in Apr. 2005 he argued against it. On Nov. 21 Iraq launches six mortar bombs into N Saudi Arabia as a warning to stop meddling in its affairs - no place to go on Black Friday? On Nov. 21 a suspected U.S. drone kills a senior Haqqani militant Maulvi Ahmad Jan in the Hangu District of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, North Waziristan. On Nov. 21 Pope Francis meets with Eastern Orthodox leaders, and utters the soundbyte: "Syria, Iraq, Egypt and other areas of the Holy Land sometimes overflow with tears. We won't resign ourselves to a Middle East without Christians who for two thousand years confess the name of Jesus, as full citizens in social, cultural and religious life of the nations to which they belong." On Nov. 22 (Fri.) the 50th Anniv. of Who Killed JFK is marked by a solemn ceremony in Dallas, Tex. On Nov. 22 seven Syrian Islamist groups announce their merger to better fight Assad, under the name Islamic Front; they are not backed by the West. Pres. Obama's Neville Chamberlain Moment? The New Munich Agreement? On Nov. 24 (early a.m.) U.S. and Iranian reps in Geneva annnounce a deal regarding their nuclear program, freezing parts of it for 6 mo. in exchange for easing economic sanctions worth $9B, with Pres. Obama uttering the soundbyte "For the first time in nearly a decade, we have halted the progress of the Iranian nuclear program, and "cut off Iran's most likely paths to a bomb"; the U.S. does not recognize Israel's right to enrich uranium without mutual agreement; Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu calls the deal "an historic mistake", announcing that Israel "won't be bound by it", reserving the right of self-defense; meanwhile Iran's 19K centrifuges are left whirling; the U.S. and Iran bypassed Israel and held secret meetings in Oman since Mar.; meanwhile Iran and North Korea hold secret meetings to help Iran build ICBMs; U.S. Sen. Chuck Schumer utters the soundbyte that he's "disappointed" by the deal "because it does not seem proportional"; the deal causes a rift between the U.S. and Saudi Arabia, throwing off all of TLW's theories that Obama is a Saudi puppet; TLW calls for Israel to declare a Zero Tolerance for Centrifuge Policy then nuke Iran for their own self-preservation - what card am I holding? On Nov. 23 China declares the East Asian Air Defense Zone, its first ever, threatening war with the U.S. and Japan. On Nov. 23 al-Qaeda rebels seize control of Al-Omar Oilfield in Deir al-Zor Province, Syria's largest, cutting Bashed Sadass off from almost all but local crude reserves. On Nov. 23 Boko Haram gunmen attack a village in Borno, Nigeria, killing 12. On Nov. 24 after Turkish PM Recep Tayyip Erdogan condemns repression of Morsi supporters, Egypt expels Turkey's ambassador. On Nov. 24 Angola becomes the first African nation to ban the practice of Islam, ordering all mosques destroyed immediately; it later turns out to be a hoax - they've been reading my stuff? On Nov. 25 a senior Afghan official announces that stoning for adulterers is being written into Afghan law - after how many trillion wasted there by the U.S.? On Nov. 25 Sheikh Khalifa of Abu Dhabi sends a letter to the U.N. expressing solidarity with the Palestinians in "their just and legitimate struggle to end Israeli occupation of their homeland". On Nov. 25 U.S. nat. security adviser Susan Rice meets with Afghan pres. Hamid Karzai in Kabul. On Nov. 26 France announces that it's sending hundreds of new troops to Muslim-threatened Central African Repub. (CAR). On Nov. 26 Pope Francis issues the encyclical Evangelii Gaudium, calling for a renewal of the Church, and attacking the "idolatry of money", stinking himself up with misguided lenient generalizations about Islam, incl.: "Faced with disconcerting episodes of violent fundamentalism, our respect for true followers of Islam should lead us to avoid hateful generalisations, for authentic Islam and the proper reading of the Koran are opposed to every form of violence"; meanwhile the Obama admin. announces that they're closing down their diplomatic post at the Vatican, and merging it with the Italian embassy, citing security concerns. On Nov. 26 TLW announces to Israel that they should nuke Iran's nuclear facilities and not worry about the flak; also that the Muslim World is headed for a great apostasy. On Nov. 26 Afghan pres. Hamid Karzai gives an interview to Radio Free Europe, in which he claims that Pres. Obama told him: "The Taliban are not our enemies and we don't want to fight them." On Nov. 26 (eve.) Israeli forces kill three Salafi terrorists in the hills near Hebron, Israel. On Nov. 27 the roof of Sao Paulo Soccer Stadium in Brazil collapses, killing two. On Nov. 28 (Thur.) (Thanksgivingukkah) Thanksgiving falls on the same day as Hanukkah for the first time since 1888; next time in 79,043 years? On Nov. 28 (night) a U.S. drone kills three suspected Islamist militants in North Waziristan, Pakistan. On Nov. 29 a turban bomber injures Afghan lawmaker Hamidullah Tokhi of Zabul Province at his house in Kabul. On Nov. 29 after alleged violations in the last pres. election by the nat. intel services, South Korean Protestants call on pres. Park Geun-hye. On Nov. 29 a Christian-Muslim clash in Deir Muwass, Egypt kills one and injures six. On Nov. 30 new Pakistani PM Nawaz Sharif makes his first visit to Afghanistan, meeting with PM Hamid Karzai in Kabul to discuss selling out to, er, negotiating with the Taliban. In Nov. the U.S. unemployment rate adds 203K jobs, dropping to 7% (60 straight mos. at 7% or higher); youth unemployment is 20.8%. In Nov. Germany becomes the first country in Europe to allow parents to opt out of determining their baby's gender with an indeterminate gender designation for birth certificates. On Dec. 1 (Sun.) 300K protest in Kiev, Ukraine against a govt. decision to freeze integration with the West; dozens are injured; on Dec. 17 Ukraine agrees to stay out of the EU in exchange for $15B plus lower gas prices from Russia, becoming a big V for Russian pres. Vladimir Putin. On Dec. 1 the Egyptian parliament approves a more liberal proposed constitution, albeit with some Sharia; meanwhile more violent protests go on in Tahrir Square in Cairo. On Dec. 1 a sniper in Tripoli, Lebanon kills three, making nine in 24 hours. On Dec. 1 a train derails in Bronx, N.Y., killing four and injuring 63. On Dec. 1 Congressional intel committee chmn. Sen. Diane Feinstein (D-Calif.) and Rep. Mike Rogers (R-Mich.) give an interview on CNN, in which they insist that the terrorist threat to Americans has grown in the last couple of years, with Feinstein uttering the soundbyte: "The statistics indicate that the fatalities are way up", and Rogers adding that al-Qaida has been "metastasizing" into more groups that engage in smaller attacks, with Feinstein adding: "There is a real displaced aggression in this very fundamentalist jihadist Islamic community, and that is that the West is responsible for everything that goes wrong and that the only thing that's going to solve this is Islamic Sharia law"; meanwhile Obama admin. personnel are gagged and threatened with termination for mentioning any connection between jihadism and Sharia and terrorism. On Dec. 1 the Winter 2013-14 E North Am. Cold Wave begins with record cold temps across the E U.S. on Dec. 6-10, setting 150+ daily precipitation records and almost 100 daily snowfall records; on Dec. 2 a Pacific storm system hits the W U.S., spreading heavy rain and snow to the Rocky Mts., bringing 30 in. or more in Idaho, Wyo, and Mont. and 60 mph winds; on Dec. 19 the Dec. 2013 North Am. Storm Complex brings freezing rain and snow, damaging trees and power lines, killing power to 1M+ residents along with $200M damage and 27 deaths; on Dec. 20 the Early Jan. 2014 Nor'Easter brings frigid temperature and snow to the U.S. East Coast, incl. 2 ft. around Boston, Mass. before dissipating on Jan. 6, 2014; on Jan. 2, 2014 the Early 2014 North Am. Cold Wave affects the NC and upper E U.S. and parts of Canada, bringing record low temps into late Mar. before dissipating on Apr. 10; on Jan. 19-24, 2014 the Jan. 2014 North Am. Blizzard moves fast through the Mid-Atlantic U.S., dumping up to 1 ft. around the New York City area along with frigid temperatures; on Jan. 27 the Jan. 2014 Gulf Coast Winter Storm hits the E and S U.S. incl. the Gulf Coast Region and Mexico, bringing up to 10 in. of snow before dissipating on Jan. 31; on Feb. 11, 2014 the Mid-Feb. 2014 North Am. Winter Storm hits the U.S. S and East Coast, bringing up to 27.5 in. snowfall in Mount Storm, W. Va. and causing Delta Air Lines to cancel 2K+ flights on Feb. 13, killing 22 and causing 1.2M bldgs. to lose power before dissipating on Feb. 24. On Dec. 2 (1:30 a.m.) China launches its Chang'e-3 lunar probe, which incl. the Yutu or Jade Rabbit buggy. On Dec. 2 (a.m.) hundreds of Boko Haram gunmen attack Maiduguri, Nigeria. On Dec. 2 12 Greek Orthodox nuns and three domestic workers are kidnapped from St. Thecla Monastery in Maaloula (N of Damascus), Syria are kidnapped by Syrian rebels; they are released on Mar. 9, 2014 near rebel-held Yabroud and transported to the Lebanese border town of Arsaal. On Dec. 3 the Mexican Senate passes major political reforms allowing reelection of federal legislators, creating new election oversight, and making the atty. gen.'s office independent from the executive. On Dec. 3 Britain sends Ajay Sharma, their first diplomat to Iran since they closed their embassy in 2011. On Dec. 3 the South Korean intel agency claims that North Korean dictator Kim Jong-un fired his uncle Jang Song Thaek as vice-chmn. of the powerful Nat. Defense Commission, and had him and his two closest aides Lee Yong-ha and Jang Soo-keel executed in mid-Nov.; he killed his uncle by feeding him to starving dogs? On Dec. 3 a Pew Center survey is released, revealing that Pres. Obama has a less than 40% approval rating for 9 of 10 foreign policy issues, and disagree with his overall handling of foreign policy by 56% to 34%; 6 of 10 believe Iran can't be trusted. On Dec. 4 19 days after suggesting on air that someone should take a shit in Sarah Palin's mouth, Martin Bashir resigns from MSNBC. On Dec. 4 Christian convert Bishoy Armia Boulous (1983-) (formerly Mohammed Hegazy) is arrested in Minya, Egypt on trumped-up charges. On Dec. 4 (night) senior Hezbollah cmdr. Hassan al-Laqis is assassinated by Sunnis outside his home in S Beirut. On Dec. 5 while observing the maiden voyage of China's new aircraft carrier Liaoning, USS Cowpens almost collides with a Chinese vessel, becoming the most serious U.S.-Chinese naval incident since 2009. On Dec. 5 the U.N. Security Council votes unanimously to adopt Resolution 2127 to establish the French-backed African-led African-Led Internat. Support Mission to the Central African Repub. (MISCA) (Mission Internationale de Soutien a la Centrafique sous Conduite Africaine) peacekeeping force for Central African Repub. (CAR) (until ?). On Dec. 5 an attack on the defense ministry in Yemen kills 52 and injures 167; al-Qaida claims responsibility; on Dec. 22 they apologize for hitting a hospital. On Dec. 5 Ukrainian pres. Viktor Yanukovych and Chinese pres. Xi Jinping sign a bilateral treaty proclaiming that they're "strategic partners", with China promising to protect Ukraine under its nuclear umbrella. On Dec. 5 Pres. Obama gives a speech to the Center for Am. Progress, announcing that for the rest of his term he will address income redistribution, er, inequality. On Dec. 6 a roadside bomb detonates on an Israeli jeep near the Israeli-Syria border, becoming the first attack on Israeli troops since the Syrian civil war began. On Dec. 6 the police dept. of Edmonton, Ont., Canada announce a new hijab female officer unform for Muslim officers, not that they have any yet. On Dec. 6 the new Islamic Front of pro-Al-Qaida groups in Syria drives the Free Syrian Army (FSA) out of its bases in Babisqa, Syria, and the Bab-al-Hawa border crossing into Turkey. On Dec. 7 40+ bodies are discovered in the Damascus suburb of al-Nabk, Syria. On Dec. 7 14 anti-Morsi protester women from Alexandria, Egypt are freed after their 11-year sentences are cut to 1 year probation. On Dec. 7 senior leaders incl. Abdel Rahim Malouh resign from the Marxist Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP). On Dec. 7 U.S. secy. of state John Kerry gives a speech at the Saban Forum proposing that the U.S. police an independent Palestinian state while protecting it and Israel from each other. On Dec. 8 (Sun.) 51 are killed and 191 injured in attacks across Irock. On Dec. 8 Afghan pres. Hamid Karzai meets in Tehran with Iranian pres. Hassan Rouhani, agreeing to a longterm friendship cooperation pact. On Dec. 8 thousands march in Paris against Islam and its incursions in France. On Dec. 9 U.S. drones kill three AQAP fighters in Hadramout, Yemen. On Dec. 9 Israel, Jordan, and Palestine sign a $2.5B agreement to begin phase one construction of the Red Sea-Dead Sea Canal to pump seawater from the Gulf of Aqaba on the Red Sea to the Dead Sea through water desalination plants and a hydropower plant. On Dec. 10 Gen. Motors appoints Mary Teresa Barra (nee Makela) (1961-) as CEO (until ?), becoming the first-ever female head of a major U.S. automaker. On Dec. 10 100+ world leaders attend the Mandela Memorial in Johannesburg, South Africa, with Pres. Obama calling him "a giant of history", and raising eyebrows by shaking hands with Cuban dictator Raoul Castro, also by taking a selfie. On Dec. 10 Iran rejects an offer from Israeli pres. Shimon Peres to meet with PM Hassan Rouhani, calling it a "propaganda ploy". On Dec. 11 U.S. officials announce that FSA Gen. Salim Idris, leader of the moderate Syrian rebels, who posed for a photo-opp with John McCain has fled Syria after being chased out by Islamists, who seize warehouses along the Syrian-Turkish border, causing the shocked U.S. to suspend non-lethal military aid to Syrian rebels. On Dec. 11 after fruit is found wrapped in pages of the Quran in Liaquat Bazaar in Quetta, Pakistan, and anti-Shiite mob kills one and injures three. On Dec. 11 Uruguay becomes the first country to completely legalize marijuana; meanwhile on Dec. 9 the city council of Denver, Colo. votes 10-3 to legalize smoking of pot on private property. On Dec. 11 the Obama admin. announces that an upcoming ballistic missile test by Iran won't kill their appeasement deal. On Dec. 11 Pres. Obama appoints George Soros man John Podesta, founder of the Center for Am. Progress and former chief of staff for Pres. Clinton as his advisor for Obamacare, climate change, gun control, and closing the gap on income inequality. On Dec. 11 the supreme court of India reinstates a colonial-era law criminalizing homosexuality, pissing-off multitudes of gays and non-gays. On Dec. 11 U.S. State Dept. and Pentagon experts testify before the House Foreign Affairs Committee, stunning members with their lack of basic knowledge of the cost of the war or lives lost on the battlefield. On Dec. 11 Conn. passes the first GMO labeling law in the U.S. On Dec. 11 (night) two topless Femen protesters storm the stage of the Markus Lanz Show in Germany to protest the treatment of workers building football facilities for the 2022 World Cup in Qatar. On Dec. 12 a car bomb in Ismailiya, Egypt injures 25 policemen. On Dec. 12 15 en route to a wedding party in al-Bayda Province, Yemen are killed by a U.S. drone after being mistaken for an al-Qaida convoy. On Dec. 12 Mexico passes historic new oil privatization legislation. On Dec. 12 the U.S. House by 332-94 (169 Repubs., 163 Dems.) passes "the first divided-government budget agreement since 1986", according to co-sponsor Rep. Paul Ryan (R-Wisc.); the other is Sen. Patty Murray (D-Wash.). On Dec. 12 Russian pres. Vladimir Putin delivers his 2012 State of the Nation Address, saying that Russia is not trying to be a superpower or "encroach on anyone's interest", and that the world needs to make collective, responsible decisions when it came to Syria, urging political leaders in Ukraine to come up with a solution that best suits the interests of the people, saying they are under no obligation to join a customs union; he adds that while once the U.S. blasted the Soviet Union for being a "godless nation", now the situation is reversed; "Many Euro-Atlantic countries have moved away from their roots, including Christian values. Policies are being pursued that place on the same level a multi-child family and a same-sex partnership, a faith in God and a belief in Satan. This is the path to degradation." On Dec. 13 (Fri.) (5:40 a.m.) avionics technician (Muslim convert) Terry Lee Loewen (1955-) is arrested at the airport in Wichita, Kan. in a vehicle full of explosives; he had been under surveillance online, having written the soundbyte: "I have become 'radicalized' in the strongest sense of the word, and I don't feel Allah wants me any other way." On Dec. 13 (12:30 p.m.) after becoming pissed-off at a librarian, shotgun-toting Repub.-hating Keynesian Socialist student Karl Pierson walks into Arapahoe H.S. in Centennial (S of Denver), Colo. and shoots two students then commits suicide 80 sec. later. On Dec. 13 the execution of 1971 war criminal Abdul Quader Mollah ("the Butcher of Murpur") triggers riots in Bangladesh, killing three. On Dec. 13 Iran withdraws from nuclear talks in protest of an expanded sanction list issued by the U.S. On Dec. 13 U.S. District Court judge Clark Waddoups strikes down portions of Utah's anti-polygamy law on First Amendment grounds - big V for Mormons and Muslims? On Dec. 13-14 the Muslim terrorist group ADF-Nalu rape and hack to death 21 women and children in Musuku, Uganda. On Dec. 14 the heaviest snowfall in decades hits the Holy Land incl. Jerusalem, where Palestinians throw snowballs packed with rocks at Jewish drivers. On Dec. 15 (Sun.) a new wave of terrorist attacks across Iraq kills 19 incl. female TV journalist Nawras al-Nuaimi. On Dec. 15 Syrian troops drop barrel bombs in Aleppo, Syria, killing 76 incl. 28 children. On Dec. 15 the pissed-off parliament of Yemen bans U.S. drone strikes. On Dec. 15 in Tunisia Ennahda leader Rachid Ghannouchi and former PM Beji Caid Essebsi, leader of Tunisia's secular Nidaa Tounes Party strike a political deal that promises stability to the whole can. On Dec. 15 ex-intel chief Saudi prince Turki al-Faisal criticizes the Obama admin. for indecision and lack of credibility among Middle East allies, with the soundbyte: "We've seen several red lines put forward by the president, which went along and became pinkish as time grew, and eventually ended up completely white." On Dec. 15 Muslims riot in Xinjiang, China, causing the police to kill 14. On Dec. 16 the govt. of Sudan announces a coup attempt led by former vice-pres. Riek Machar. On Dec. 16 the Senate by 78-16 confirms Jeh Charles Johnson (1957-) as Dept. of Homeland Security secy. #4; he is sworn-in on Dec. 23 (until Jan. 20, 2017), becoming the first African-Am. On Dec. 16 a U.S. District Court Judge Richard Leon rules that NSA's phone surveillance program is unconstitutional, justifying the actions of leaker Edward Snowden; on Dec. 17 (a.m.) a bevy of hi-tech cos. incl. Microsoft, Google, and Twitter hold a closed-door meeting with Pres. Obama over it, demanding that he reign the NSA in. On Dec. 16 after a Lebanese army sniper kills an Israeli soldier along the border, Israeli troops shoot two Lebanese soldiers. On Dec. 16 Turkey and the EU sign the Readmission Agreement, giving Turkish national visa exemptions, phased-in over the next 3.5 years - Allahu akbar? On Dec. 16 the U.N. asks for $6.5B in aid for Syrian refugees, its largest appeal so far (until ?). On Dec. 16 Syrian rebels score a V in East Ghouta, Damascus, Syria, claiming to kill 800 Syrian soldiers. On Dec. 16 Russia announces that after years of threats it's deploying missiles near NATO borders with Poland and Lithuania, pissing-off the U.S. On Dec. 16 the Am. Studies Assoc. votes to boycott Israel, causing a firestorm of controversy; on Dec. 23 the Washington Post pub. the soundbyte: "Schools including Johns Hopkins, Harvard, Yale, Cornell, Princeton, and Boston universities and the Universities of Pennsylvania, Connecticut, and Texas at Austin and others have slammed the boycott." On Dec. 17 (a.m.) a bomb goes off near a Hezbollah base in E Lebanon. On Dec. 17 a U.S. Army Blackhawk heli is downed by the Taliban in Zabul Province, S Afghanistan killing six U.S. troops. On Dec. 17 violence begins in South Sudan between military factions, killing 500 by Dec. 18. On Dec. 18 the Taliban suicide bombers attack a NATO fuel convoy in Nangarhar Province, Afghanistan, killing one Afghan policeman and wounding three. On Dec. 18 the Federal Reserve Board announces that it will begin scaling back its controversial Quantitative Easing Program from $85B of Treasury and mortgage bonds each mo. to only $75B starting in Jan. On Dec. 18 India passes a landmark anti-corruption law that empowers independent ombudsmen to investigate; meanwhile Indian diplomat Devyani Khobragade is arrested in New York City by U.S. authorities over a nanny dispute, and strip-searched, pissing-off India, which revokes privileges of U.S. diplomats in India. On Dec. 18 the U.N. votes 86-36-61 to condemn Iran's human rights violations. On Dec. 18 Islam-loving British Prince Charles issues a statement of concern about how Christians are being "deliberately targed" by Muslims in the Middle East, and are being threatened with extinction - like back home in Britain? On Dec. 18 Duck Dynasty star Phil Alexander Robertson (1946-) is suspended by A&E for voicing his opinion that homosexuality is a sin; the work of GLAAD?; after massive public backlash, they reverse their decision on Dec. 27. On Dec. 18 (midnight) Egyptian police storm the Egyptian Centre for Economic and Social Rights (ECESR) in Cairo. On Dec. 19 13 Repub. and 13 Dem. Senators introduce the Nuclear Weapon Free Iran Act of 2013, calling for new sanctions on Iran in the event that a deal on its nuclear program isn't reached within 6 mo.; Pres. Obama threatens to veto it. On Dec. 19 Al-Nusra Front leader Abu Mohammed al-Julani tells al-Jazeera that he will "not recognise any results that come out of the Geneva II conference". On Dec. 19 Target announces that 40M customer credit card records have been stolen by hackers. On Dec. 19 the Supreme Court of N.M. legalizes same-sex marriage, making it state #17. On Dec. 19 a panel of three federal judges rules that 9/11 families can sue Saudi Arabia, reversing a 2002 ruling. On Dec. 20 a judge in Utah strikes down the state's same-sex marriage ban, making it state #18. On Dec. 21 an al-Qaida suicide attack in Anbar Province, Iraq kills 17 Iraqi officers and a gen. On Dec. 21 rebels fire on a U.S. military aircraft in South Sudan, injuring four. On Dec. 21 the Syrian army stages a heli attack on Aleppo, Syria, killing 25+. On Dec. 22 a suicide truck bomber at a security checkpoint in Benghazi, Libya kills 13+. On Dec. 22 two days after a suicide attack, Pakistani troops in Mir Ali, North Waziristan, Pakistan kill 23 militants. On Dec. 22 after his French Muslim convert brother Jean-Daniel is killed in Syria in Aug., Nicolas Bons is ditto in a suicide truck bombing in Homs. On Dec. 22 the #240 bus from Bnai Brak to Bat Yam (near Tel Aviv), Israel carrying 12 is bombed with a pressure cooker device, but is evacuated before it explodes. On Dec. 22 a bus accident in Sao Paulo, Brazil kills 14 and injures 32. On Dec. 22 the son of Turkish interior affairs minister Muammer Guler, the son of economy minister Zafer Caglayan, the head of the state-owned Halkbank and 20 others are arrested and accused of taking or facilitating bribes; police seize $2.5M in cash stashed in shoe boxes from the bank chief's home; meanwhile 25 police chiefs are removed for being followers of U.S.-based cleric Fethullah Gulen; on Dec. 25 three cabinet ministers resign admit calls for PM Erdogan's resignation. On Dec. 22 Amnesty Internat. admits to working with Swiss-based human rights group Al Karama, whose co-founder Abdul Rahman Bin Umair Al Nuaimi raised millions of dollars a month for al-Qaida and its affiliates in Syria, Iraq, Somalia, and Yemen. On Dec. 24 (1:00 a.m.) an explosion at the Daqahliya police station in Mansoura, Egypt (N of Cairo) kills 16 and injures 140; Ansar Beit al-Maqdis (Supporters of Jerusalem) claims responsibility, which doesn't stop the Egyptian govt. from blaming the Muslim Brotherhood, declaring it a terrorist org. on Dec. 25 and banning all its activities incl. demonstrations. On Dec. 24 investigators uncover a mass grave of 34 bodies in Bentiu, South Sudan; meanwhile the U.N. announces an increase in South Sudan peacekeepers to 12.5K. On Dec. 24 after an Israeli civilian is shot along the border fence, Israeli stages an air strike on Gaza Strip, killing two and injuring nine. On Dec. 24 Iran and UAE sign an agreement over the disputed islands of Greater and Lesser Tunbs, returning them to UAE, with Abu Musa Island to be decided later; meanwhile Oman grants Iran a strategic location on Mt. Ras Musandam on the tip of the Straits of Hormuz in return for free gas and oil after a pipeline is built in the next two years. On Dec. 25 (Wed.) bomb attacks in Christian areas of Baghdad, Iraq kills 34. On Dec. 25 Pope Francis delivers his first Christmas message, (Urbi et Orbi), praying for protection for Christians under attack, battered women and trafficked children, peace in the Middle East and Africa, and dignity for refugees fleeing misery and conflict around the globe. On Dec. 25 Free Saudi Liberals blogger Raif Badawi (1984-) is sentenced to death for apostasy after his 7-year sentence in July is found too lenient; after being sentenced to 10 years and 1K lashes, the first 50 lashes are given to him on Jan. 9, 2015, causing an internat. outcry. On Dec. 25 the U.S. announces that it's rushing Hellfire missiles and surveillance drones to Iraq to fight al-Qaida-backed Syrian insurgents. On Dec. 25 the Afghan govt. announces that it freed 500+ Taliban and Afghan POWs during the past 18 mo. On Dec. 25 Egyptian authorities foil a Hamas-Muslim Brotherhood plot to bomb Christian churches on Christmas. On Dec. 26 (a.m.) a bus is bombed outside Azhar U. in Cairo, Egypt, killing one and injuring four. On Dec. 26 Pres. Obama signs a $625B defense authorization bill for 2014 that incl. a 1% military pay raise and changes in how the military deals with sexual assault allegations, continuing the current ban on transferring detainees at Guantanamo Bay to the U.S., which Obama calls "unwise". On Dec. 26 a CNN Poll reveals that two-thirds of Americans say that the recently-adjourned 113th Congress is the worst in their lifetime. On Dec. 26 (midnight) a U.S. strike kills four militants in North Waziristan, Pakistan. On Dec. 27 (Fri.) a Christian mob destroys a mosque in Bangui, Central African Repub. (CAR), their 3rd. On Dec. 27 Iran announces that it's building a new generation of uranium centrifuges - go Israel? On Dec. 27 a Taliban suicide bomber in Kabul, Afghanistan kills three ISAF soldiers. On Dec. 27 a bomb at a restaurant in Mogadishu, Somalia kills 10. On Dec. 27 a large bomb in downtown Beirut, Lebanon kills five incl. Sunni ex-finance minister (1997-2000) Mohamad Chatah. On Dec. 27 the first U.S. drone strike in Yemen since mid-Dec. kills two AQAP fighters in E Yemen. On Dec. 27 U.S. District Judge William Pauley rules that the massive NSA phone-tapping is legal because people don't own their own phone records, and is reasonable because it helps eliminate al-Qaida networks. On Dec. 27 the Electronic Army Of the Caucasus Emirate threatens cyberwar against Russia unless it cancels the Sochi Olympics. On Dec. 27-28 fighting in S Philippines kills 17 Bangsamoro Islamic Freedom Fighters (BIFF). On Dec. 28 the 2008 emergency federal program providing up to 47 weeks of supplemental unemployment insurance payments ends for 1.3M jobless workers. On Dec. 28 a Syrian air strike at a crowded vegetable market in Aleppo, Syria kills 21. On Dec. 28 Bahraini main Shiite opposition leader Sheikh Ali Salman is arrested. On Dec. 28 China votes to abolish its infamous 4-year Communist reeducation labor camps. On Dec. 28 the Vatican announces that Syrian pres. Bashar al-Assad sent a private message to Pope Francis, his first since the 2011 start of the civil war. On Dec. 28 Boko Haram militants attack a Christian wedding reception in Tashan-Alede, Borno, Nigeria, killing eight; on Dec. 29 they do ditto in Kwajffa, killing four. On Dec. 29 a female (Chechen?) suicide bomber in Volgograd, Russia kills 14; another suicide bomber on an electric trolley bus during rush hour kills 16; Russian pres. Vladimir Putin announces that he vows to fight terrorists to "their total destruction"; meanwhile clueless Obama admin. spokesman Marie Harf utters the soundbyte: "In terms of security for Sochi, U.S. citizens planning to attend should remain alert regarding their personal security at all times. I think our security experts have said that criminal activity in Sochi is similar to other cities of comparable size. Obviously, major events such as the Olympic games are an opportunity for thieves or for other folks who want to cause mischief." On Dec. 29 Saudi Arabia pledges $3B for the Lebanese military to purchase French weapons. On Dec. 30 (6:30 a.m.) nine Muslim terrorists attack a police station in Xinjiang, China, killing eight. On Dec. 30 (a.m.) the home of German ambassador Wolfgang Dold in Athens, Greece is attacked by gunfire; there are no injuries. On Dec. 30 a suicide bomber in Sharkiya, Egypt injures four security personnel. On Dec. 30 the Lebanese military fires on Syrian aircraft after they enter their airspace, becoming the first such action since they threatened last summer to attack any troops, vehicles, or warplanes that violate Lebanese territory. On Dec. 30 an erupting volcano in W Indonesia causes 19K to flee. On Dec. 30 fighting erupts when police break up a Sunni protest camp in Anbar Province, Afghanistan. On Dec. 30 Iranian billionaire Babak Zanjani (1974-), who greased palms to help Iran avoid sanctions is arrested on on corruption charges. On Dec. 31 a ceasefire is declared in South Sudan. On Dec. 31 the Sinai gas pipeline is blown up for the umpteenth time; next Jan. 17. On Dec. 31 Egypt seizes the assets of 500+ Muslim Brotherhood and Islamist leaders. On Dec. 31 U.S. Supreme Court justice Sonia Sotomayor puts a temporary stay on the Obama admin. from forcing some religious-affiliated groups to provide health insurance coverage of birth control or face penalties. On Dec. 31 (eve.) an Islamist terrorist attack at the Coptic St. George Church in Ain Shams, Egypt kills one. In Dec. Egypt establishes Darl Al-Ifta, an official inst. to fight radical Islam by issuing fatwas responding to radical fatwas; in 2015 they issue a fatwa prohibiting destruction of ancient ruins and monuments. In Dec. the gay mag. The Advocate names Pope Francis its Person of the Year. In Dec. there are 2,822 breweries in the U.S., incl. 2,768 craft breweries employing 43K in 1,237 brewpubs, 1,412 microbreweries, and 119 regional craft breweries; the state of Colo. The U.S. Agency for Internat. Development (USAID) sets up the secret $175M U.S. Afghan Incentive Fund to entice Afghan govt. officials to embrace Western-style reforms. Al Murabitoon is formed from a merger of Ahmed al Tilemsi's Movement for Oneness and Jihad in Africa (MUJAO) and Algerian al-Qaida cmdr. Mokhtar Belmokhtar's Al Mulathameen Brigade, swearing allegiance to al-Qaida emir Ayman al-Zawahiri; a faction operates in Mali under command of Sultan Ould Bady. Israel erects a Monument to Gay Holocaust Victims. Nigerian atty. Dola Indidis petitions the Internat. Court of Justice to overturn Jesus Christ's conviction and death penalty. Ala. and Miss. become the last U.S. states to legalize homebrewing; Alaska continues allowing a local govt. prohibition option. The planet Nibiru returns, and the shape-shifting reptilians who have been here secretly for 400K years come out of hiding to rule - (Saurco: Apollo Royale by TLW). After an atomic apocalypse, a nameless drifter poses as a U.S. postal carrier to give hope to the hopless townfolk terrorized by the hooligans of Gen. Bethlehem - (The Postman by David Brin). Tablet devices outsell laptops for the first time. Compressorhead becomes the first robot rock band. Alpha Lamda Nu is founded at the U. of Tex., becoming the first Muslim fraternity in the U.S. Architecture: On Mar. 28 the Queen Alia Airport in Jordan opens, featuring an energy-efficient design modeled after palm fronds. In Apr. the Osaka City Station Water Fountain in Japan opens, consisting of a large rectangular water fountain with a digital water droplet printer that displays a digital time readout along with falling floral and other shapes. On July 1 the 328 ft. x 1,640 ft. x 1,312 ft. New Century Global Center in Chengu, China (begun 2010) opens, becoming the bldg. with the most floor space on Earth (420 acres). The Chechnya-funded Abu Ghosh Mosque 6.2 mi. W of Jerusalem opens. After petitioning the Holy See in 2004 and 2006 to allow Muslim prayers in the Cathedral of our Lady of the Assumption in Cordoba, Spain (formerly a mosque), and demanding it during a 2007 summit in Cordoba on "Ialamophobia" by the Org. for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE), the Platform for the Mosque-Cathedral of Cordoba, backed by the Spanish Socialist newspaper El Pais presents a petition with 350K signatures, with the ultimate goal of seizing it for exclusive Muslim use? The Museum of the History of Polish Jews in Warsaw opens. The 410-ft. 215-step Selaron Steps (Escadaria Selarón) in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil by Chilean-born Jorge Selaron (Selarón) (1947-2013) (begun 1990), ending at the Convent of Santa Teresa are finished when he is found dead there on Jan. 10. Nobel Prizes: Peace: Org. for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW); Lit.: Alice Ann Munro (nee Laidlaw) (1931-) (Canada); Physics: Francois, Baron Englert (1932-) [Belgium}, and Peter Ware Higgs (1929-) (U.K.) [Higgs Mechanism]; Chemistry: Martin Karplus (1930-), Michael Levitt (1947-) [U.S.-U.K.-Israel], and Ariel Warshel (1940-) [U.S.-Israel] [multiscale models for complex chemical systems]; Med.: James Edward Rothman (1950-) , Randy Wayne Schekman (1948-), and Thomas Christian Sudhof (Südhof) (1955-) (U.S.) [machinery regulating vesicle traffic]; Econ.: Eugene Francis "Gene" Fama (1939-), Lars Peter Hansen (1952-), and Robert James "Bob" Shiller (1946-) (U.S.) [asset pricing]. Sports: On Jan. 17 cyclist Lance Armstrong gives an interview with Oprah Winfrey, finally admitting to drug use and lying, causing calls for him to retestify under oath; his earlier Congressional testimony is beyond the statute of limitations. On Jan. 19-27 the PBA League begins operation at Thumderbowl Lanes in Allen Park, Mich., using the Baker format with 5-player teams incl. the Dallas Strikers, Philadelphia Hitmen, L.A. X, Barbasol Motown Muscle, Geico New York City WTT Kingpins, Brooklyn Styles, Silver Lake Atom Splitters, and Pittsburgh Jack Rabbits; on Nov. 9, 2012 the First PBA League Draft in Las Vegas, Nev. saw Ryan "Rhino" Page (1983-) selected #1 overall by Dallas Strikers team head Norm Duke. On Feb. 17 Danica Sue Patrick (1982-) becomes the first woman to win the pole position at the Daytona 500, first for any NASCAR pole position. On Feb. 24 the 2013 (55th) Daytona 500 is won by Jimmie Kenneth Johnson (1975-) (2nd win); Danica Patrick becomes the first woman to achieve the pole position at the start, and to lead the race (5 laps), but comes in #8. On Mar. 27 Tiger Woods regains his #1 internat. golf rank after winning the Arnold Palmer Invitational. On Apr. 12 5'8" Chinese amateur golfer Guan Tianlang (1998-) becomes the youngest player to make the cut in PGA history in the 2013 Masters. On Apr. 22 Joe Scarborough (1962-) of Charlotte, N.C. becomes the first bowler to roll a 900 series in a PBA Tour event in his first three games in the PBA50 Sun Bowl Tournament at Spanish Springs Lanes in The Villages, Fla. On May 26 (Sun.) the 2013 (97th) Indianapolis 500 is won by Tony Kanaan (Antoine Rizkallah Kanaan Filho) (1974-) of Brazil, who beats Carlos Munoz by 0.12 sec. On May 26-June 9 the 2013 (117th) French Open at Stade Roland Garros in Paris, France sees 3-time defending champ Rafael Nadel defeat fellow countryman David Ferrer 6-3, 6-2, 6-3 to become the first man to capture the same Grand Slam title 8x, becoming his 59th win in 60 matches in Paris; a topless protester against same-sex marriage interrupts the 2nd set; on June 8 #1-ranked Serena Williams defeats defending champ Maria Sharapova to win the women's single title 6-4, 6-4, becoming her 16th Grand Slam title, and her first French Open win since 2002. On June 6-20 the 2013 NBA Finals sees the Miami Heat defeat the San Antonio Spurs by 4-3; MVP is LeBron James of Miami. On June 8 the 2013 Belmont Stakes is won in 2:30.70 by Palace Malice (2010-), who next year wins the 2014 Metropolitan Handicap on the same track for older horses. On June 12-24 after a lockout causes the season to be shortened to 48 games, the 2013 Stanley Cup Finals see the Chicago Blackhawks defeat the Boston Bruins 4-2 to win their 2nd NHL title in four years; MVP is 5'10-" Blackhawks right winger Patrick Timothy Kane II (1988-). On June 21 the Royal Ascot Gold Cup horserace sees the Queen's horse Estimate (4-y.-o. filly) win for the first time in the race's 207-year history. On June 24-July 7 the 2013 (12th) Wimbledon Championships see Marion Bartoli (1984-) of France defeat Sabine Lisicki of Germany on July 6 to win the ladies' singles title; on July 7 (7/7) Andrew Barron "Andy" Murray (1987-) of Britain (coach Ivan Lendl) defeats Novak Djokovic of Serbia to win the gentlemen's singles title 77 years after Fred Perry (1936). On Aug. 6 ML baseball's highest-paid star Alex Rodriguez is suspended for the 2014 season (211 games) for using performance-enhancing drugs, effective in Nov.-Dec. when arbitrator Fredric Horowitz makes his final ruling; All-Stars Nelson Cruz, Johnny Peralta, and Everth Cabrera are suspended for 50 games each. On Aug. 29 the NFL agrees to a $765M settlement in a concussions lawsuit brought by former players. On Sept. 29 QB Peyton Manning (#18) leads the Denver Broncos to a record 52-point win over the Philadelphia Eagles (52-30), setting an NFL record of starting the season with 16 touchdowns without an interception in only four games; on Oct. 13 the 5-0 Broncos defeat the 0-5 Jacksonville Jaguars by 35-19 after being favored by a record-tying 28 points, largest spread since the 1960 NFL-AFL merger; on Oct. 20 the 6-0 Broncos are defeated 39-33 by the Indianapolis Colts in Manning's long-anticipated return to his old home field. On Oct. 23-30 the 2013 World Series sees the Boston Red Sox (AL) defeat the St. Louis Cardinals (NL) 4-2; the first home field (Fenway Park) clincher since 1918. On Nov. 17 9-y.-o. Hannah Diem (2004-) of Seminole, Fla. becomes the youngest bowler in USBC history to roll a 300 game, using a 12-lb. ball at Liberty Lanes in Largo, Fla. On Nov. 22 (50th Anniv. of Who Killed Kennedy Day) Norwegian grandmaster Sven Magnus Oen (Øen) Carlsen (1990-), "the Harry Potter of Chess" (Garry Kasparov) defeats chess champ (since 2007) Viswanathan Anand to become world chess champ #16 (until ?), going on to win the world rapid chess championship and world blitz chess championship in 2014, reaching a record rating of 2,882. On Dec. 8 #5 Matthew Phillip "Matt" Prater (1984-) of the Denver Broncos kicks a record 64-yard field goal in a game against the Tenn. Titans, which the Broncos win 51-28. On Dec. 22 QB (#18) Peyton Manning of the Denver Broncos beats Tom Brady's 2007 record of 50 TDs in a regular season with 51 in a 4-TD 37-13 win over the Houston Oilers; on Dec. 29 Manning raises the TD record to 55 in a 34-14 win against the San Diego Chargers, passing Drew Brees' 2011 record of 5,476 passing yards with 5,477; the Broncos become the first team to score 600+ points in a season (606); Manning scores 31 points in the first half, then retires for the game. In 2013 the first NBA Twyman-Stokes Teammate of the Year Award, named after Rochester/Cincinnati Royals teammates (1955-8) Jack Twyman and Maurice Stokes is awarded to Chauncey Billups of the Los Angeles Clippers for the 2012-13 season, followed in 2013-4 by Shane Battier of the Miami Heat. Inventions: On Jan. 5 India launches the Geosynchronous Satellite Launch Vehicle (GSLV-D5) from the space port at Sriharikota in coastal Andhra Pradesh. On Jan. 26 the Chinese Xian Y-20 "Chubby Girl" strategic military transport aircraft makes its first flight, going into service on Dec. 26, 2015; by 2016 1K are planned. On Mar. 1 the Center for Copyright Info. (CCI) launches the Copyright Alert System (CAS) that overrides Internet access for users detected of infringing copyrights, and implements a 6-strikes program to hamper their Internet access. On Mar. 17 Iran launches its first destroyer in the Caspian Sea, the Jamaran-2. On May 3 the USAF successfully tests the X-51A WaveRider hypersonic unmanned aircraft, which goes 3K mph (Mach 5.1) at 60K ft. using an exotic scramjet, meaning it can reach any point on Earth in less than 8 hours. On June 6 Russia tests the RS-26 missile, with multiple supersonic maneuvering warheads, upsetting the balance of power in Europe. On June 11 the Chinese Shenzhou 10 spacecraft takes off on a Long March 2F rocket from Jiuquan Launch Center, carrying Nie Haisheng (1964-), Zhang Ziaoguang (1966-), and Capt. Wang Yaping (1978-) (2nd Chinese woman in space), docking with the Tiangong-1 space lab module on June 13 and returning on June 26. On June 19 Daniel Smalley et al. of MIT pub. an article in Nature about using waveguides to create color holographic video displays that are cheaper than monochromatic displays and can increase the resolution of 2-D displays. On July 7 the unmanned X-47B makes the first-ever arrested landing at sea aboard USS George H.W. Bush (CVN 77) off the Va. coast. On Sept. 26 Google announces their new Hummingbird algorithm, which makes use of natural language queries, making reliance on keywords obsolete. On Sept. 26 the USAF and Boeing successfully test the first pilotless F-16 Drone. In Sept. the TomTato is launched by Thomson & Morgan Co., a single plant that produces both cherry tomatoes and potatoes. In Sept. Ibon Odriozola et al. at CIDETEC Centre for Electrochemical Technologies produce the world's first self-healing polymer. On Nov. 5 the Indian Space Research Org. (ISRO) Mangalyaan (Sansk. "Mars craft") Mars Orbiter Mission (MOM) is launched, attaining Mars orbit on Sept. 24, 2014, becoming the 4th country after the Soviet Union, U.S., and European Space Agency, and first Asian, as well as the first to do it on the first attempt. On Nov. 22 the Xbox One home video console is introduced by Microsoft as a successor to the Xbox 360 of 2005. The Boeing 787 Battery Scandal sees mercury batteries new Boeing 787 jets catch fire, causing orders to plummet. The infrared James Webb Space Telescope (formerly the Next Generation Space Telescope) is launched by NASA as a successor to the Hubble Space Telescope; er, after massive cost overruns it is launched in Oct. 2018; it incl. the daisy-shaped star shade to fly 15K mi. ahead of it and block light to allow distant planets to be searched for. Turkey launches its Gotkturk spy satellite, its first, pissing-off Israel. Israel and China establish the XIN (Chin. "New") Center to do research in nanotechnology. The BigDog walking donkey is developed by Boston Dynamics; it can carry up to 400 lbs. into battle at 7-8 mph. Science: World production of digital data reaches 4.4 zettabytes, expected to grow to 44 zettabytes by 2020. On Jan. 11 the White House announces that it won't pursue a Moon-sized Death Star :). On Jan. 28 geneticists at USC announce that they've extended the lifespan of baker's yeast by 10x, equivalent to 800 years for humans by knocking out the RAS2 and SCH9 genes and putting it on a calorie-restricted diet. In Jan. six hypervelocity stars of Solar size racing through the Milky Way at up to 2M mph are discovered. On Feb. 17 Hungarian physicist Albert-Laszlo Barabasi pub. a paper claiming that every one of the 1T Web documents (14B Web pages plus images, videos, and files) is connected with every other by at most 19 clicks. On Feb. 25 the New England Journal of Medicine pub. a study that finds that 30% of heart attacks, strokes, and deaths from heart disease can be prevented by the Mediterranean diet consisting of olive oil, nuts, beans, fish, fruits, vegetables, and wine drunk with meals. On Feb. 27 a study pub. in Nature reports that the bacteriophage virus can steal the immune system of bacteria and use it against its host. In Feb. scientists at the Nat. Research Council in Canada pub. an article in Nature Photonics indicating that Heisenberg's Uncertainty Principle might be wrong. On Mar. 3 Deborah Persaud of John Hopkins U. announces the first documented case of a child being cured of HIV using antiretrovirals. On Mar. 6 a report by researchers at Yale Medical School identifies table salt as a trigger for autoimmune diseases. On Mar. 7 Shaun Marcott et al. of Oregon State U. pub. an article in Science which claims that global temps are the warmest in 4K years. On Mar. 7 a team of Chinese physicists announce that Einstein's "spooky action at a distance" is at least 10Kx faster than light. On Mar. 9 the NASA Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter (MRO) reveals evidence of a Martian megaflood. On Mar. 14 after announcing its discovery last July physicists at CERN announce confirmation of the discovery of the Higgs Boson AKA the God Particle, first predicted in 1964, which explains what gives electrons and matter size and shape; this is actually the greatest intention experiment ever conducted, where thousands of scientists find what they want to find by skewing the data? On Mar. 15 a British team of doctors announce that they have kept a human liver alive outside the body for the first time ever. On Mar. 28 Stanford U. bioengineers pub. an article in Science reporting the first biological transistor made from DNA and RNA, which they call the transcriptor. On Mar. 28 Alexei A. Sharov and Richard Gordon pub. the paper Life Before Earth, which claims that a reverse extrapolation of genetic complexity suggests that life originated 9.7B years ago, before the Earth was born. In Mar. the NASA Messenger spacecraft makes the first complete map of Mercury. On Apr. 2 Pres. Obama launches the $100M BRAIN Initiative to unlock the mysteries of the human mind, starting with $40M in FY 2014. On Apr. 2 an article in Lancet claims that there is a continuum among neurodevelopmental and psychiatric disorders, which should be considered as different manifestations of a common "developmental brain dysfunction". On Apr. 4 researchers in Japan report in Science that they can predict dream imagery with 60% accuracy using fMRI scans. On Apr. 7 T.L. Winslow (TLW) announces that the human mind is a quantum entanglement device. On Apr. 10 Tor Wager et al. pub. a paper in the New England Journal of Medicine claiming that they can pinpoint what pain looks like in the brain using fMRI brain scans. On Apr. 11 neuroscientists at Karolinska Inst. in Sweden pub. a paper claiming that they can create the sensation of a phantom hand in a non-amputated patient. On Apr. 15 physicians at Va. Commonwealth U. Medical Center become the first to successfully implant a telescope in a patient's eye to treat macular degeneration. On Apr. 15 the first NASA Hawaii Space Exploration Analog and Simulation (HI-SEAS) mission begins, with eight food scientists staying on Mauna Loa in Hawaii (alt. 8.2K ft. or 2.5km) for 120 days (until Aug. 13, 2013) in a Mars-like environment; HI-SEAS II sees six people try it from Mar. 28, 2014-July 25, 2014; HI-SEAS III sees six people try it from Oct. 15, 2014-June 13, 2015; HI-SEAS IV runs from Aug. 29, 2015 to Aug. 28, 2016; HI-SEAS V runs from Jan. 19, 2017-Sept. 18, 2017; HI-SEAS VI in 2018. On Apr. 16 Ralph Curry et al. of the U. of Mo. announce Open-Air Containment of Plasma. On Apr. 16 William P. King et al. of the U. of Ill. announce the creation of 3-D microbatteries that outpower supercapacitors and recharge 1Kx faster. On Apr. 16 scientists at Stanford U. announce the location of a brain "hot spot" responsible for numeral recognition. On Apr. 17 Chinese-born Am. mathematician (former Subway sandwich shop worker) Yitang "Tom" Zhang submits a paper to Annals of Mathematics, which is pub. a record three weeks later, announcing a breakthrough in prime number theory by proving that there are infinitely many prime number pairs differing by less than 70M, helping close in on the Twin Prime Conjecture that there are infinitely many differing by 2. On Apr. 17 neuroscientsts at Case Western Reverve U. announce an efficient and reliable method of analyzing brain activity to detect autism in children. On Apr. 17 researchers at the U. of Tex. announce the identification of a protein that can block the brain's response to the appetite-suppressing hormone leptin. On Apr. 24 a study is pub. by Jean Decety et al. of the U. of Chicago that uses fMRI to find that psychopaths lack basic neurophysiological hardwiring to have concern for others. On Apr. 25 the Harvard Stem Cell Inst. announces the discovery of the hormone betatrophin, which spurs beta cell production, promising a new treatment for diabetes. On Apr. 29 the atmospheric CO2 concentration at NOAA's Mauna Loa Observatory reaches 400 ppm for the first time after increasing 2.1 ppm per year for the last 10 years. In Apr. the Beijing Spectrometer Collaboration (BESII) announces the discovery of the mysterious 4-quark Zc(3900) particle, which they believe will lead to a whole new family of 4-quark subatomic particles; on June 18 an article in Nature reports the observation of the first 4-quark particle, called Zc(3900) in the Belle Detector of the High Energy Accelerator Research Org. in Japan. On May 1 Nassim Haramein of the Hawaii Inst. for Unified Physics (HIUP) pub. the paper Quantum Gravity and the Holographic Mass, which discusses his Connected Universe Theory, a new explanation of gravity and the source of mass, claiming that everything in the Universe is connected, and that space defines matter not vice-versa. On May 1 scientists at Albert Einstein College of Medicine pub. a study that indicates that the hypothalamus may be the body's "fountain of aging". On May 2 scientists at Weill Cornell Medical College pub. a study that finds that Thrombospondon 1 (Tsp-1) stops human cancers from metastisizing. On May 7 after research by scientists at the U. of Southern Denmark, British surgeons announce that 40% of patients with chronic back pain could be cured with antibiotics that treat Proprionibacterium acnes, the bacteria that causes acne, being hailed as a major breakthrough. On May 8 Alison L. Barth of Carnegie Mellon U. pub. an article in Journal of Neuroscience revealing that neuronal development has an intermediate phase during which repeated exposure to a stimulus shrinks rather than lengthens synapses, showing the futility of all-night cram sessions. On May 8 Princeton U. physicist William "Will" Happer (1939-) and former NASA astronaut (geologist) and U.S. Sen. (R-N.M.) (1977-83) Harrison Hagan "Jack" Schmitt (1935-) pub. the op-ed article In Defense of Carbon Dioxide in The Wall Street Journal, arguing that "the demonized chemical compound is a boon to plant life and has little correlations with global temperature", pissing-off the global warmists and causing the Columbia Journalism Review to call the article "shameful, even for the dismal standards" of the WSJ (journalism standards or scientific standards?); Happer later gives an interview claiming that "temperature always changes first, and CO2 follows", there has been no global temp increase since 1998, and "A thousand parts per million of CO2 would actually help the planet... If you look around the world, many greenhouse operators put several thousand parts per million into their greenhouses"; in 2017 Happer meets with new Pres. Trump to discuss being appointed as his science adviser. On May 9 Kerd Kempermann of the DZNE in Dresden, Germany announces experimental proof that experience leads to growth of new brain cells, which leads to individuality. On May 15 Cell announces the first verified creation of human stem cells through cloning by the same technique that produced Dolly the Cloned Sheep in 1996. On May 15 Michael Fanselow and Moriel Zelikowsky of UCLA and Bryce Vissel of the Garvan Inst. of Medical Research pub. a paper revealing that parts of the prefrontal cortex take over when the hippocampus is disabled, becoming the first demonstration of neural circuit plasticity. On May 15 after years of papers attempting to estimate scientific support for anthropogenic global warming/climate change, Australian cognitive scientist John Cook (2007 founder of the climate science blog Skeptical Science) et al. pub. the paper Quantifying the consensus on anthropogenic global warming in the scientific literature in Environmental Research Letters, which reports on an examination of 11,944 climate abstracts pub. in 1991-2011, finding that "Among abstracts expressing a position on AGW, 97.1% endorsed the consensus position that humans are causing global warming", which is given a super boost on May 16 by Pres. Obama in a tweet; on Apr. 13, 2016 Cook, Am. historian of science Naomi Oreskes (1958-), Am. geologist Peter T. Doran et al. pub. the paper Consensus on consensus: a synthesis of consensus estimates on human-caused global warming in Environmental Research Letters, which concludes that "The consensus that humans are causing recent global warming is shared by 90%-100% of publishing climate scientists according to six independent studies by co-authors of this paper", and that "the finding of 97% consensus [that humans are causing recent global warming] in published climate research is robust and consistent with other surveys of climate scientists and peer-reviewed studies." On May 24 an article in Science by Swiss Federal Inst. of Technology (ETH) in Zurich describes the first experimental observation of quantum magnetism. On May 26 researchers at the U. of Hawaii pub. an article in Nature Geoscience revealing that El Nino is dependent on an unusual wind pattern that straddles the equatorial Pacific and has a 15 mo. cycle. On May 27 researchers at Argonne Nat. Lab pub. an article describing a formula to turn cement into metal by heating it in a way to trap electrons. On May 28 researchers at the U. of Adelaide pub. an article in ACS Synthetic Biology describing Clonetegration, a 1-step bacterial genetic engineering process. On May 28 Peter Walter of UCSF et al. pub. a study in eLife, reporting that the chemical ISRIB counters the effects of ElF2 alpha inactivation inside brain cells of mice, boosting memory. On May 29 Wellcome Trust in London announces the result of a preliminary trial indicating that an Avatar can help schizophrenics manage imaginary voices. On May 29 researchers at the U. of Tex. Galveston pub. a paper tying brain injury to a toxic form of tau units called oligomers. On May 29 radar data of Asteroid 1998 QE2 3.75M (6M km) from Earth reveals that it has its own moon. On May 30 researchers from Purdue U. pub. a paper in Science confirming the theory that mascons on the Moon are caused by ancient massive asteroid impacts. On May 31 Shoukhrat Mitalipov of the U. of Ore. pub. an article in Science announcing the production of the first cloned human embryonic stem (ES) cells. In May NASA pub. the SABER Study, which finds that carbon dioxide and nitrous oxide in the upper atmosphere actually reflects solar energy, cooling the Earth, throwing global warming scientists into a tizzy. On June 3 Idan Shalev et al. of Duke pub. an article in Psychological Science, reporting that the width of blood vessels in the retina may indicate brain health years before the onset of dementia. On June 3 researchers pub. an article in Am. Journal of Primatology supporting the universal existence of five personality dimensions in chimpanzees: reactivity/undependability, dominance, openness, extraversion, and agreeableness, with a possible 6th dimension of methodical. On June 5 scientists at the Nat. Inst. of Standards and Technology (NIST) pub. a reportthat they observed the Spin Hall Effect in a Bose-Einstein Condensate (BEC). On June 5 researchers from UCLA announce the discovery of Multi-lineage Stress-Enduring (MUSE-AT) Stem Cells in adipose tissue, which can differentiate into virtually every human cell type without modification - a new meaning to the term fathead? On June 5 doctors at Duke U. Hospital implant the first bioengineered blood vessel into a kidney patient's arm. On June 5 chemists at the U. of Pittsburgh pub. their development of titanium dioxide on a stick of carbon nanotubes which might be used to create a sensor to measure blood sugar from human breath samples. On June 5 researchers at Oxford U. pub. a study that finds that a "belief in science" helps non-religious/atheist people deal with adversity by giving them comfort and reassurance. On June 6 researchers at Weill Cornell Medical College pub. an article in Cell reporting the discovery of a mechanism that guides the wiring of neural circuits in a developing brain. On June 6 Jonas Frisen et al. of the Karolinska Inst. pub. an article in Cell reporting the use of C14 dating to establish that about 1.4K new neurons are created in the hippocampus each day during adulthood, with the rate declining modestly with age. On June 7 astronomers using the Atacama Large Millimeter/Submillimeter Array (ALMA) pub. an article in Science announcing the first observation of a "dust trap" around a young star that generates planets, comets, etc. On June 7 Dennis O'Leary et al. of the Salk Inst. for Biological Studies pub. an article in Science announcing that input from the thalamus is required to determine how the cerebral cortex grows into separate functional areas, not genes alone. On June 9 Steve Finkbeiner et al. of Gladstone Insts. pub. an article in Nature Neuroscience reporting that the protein called Arc controls homeostatic scaling of synapses to form long-term memories without causing epileptic seizures. On June 10 Leon Petchkovsky pub. an article in Journal of Analytical Psychology that reveals a 3-sec. conflict between the left and right brain caused by some trigger words, after which the left brain takes over to ensure that the "hot buttons" will continue to be active. On June 12 researchers at the U. of Penn. pub. a study in the Journal of Neuroscience that finds that a father's life stress exposure leaves a mark on his sperm that can affect the brain development of his offspring. On June 12 Sara C. Mednick of UCR, and Erik J. Kaestner and John T. Wixted of UCD pub. an article in Journal of Cognitive Neuroscience that finds that sleep spindles (burst of brain activity for 1 sec. of less) play a role in emotional memory, and that zolpidem (Ambien) heightens the recollection of and response to negative memories. On June 13 Yu Fu and Richard Depue of Cornell U. pub. an article in Frontiers in Human Neuroscience reporting that an experiment on 70 people using Ritalin showed that extroverts prefer immediate gratification and focus more on faces than introverts, who are overwhelmed by too much stimulation, pay more attention to detail, and have increased brain activity when processing visual info. On June 15-16 Oxford U. prof. Roger Penrose presents a theory at the Global Future 2045 Internat. Congress in New York City that the brain might act like a quantum computer, with the fibers inside neurons forming the basic units of quantum computation. On June 17 Stuart A. Lipton et al. at Sanford-Burnham Medical Research Inst. announce NitroMemantine, the first experimental drug to boost brain synapses lost in Alzheimer's disease. On June 17 Stefan Ropke et al. of the Charite Dept. of Psychiatry pub. an article in Journal of Psychiatric Research that finds using MRI that persons suffering from narcissistic personality disorder have a deficit of thickness in the region of the cerebral cortex involved in the processing and generation of compassion. On June 19 scientists at the U. of Calgary pub. an article in Nature Immunology that reports that platelets actively search for bacteria and seal them off from the body. On June 19 Don Arnold and Richard Roberts of USC pub. an article in Neuron that reports how they have created microscopic probes that light up synapses in a living neuron in real time by attacking fluorescent markers to synaptic protons. On June 19 scientists at Carnegie Mellon U. pub. an article in PLOS ONE reporting that they have identified which emotion a person is experiencing based on brain activity as measured by functional MRI. On June 19 Bruce Donald et al. of Duke U. pub. an article in PLOS ONE reporting that they can use carbon nanotubes like harpoons to record electrical signals from individual neurons. On June 20 physicists at UTA pub. an article in Nature Communications announcing the invention of a tabletop particle accelerator that can accelerate electrons to 2GeV at a distance of only 1 in. On June 20 Niek van Hulst et al. of the U. of Glasgow and the ICFO-Inst. of Photonic Sciences pub. an article in Science reporting the first direct observation of the quantum effects in photosynthesis, revealing that coherence maintains high levels of transport efficiency and adapts to environmental influences. On June 20 Lara Gundel et al. of Lawence Berkeley Nat. Lab pub. an article that proves that third-hand smoke (noxious residue from second-hand smoke) causes DNA damage in humans. On June 21 researchers from Germany and Canada pub. an article in Science announcing BigBrain, a 3-D digital model of the human brain at a spatial resolution of 20 microns. On June 21 scientists at the Scripps Research Inst. (TSRI) pub. an article in Journal of Neuroscience that a single gene mutation can destroy a key "window" of brain development permanently. On June 25 astronomers announce that Gliese 667C has 3-4 potentially habitable planets orbiting a triple-star system 22 l.y. from Earth, becoming a first. On June 25 scientists pub. an article in Nature announcing the discovery of the mechanism that points transcription in the right direction and tells it to skip over junk DNA. On June 26 Albert Newen and Luca Barlassina of Ruhr-Universitat Bochum pub. an article in Philosophy and Phenomenological Research announcing their new theory that emotions are a separate kind of mental state arising through the integration of feelings of bodily processes and cognitive contents. On June 27 Christopher Berger of the Karolinska Inst. in Sweden pub. an article in Current Biology describing a study that found that what a person imagines hearing or seeing can change actual perception of the other sensory organ. On June 27 Robert Hanlon et al. of Northwestern U. pub. an article in Criminal Justice and Behavior finding that impulsive murderers are much more cognitively impaired than premeditated murders, who may also suffer from psychiatric disorders. On June 27 Anatol Kreitzer of Gladstone Inst. and Edward Callway of Salk Inst. pub. an article in Neuron anouncing a high-resolution mapping technique that uncovers the underlying circuit architecture of the brain. On June 28 Randy Bruno and Christine Constantinople of Columbia U. pub. an article in Science that reports that sensory info. travels two places at the same time, not only to the brain's mid-layer for deeper transmission in a serial fashion, but directly to the deeper layers. In June 2013 Gastroenterology pub. a study by scientists at UCLA proving that bacteria ingested in food can affect brain function in humans. In June Richard Crooks of UTA and Ulrich Tallarek of the U. of Marburg pub. an article in Angewandte Chemie describing their new technique of electrochemically-mediated seawater desalination, which uses a small electrical field to desalinate seawater sans membranes. On July 1 Michael S. Gaffrey et al. at Washington U. in St. Louis pub. an article in Journal of the Am. Academy of Child & Adolescent Psychiatry revealing brain differences in preschoolers who are depressed. Lysenko was right? On July 1 Roger Godschalk et al. of Maastrich U. pub. an article in The FASEB Journal reporting a pilot study indicating that gene mutations caused by a father's lifestyle can be inherited by his children and passed to grandchildren. On July 3 Elizabeth Gould et al. of Princeton U. pub. an article in Journal of Neuroscience that reports that mice allowed to exercise regularly reorganize their ventral hippocampuses to reduce anxiety in response to stress. On July 4 astronomers Hongsheng Zhao et al. present a new theory of gravity at the U. of St. Andrews, claiming that dark matter might not exist, and that a mysterious unknown force is at work. On July 5 Matthew Lieberman, Emily Falk et al. of UCLA pub. an article in Psychological Science describing a study that indicated that the temporoparietal junction and dorsomedial prefontal cortex are associated with the successful spread of ideas AKA buzz. On July 8 psychologists Michael J. Wood and Karen M. Douglas of the U. of Kent pub. What About Building 7? A Social Psychological Study of Online Discussion of 9/11 Conspiracy Theories, which finds that those labelled conspiracy theorists are saner than those who accept the official versions of contested events. On July 9 Jimo Borjigin et al. of the U. of Mich. pub. an article in the Proceedings of the Nat. Academy of Sciences reporting a "transient surge of synchronous gamma oscillations" for 30 sec. in the brains of rats after cardiac arrest. On July 12 Toshiyuki Hirabayashi et al. of the U. of Tokyo pub. an article in Science revealing that the brain processes complex stimuli more cumulatively than previously thought, attaining detailed representations of objects not by building up representations in a single area, but by emergence of these representations in a hierarchically prior area and subsequent transfer to the brain region that follows until they become sufficiently prevalent for the brain to register them; the study also reveals that the brain activity involved in recreating visual stimula emerges in a hierarchically lower brain area than previously thought. On July 15 Georg Heinze, Christian Hubrich, and Thomas Halfmann of the Inst. fur Angewandte Physik pub. an article in Phys. Rev. Lett. reporting that they have stopped a light beam and stored an image by electromagnetically-induced transparency for a record 1 min. On July 16 Christof Wetterich of the U. of Heidelberg pub. an article proposing a new cosmology in which the Universe isn't expanding but the mass of everything has been increasing, making the Big Bang singularity unnecessary. On July 16 Mark Scott of the U. of British Columbia pub. an article in Psychological Science revealing evidence that a brain signal called corollary discharge plays an important role in experiences of internal speech. On July 17 Jeanne B. Lawrence et al. at UMass Medical School pub. an article in Nature showing that a naturally occurring X chromosome "off switch" can be rerouted to neutralize the extra chromosome causing Down Syndrome (Trisomy 21). On July 18 Stuart Hameroff et al. of the U. of Ariz. pub. an article in Brain Stimulation reporting that transcranial ultrasound affects mood, with 30 sec. at 2Mhz giving the best positive mood change. On July 19 researchers at Peking U. and Beijing Vitalstar Biotechnology pub. an article in Science reporting on their creation of induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) from mouse somatic cells using a combination of seven small-molecule compounds sans genetic manipulations. On July 22 Marco Catani et al. of King's College, London pub. an article in Proceedings of the Nat. Academy of Science reporting their mapping of the neural pathways involved in word learning in humans, finding that the arcuate fasciculus, which connects auditory regions in the temporal lobe with the motor area of the left hemisphere frontal lobe allows the sound of a word to be connected to the regions responsible for its articulation. On July 23 Birgit Wagner, Andrea B. Horn, and Andreas Maercker at the U. of Zurich pub. an article in the Journal of Affective Disorders providing evidence that Internet-based psychotherapy is as good or better than the face-to-face kind. On July 29 researchers at UCLA and UNC pub. a study that indicates that happiness affects one's genes in their immune cells. On July 29 Amit Sahai et al. of UCLA pub. a Mathematical Jigsaw Algorithm to encrypt software so that someone can use it without being able to uncover the code behind it. On July 31 British researchers send a balloon to an altitude of 27km alt. which collects the cell wall of a diatom, claiming it as proof of the extraterrestrial origin of life. On Aug. 1 researchers at UCB and Princeton U. pub. an article in Science reporting a study with massive data indicating that the Earth's changing climate is implicated in increased domestic violence, crime, ethnic violence, and political strife throughout history. On Aug. 2 scientists at the U. of Colo. pub. an article in Science announcing a new solar-thermal system that can split water with sunlight, "the Holy Grail of a sustainable hydrogen economy". On Aug. 5 John Rasko, William Ritchie et al. at Centenary Inst. in Sydney, Australia pub. an article in Science reporting that 97% of so-called human junk DNA can actually play a significant roll in cell development. On Aug. 6 Mark Post of Maastricht U. unveils the first test tube hamburger in London, which cost 250K euros to create. On Aug. 8 Dolores Albarracin of the U. of Penn. and Justin Hepler of the U. of Ill. pub. an article in Cognition reporting that subliminal messages can unconsciously save a person from temptation. On Aug. 9 Simon Baron-Cohen et al. of Cambridge U. pub. an article in Brain reporting that autism affects different parts of the brain in women and men, and that females with autism show neuroanatomical "masculinization". On Aug. 9 Lawrence Krauss of Arizona State U. and James Dent of the U. of La. pub. an article in Physical Review Letters proposing that the Grand Unified Scale might create another background field in addition to the Higgs Field that would account for dark energy and explain why its density is so small, 120 orders of magnitude less than expected based on fundamental physics. On Aug. 12 Michael Argyle of the U. of Rochester pub. an article in Personality and Social Psychology Review reporting a study of 1.5K gifted children going back to 1921 which finds that the more intelligent ones turned away from religion even in old age. On Aug. 13 Shyam Gollakota et al. of the U. of Wash. pub. an article in Data Communication reporting a new technique to repurpose wireless signals as a source of power to allow wireless devices to go battery-free. On Aug. 14 Jeff Anderson et al. of the U. of Utah pub. an article in PLOS ONE reporting that brain imaging experiments find no evidence that some people are "right-brained" or "left-brained". On Aug. 15 Smithsonian scientists pub. an article in ZooKeys describing the olinguito (Bassaricyon neblina), native to Ecuador and Colombia, a relative of the olingo, becoming the first new carnivore species to be discovered in the W Hemisphere in 35 years. On Aug. 15 scientists at the U. of Md. claim that NASA's Voyager 1 spacecraft left the Solar System last year, despite NASA claims that it's passing through a transition zone. On Aug. 20 Alexander B. Niculescu III et al. of Indiana U. pub. an article in Molecular Psychiatry reporting the finding of a series of RNA biomarkers in blood that might help identify people at risk for committing suicide. On Aug. 22 Peter Liddle et al. of the U. of Nottingham pub. an article in Neuron that the severity of symptoms incl. delusions and hallucinations in schizophrenics is caused by a disconnect between two regions in the brain, the insula and the lateral frontal cortex. On Aug. 27 U. of Wash. researchers Rajesh Rao and Andrea Stocco perform the first noninvasive human-to-human brain interface, with one sending a brain signal via the Internet to control the hand motions of the other. On Aug. 27 Mazahir T. Hasan of the Max Planck Inst., Jose Maria Delgado-Garcia of the U. of Pablo de Olavide in Seville, Spain et al. pub. an article in Nature Communications reporting that some long-term memories are stored in the cortex not the hippocampus. On Aug. 29 Norman M. Weinberger et al. of UC Irvine pub. an article in Neuroscience reporting that specific memories can be made by directly altering brain cells in the cerebral cortex of rodents. On Sept. 1 researchers at Macquarie U., the U. of Adelaide, and Peking U. pub. an article in Nature Nanotechnology announcing the SuperDot, a nanocrystal with a special optical fiber that enables light to interact with nanoscale volumes of liquid, becoming a breakthrough in nanoscale measurement of living cells. On Sept. 6 pub. B.M. Harvey of the U. of Utrecht et al. pub. an article in Science reporting the discovery of small brain area which represents numerosity along a continuous "map". On Sept. 8-13 the 2013 European Planetary Science Congress presents evidence that Mars was quite wet once, and had two wet eras. On Sept. 26 Shehan Hettiaratchy of Imperial College in Fuzhou, China announces the world's first replacement nose grown on a patient's forehead. On Sept. 26 NASA's Curiosity Rover discovers that Mars' surface soil contains 2% water by weight. On Sept. 27 the Fifth Assessment Report (AR5) of the U.N. Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) is released, concluding that: "It is extremely likely that human influence has been the dominant cause of the observed warming since the mid-20th century"; the report Observations: Atmosphere and Surface in "Climate Change 2013: The Physical Science Basis, Contribution of Working Group I to the Fifth Assessment Report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change", by lead authors Lisa Victoria Alexander of the U. of New South Wales in Australia, Stefan Bronnimann (Brönnimann) of the U. of Bern, Yassine Abdul-Rahman Charabi (1972-) of the Sultan Qaboos U. in Oman, Franciscus Johannes (Frank J.) Dentener of the Netherlands, David R. Easterling of NOAA, Alexey Kaplan of Columbia U., Peter William Thorne of the Hadley Centre, Martin Wild of ETH Zurich, and Panmao Zhai (1962-) of the China Meteorological Admin. contains the soundbyte: "Current data sets indicate no significant observed trends in global tropical cyclone frequency over the past century and it remains uncertain whether any reported long-term increases in tropical cyclone frequency are robust, after accounting for past changes in observing capabilities... No robust trends in annual numbers of tropical storms, hurricanes, and major hurricanes counts have been identified over the past 100 years in the North Atlantic basin"; it also admits that the global warming in 1998-2012 was just 0.05C/decade, only one-quarter of the predicted 0.2C/decade. On Sept. 27 after calling AR5 a "death warrant written in stark, black-and-white data", Am. blogging meteorologist ("the Rebel Nerd of Meteorology") Eric Holthaus (1981-) announces his decision to never fly again; meanwhile U. of Ala. atmospheric scientist John Christy announces that an analysis of all 73 climate models used in the AR5 reveals that five of them confirm that there has been no statistically significant global warming for the past 17 years, and none accurately predicted that the global temp. would remain flat since Oct. 1, 1996. On Sept. 27 researchers at UCLA et al. pub. an article reporting the first-ever measurement of the energy of magnetic reconnection in the magnetosphere that drives space weather using six aligned Earth-orbiting spacecraft and NASA's ARTEMIS dual lunar orbiter. On Sept. 27 researchers from the U. of N.C. pub. an article in Science reporting that faulty wiring in BNST cells in the brain can interfere with hunger or satiety signals, leading to eating disorders. On Oct. 7 Lawrence Livermore Labs in Calif. announce the first-ever fusion reaction where the energy released exceeded the amount absorbed by the fuel, reaching just one step short of ignition, where it releases as much energy as the lasers supply. On Oct. 8 Aleksey Komogorov of Binghamton U. pub. an article in Physical Review Letters announcing the successful synthesis of the first superconductor designed entirely on a computer. On Oct. 10 Rebecca Todd et al. of the U. of British Columbia pub. an article in Psychological Science reporting that the ADRA2b gene variant can cause people to perceive emotional events more vividly than others, predisposing them to focus on the negative. On Oct. 14 Dale Greenwalt et al. of the U.S. Nat. Museum of Natural History pub. an article in Proceedings of the Nat. Academy of Sciences reporting the discovery of the first-ever fossil of a female mosquito containing traces of blood in its abdomen a la Jurassic Park. On Oct. 26 Spencer Smith et al. of UNC pub. an article in Nature reporting that dendrites in the brain actively process info., multiplying the brain's computing power - I'm Doctor Dendrite? On Oct. 28 Jerry Qi et al. of the U. of Colo. Boulder announce the incorporation of "shape memory" polymer fibers into the composite materials used in traditional 3-D printing to create a form of 4-D printing where an object fixed in one shape can later be changed to take on a new shape. On Nov. 4 Erik Petigura of UCB releases a study that finds that based on data from the Kepler space telescope, the Milky Way galaxy is home to 10B potentially habitable worlds. On Nov. 4 Adrian Kent et al. of Cambridge U. pub. an article in Physical Review Letters announcing the first transmission of info. in a quantum "sealed envelope" with perfect security. On Nov. 8 a team at the U. of Ala. performs the first virtual surgery using Google Glass, which they call Virtual Interactive Presence in Augmented Reality (VIPAAR). On Dec. 11 Nitin Tandon of UTHealth et al. pub. an article in Journal of Neuroscience illustrating a technique for enhancing the brain's inhibiting or braking system with electrical stimulation. On Dec. 13 P. Michael Conn of the Oregon Primate Research Center et al. announce the discovery of pharmacoperones, which fix misfolded proteins. On Dec. 17 researchers at Oregon U. pub. an article in Vaccine describing research proving that consuming moderate amounts of alcohol boosts the immune system. On Dec. 18 Keith Martin and Barbara Lorber of Cambridge U. pub. an article in Biofabrication announcing the first successful printing of cells taken from the eye using inkjet printing technology. On Dec. 18 researchers at pub. an article in PLOS ONE describing a way to transmit binary info. molecularly using alcohol molecules. On Dec. 22 researchers at the U. of Edinburgh pub. an article in Nature GeoScience claiming that a historical study of climate disproves the theory that the Sun has a major influence - except if it goes dead? In Dec. two small teams at MIT and Harvard U. led by Eric Lander disable all 20K genes growing in a Petri dish, one at a time; in 2007 it took an internat. $100M effort five years to disable all 20K genes in mouse DNA. In Dec. researchers at Cornell U. 3-D print the first working loudspeaker, complete with cone, coil, and magnet. Art: Martin Martensen-Larsen, The Unifier; the body of Tex. death row inmate Travis Runnels painted gold and posed a la Daniel Chester French's statue of Abraham Lincoln in the Lincoln Memorial. Music: David Bowie (1947-), The Next Day. Brandy Clark (1977-), 12 Stories (Oct. 22) (album) (debut) (#28 country) (#163 in the U.S.) (Slate Creek Records); features Vince Gill; incl. Stripes (co-written by Shane McAnally), Pray to Jesus, Hungover. Cults, Static (album #2) (Oct. 15); incl. I Can Hardly Make You Mine, High Road. Imagine Dragons, Live at Independent Records (Aug. 31) (live album); recorded Aug. 31, 2012 in Dirty Denver, Colo. Filter, The Sun Comes Out Tonight (album #6) (June 4) (original title Gurney and the Burning Books); incl. What Do You Say. Ariana Grande (1993-), The Way (Mar. 27) (debut); Yours Truly (Aug. 30) (album) (debut) (#1 in the U.S.); incl. The Way (#9 in the U.S.); "Baby I love the way,/ The way I love you." Ke$ha (1987-), Dancing with the Devil; causes rumors that she's an outed Satanist. Pearl Jam, Mind Your Manners. Macklemore (1983-) and Ryan Lewis (1988-), Thrift Shop (w/WANZ) (#1 in the U.S.); Can't Hold Us (w/Ray Dalton) (#1 in the U.S.). Tim McGraw (1967-), Two Lanes of Freedom (album #12) (Feb. 5) (#2 in the U.S.) (#1 country); first for Big Machine Records; incl. Highway Don't Care (w/Taylor Swift and Keith Urban) (#22 in the U.S.) (#4 country), One of Those Nights (#32 in the U.S.) (#3 country), and Southern Girl (#42 in the U.S.) (#4 country). On Apr. 21, 2006-Sept. 1, 2007 he and Faith Hill go on the Soul2Soul II Tour, which plays 74 shows in 56 cities and sells 1.1M tickets, grossing $89M, becoming the highest-grossing tour in country music history (until ?). He goes on to release 13 albums incl. 10 #1 albums, and 50+ singles incl. 25 #1s. John Newman (1990-), Tribute (album) (debut); Love Me Again (May 17) (#1 in the U.K.); featured in the 2014 film "Edge of Tomorrow". Manic Street Preachers, Rewind the Film (album #11) (Sept. 16); incl. Show Me the Wonder, Anthem for a Lost Cause. Thomas Rhett (1990-), It Goes Like This (album) (debut) (Valory Music Group) (#2 country) (#6 in the U.S.); incl. It Goes Like This (#2 country) (#25 in the U.S.), Get Me Some of That (by Cole Swindell) (#4 country) (#41 in the U.S.), Something to Do with My Hands (#15 country) (#93 in the U.S.), Beer with Jesus (#26 country) (#101 in the U.S.). Nathaniel Rateliff (1978-), Falling Faster Than You Can Run (album #3) (Sept. 17). Black Sabbath, 13 (album) (#1 in the U.S.); first full-length release with Ozzy Osbourne since 1978. Trombone Shorty (1986-), Say That to Say This (album #9); incl. Say That to Say This. Spinal Tap, This Is Spinal Tap (June 11); LP reissue with black cover and black inner sleeve in a gatefold package with original liner notes. Robin Thicke (1977-), Blurred Lines (album #6) (July 12) (#1 in the U.K.); incl. Blurred Lines (w/T.I. and Pharrell Williams) (#1 in the U.S.); "I know you want it/ You're a good girl/ Can't let it get past me/ You're far from plastic/ Talk about getting blasted/ I hate these blurred lines"; becomes subject of copyright infringement suit regarding Marvin Gaye's "Got to Give It Up" and Funkadelic's "Sexy Ways". Justin Timberlake (1981-), The 20/20 Experience (album #3) (Mar. 15) (#1 in the U.S., #1 in the U.K.); incl. Suit & Tie ("I be on my suit and tie, shit tie, shit tie"), Mirrors, Tunnel Vision. Keith Urban (1967-), Fuse (album #8) (Sept. 10) (#1 in the U.S.) (#1 country) (480K copies); incl. We Were Us (w/Miranda Lambert) (#26 in the U.S.) (#1 country). Movies: Steve McQueen's 12 Years a Slave (Aug. 30), based on the 1853 memoir by Solomon Northup, a N.Y.-born free negro who was kidnapped in Washington, D.C. in 1841 and sold into slavery stars Chiwetel Ejiofor as Northrup, Lupita Nyong'o as Patsey, Michael Fassbender as plantation owner Edwin Epps, Paul Dano as carpenter Tibeats, Brad Pitt as Canadian laborer Samuel Bass, and Benedict Cumberbatch as plantation owner William Ford; does $140M box office on a $20M budget. Carl Erik Rinsch's 47 Ronin (Dec. 6), based on a Japanese legend stars Keanu Reeves as Ka, Tadanobu Asano as Lord Kira, and Rink Kikucho as Lady Mizuki. Paul Weitz' Admission (Mar. 22) (Focus Features), based on the novel by Jean Hariff Korelitz stars Tina Fey as Princeton U. admissions officer Portia Nathan, who falls for former college classmate John Pressman (Paul Rudd), and tries to finagle her gifted son Jeremiah Balakian (Nat Wolff) into the univ.; does $18.6M box office on a $13M budget. M. Night Shyamalan's After Earth (May 31) (originally titled "1000 A.E.") stars Will Smith and his real son Jaden Smith as Gen. Cypher Raige and his young recruit Kitai Raige on Nova Prime 1K years after humanity chucks Earth for new digs. David O. Russell's American Hustle (Dec. 8) (Columbia Pictures), based on the ABSCAM sting stars Christian Bale and Amy Adams as con artists Irving Rosenfeld and Sydney Prosser, who are forced by FBI agent Richard "Richie DiMaso (Bradley Cooper) to infiltrate the N.J. mob; Jennifer Lawrence plays Irving's wife Rosalyn Rosenfeld; Jeremy Renner plays mayor Carmine Polito. John Wells' August: Osage County (Sept. 9) (The Weinstein Co.), based on the 2007 Tracy Letts play stars Meryl Streep and Julia Roberts as narcotics-addicted Beverly Weston in hot Pawawhuska, Okla., whose alcoholic ex-poet hubby Beverly Weston (Sam Shepard) skips out and drowns, causing her to call for support from her dysfunctional family incl. sister Mattie Fae (Margo Martindale) and her hubby Charles Aiken (Chris Cooper), daughters Ivy (Julliane Nicholson) and Barbara Weston-Forham (Julia Roberts) and her hubby Bill Fordham (Ewan McGregor) and 14-y.-o. daughter Jean Fordham (Abigail Breslin), and Karen Weston (Juliette Lewis), only to see them fight and leave too; does $74.2M box office on a $37M budget. Gabriela Cowperthwaite's Blackfish (Jan. 19) (Magnolia Pictures) follows the captivity of Tilikum the Orca, who killed trainer Dawn Brancheau in Feb. 2010, questioning the merit of captivity of er, killer whales, pissing-off SeaWorld San Diego et al., who claim it's a distorted picture. Carl Franklin's Bless Me, Ultima (Feb. 22), based on the 1972 novel by Rudolfo Anaya stars Luke Ganalon, Joseph A. Garcia, and Miriam Colon. Abdellatif Kechiche's Blue is the Warmest Color (May 23) stars Adele Exarchopoulos and Lea Seydoux as lezzie lovers Adele and Emma. Woody Allen's Blue Jasmine (July 26) (Sony Pictures) stars Cate Blanchett as rich fashionable Manhattan housewife Jeanette "Jasmine" Francis, whose money mgr. hubby Hal (Alec Baldwin) is busted for a Madoff Ponzi scheme after she turns him in, and commits suicide, causing her to become alcoholic and talk to herself, moving into her sister Ginger's (Sally Hawkins) working class apt. in San Francisco, Calif. along with her hubby Augie (Andrew Dice Clay), who are among the victims; does $97.5M box office on an $18M budget. Brian Percival's The Book Thief (Oct. 3) (20th Cent. Fox), based on the 2005 Markus Zusak novel about a young adopted girl in Nazi Germany sharing books with a Jewish refugee being sheltered by their parents stars Sophie Nelisse, Geoffrey Rush, and Wmily Watson as Liesel Meminger and her parents Hans and Rosa Hubermann, and Ben Schnetzer as Max Vanderburg; score by John Williams; does $76.6M box office on a $19M budget. Lee Daniels' The Butler (Aug. 16), written by Danny Strong based on the life of Eugene Allen stars Forest Whitaker as White House butler Cecil Gaines, Oprah Winfrey as Gloria Gaines, Cuba Gooding Jr. as Carter Wilson, and Terence Howard as Howard; last film produced by Laura Ziskin. Paul Greengrass' Captain Phillips (Oct. 11) stars Tom Hanks as Richard Phillips, capt. of Maersk Alabama, which was hijacked by Somali pirates in 2009. James Ward Byrkit's Coherence (Sept. 19) (Byrkit's dir. debut) stars Emily Baldoni as Emily, who sights a comet and goes through several bizarre experiences at a Calif. dinner party that are caused by a parallel Universe. James Wan's The Conjuring (July 19) stars Patrick Wilson and Vera Farmiga as paranormal investigators Ed and Lorraine Warren, who help the Perron family (Ron Livingston and Lili Taylor) with their haunted farmhouse in 1971 Harrisville, R.I. Kirk DeMicco's and Chris Sanders" The Croods (Feb. 15) (20th Cent. Fox), set in the Croodaceous Era stars the voices of Nicolas Cage and Emma Stone; does $587M box office on a $135M budget. Jean-Marc Vallee's Dallas Buyers Club (Nov. 1) is based on the true story of AIDS patient Ron Woodroof (Matthew McConaughey), who smuggles unapproved drugs into Texas and distributes them to fellow patients; does $30M box office on a $5M budget. Alexander Payne's The Descendants (Sept. 10), based on the novel by Kaui Hart Hemmings stars George Clooney as Hawaiian atty. Matt King, Shailene Woodley as his daughter Alex, and Beau Bridges as his cousin Hugh. Joseph Gordon-Levitt's Don Jon (Jan. 18) (Voltage Pictures) (HitRecord Films) (Relativity Media) (Gordon-Levitt's dir. debut) is a romantic dramedy starring Gordon-Levitt as Italian-Am. Jon Martello, a Don Juan living in N.J., who has a bad habit of masturbating to porno, and hooks up with Barbara Sugarman (Scarlett Johansson), wh tries to cure him, failing and preparing for the next girl Esther (Julianna Moore); does $41.3M box office on a $5.5M budget. Neill Blomkamp's Elysium (Aug. 9) stars Matt Damon and Jodie Foster as downtrodden worker Max Da Costa and Defense Secy. Delcaourt in 2145, when overpopulated Earth is a mess and the rich live on a luxurious space station that is plagued with illegal immigrants; Sharlto Copley plays sleeper agent Kruger; does $286M box office on a $115M budget. Gavin Hood's Ender's Game (Oct. 24), based on the 1985 Orson Scott novel stars Asa Butterfield as Ender Wiggin, Harrison Ford as Col. Graff, Hailee Steinfeld as Petra Arkanian, Abigail Breslin as Valentine Wiggin, and Ben Kingsley as Mazer Rackham. Fede Alvarez's Evil Dead (Mar. 8) (GhostHouse Pictures) (FilmDistrict) (TriStar Pictures), produced by Bruce Campbell, Sam Raimi, and Robert Tapert (#4 in the Evil Dead franchise) stars Jane Levy, Shiloh Fernandez, Lou Taylor Pucci, Jessi Lucas, and Elizabeth Blackmore in a super-gory superntural horror flick about five friends in a cabin in the woods who are possessed in turn by the Abomination after summoning him via the Naturom Demonto, which carries the warning: "Leave this book alone"; Alvarez's dir. debut; does $97.5M box office on a $17M budget; watch trailer. Luc Besson's The Family (Sept. 10) (TF1 Films Production) is a black comedy starring Robert De Niro as Mafia boss Giovanni Manzoni, who is on the run with his family under U.S. govt. protection and settles in Normandy, soon disrupting the whole town before having to move on; does $78.4M box office on a $30M budget. Bill Condon's The Fifth Estate (Sept. 5) stars Benedict Cumberbatch as WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange. Walt Disney's Frozen (original title "Anna and the Snow Queen") (Nov. 19), based on Hans Christian Andersen's "The Snow Queen" features Kristen Bell as the voice of Princess Anna of Arendelle, and Idina Menzel as the voice of Elsa the Snow Queen, her older sister; does $1.28B box office on a $150M budget; features the song Let It Go; followed by "Frozen II" (2019). Ruben Fleischer's Gangster Squad (Jan. 11) (Warner Bros.), based on Paul Lieberman's "Tales from the Gangster Squad, about the 1940s LAPD unit fighting gangster Mickey Cohen stars Josh Brolin as Sgt. John O'Mara, Ryan Gosling as Sgt. Jerry Wooters, and Sean Penn as Mickey Cohen; does $105M box office on a $75M budget. Amin Dora's Ghadi (Oct.) stars Emmanuel Khairallah as a Lebanese boy with Down Syndrome whose father Leba (Georges Khabbaz) invents a story that he's an angel. Alfonso Cuaron's Gravity (Heyday Films) (Esperanto Filmoj) (Warner Bros.) (Aug. 28) stars George Clooney and Sandra Bullock as NASA astronauts Matt Kowalski and Ryan Stone, who are stranded on the damaged Space Shuttle mission STS-157 at 372 mi. alt., and must engage in hair-raising space acrobatics to make it to the ISS and the Chinese Tiangong space station to make it back to Earth; does $723.2M box office on a $100M budget; "Don't let go." Baz Luhrmann's The Great Gatsby (May 10) (3-D), based loosely on the 1925 F. Scott Fitzgerald novel stars Leonardo DiCaprio as Jay Gatsby, Tobey Maguire as Nick Carraway, Carey Mulligan as Daisy Buchanan, and Joel Edgerton as Tom Buchanan; does $351M box office on a $105M budget. Eli Roth's horror film The Green Inferno (Sept. 8) (Worldview Enertainment) (Open Road Films) (Universal Pictures) is about a group of activists who travel to the Amazon rainforest to stop logging and crash-land, ending up being captured by a tribe of cannibals; does $7.2M U.S. and $12.9M worldwide box office on a $5M budget; "They will eat you alive." The Heat (June 23) (20th Cent. Fox)stars Sandra Bullock as unlikeable FBI agent Sarah Ashburn, who is sent to Boston, Mass. and hooks up with tough loudmouthed cop Shannion Mullins to take down a mobster; does $228.9M box office on a $43M budget. Spike Jonze's Her (Oct. 13) stars Joaquin Phoenix as lonely introverted Theodore Twombly, who is about to divorce Catherine (Rooney Mara), and decides to purchase a talking AI OS with a female identity he calls Samantha (Scarlett Johansson), falling in love with her until she decides she's too good for him; does $31M box office on a $23M budget. Alexandre Aja's Horns (Sept. 6), bsed on the Joe Hill novel stars Daniel Radcliffe as Ignatius "Ig" Perrish, who is accused of raping and murdering his girlfriend, and develops paranormal abilities to find the real killer; does $3.9M box office. Malcolm Mcdonald's JFK: The Smoking Gun (Nov. 3) (Reelz), based on work by veteran Australian police detective Colin McLaren claims that the 3rd shot was accidentally fired by Secret Service agent George Hickey from the limo behind JFK's. Yotam Feldman's The Lab exposes the Israeli military-industrial complex. Jason Reitman's Labor Day (Aug. 29) (Paramount Pictures), based on the 2009 Joyce Maynard novel stars Kate Winslet as depressed single mom Adele Wheeler, who harbors escaped con Frank Chambers (Josh Brolin), who is captured after they fall in love; does $20.2M box office on an $18M budget. Ruairi Robinson's The Last Days on Mars (Dec. 6) (British Film Inst.), based on the short story "The Animators" by Sydney J. Bounds and shot in Jorden and Elstree Studios stars Liev Schreiber, Elias Koteas, Romola Garai, Johnny Harris et al. as crew members of Martian research base Tantalus, who are 19 hours away from the arrival of their rescue spacecraft Aurora when crewmate Marko Petrovic (Goran Kostic) discovers a life form that turns them into zombies; does $24M box office on a $10.6M budget. Kim Jee-woon's The Last Stand (Jan. 18) (Lionsgate) stars Arnold Schwarzenegger in his first acting role since "Terminator 3" in 2003 as small town Sommerton Junction, Ariz. sheriff Ray Owens, who lost his job on the LAPD after bungling an operation and getting his team decimated, taking on racing car driver drug lord Gabriel Cortez (Eduardo Noriega) and his souped-up Chevy Corvette C6 ZR1; does $48.8M box office on a $45M budget - the has-been star really knows how to pick movie titles? Gore Verbinski's The Lone Ranger (June 22) (Walt Disney Pictures) stars Armie Hammer as Tex. Ranger John Reid AKA the Lone Ranger, and Johnny Depp as Tonto in a PC version twisted against the palefaces; does $260.5M box office on a $250M budget, making it a big flop after spending $150M on marketing. Andy Muschietti's Mama (Jan. 18) (Universal Pictures) stars Megan Charpentier and Isabelle Nelisse as two young sisters Victoria and Lilly Desange abandoned in a forest cabin by insane stockbroker Jeffrey Desange (Nikolaj Coster-Waldau) that is haunted by cherry-dispensing Mama (Javier Botet), who becomes their caretaker and follows them to their new suburban home where foster parents Annabel and Luke Desange (twin brother of Jeffrey) (Jessica Chastain and Nikolaj Coster-Waldau) are waiting, discovering they've gone feral; Muschietti's dir. debut; does $146.4M box office on a $15M budget. Zack Snyder's 3-D Man of Steel (June 12) (Warner Bros.) stars English actor Henry Cavill as Superman, Amy Adams as Lois Lane, Michael Shannan as Gen. Zod, Laurence Fishburn as Perry White (first African-Am. in the role), Kevin Costner and Diane Lane as Jonathan and Martha Kent, and Russell Crowe as Jor-El; does $668M box office on a $225M budget. Dan Scanlon's computer-animated comedy Monsters University (June 5) (Walt Disney Studios) (Pixar Animation Studios) is voiced by an all-star cast, featuring Billy Crystal voicing Mike Wazowski, who enrolls in the Scaring program at Monsters U. in Monstropolis, John Goodman voicing James P. "Sulley" Sullivan, and Steve Buscemi voicing Randall "Randy" Boggs; does $743.6M box office on a $200M budget. Peter Farrelly's Movie 43 (Jan. 25) is a black comedy with 14 different story lines that is a box-office dud; "The Citizen Kane of awful" (Chicago Sun-Times). Joseph Kosinski's Oblivion (Apr. 10), set in 2077 stars Tom Cruise as Tech 49 Jack Harper, one of the last drone repairmen on Earth 60 years after the Scavengers (Scavs) invaded and destroyed the Moon, almost taking over the Earth until nukes defeated them, leaving the planet unlivable, causing the remnant to flee to Titan; too bad, he comes to realize that he's working for the wrong side; grosses $258.8M on a $120M budget. Mike Flanagan's Oculus (Sept. 8) (Blumhouse Productions) (Relativity Media) stars Karen Gillan and Brenton Thwaits as adult siblings Kaylie and Tim Russell, who try to destroy an antique mirror harboring a malevolent entity that killed their parents along with 40+ others in four cents.; does $44M box office on a $5M budget. Antoine Fuqua's Olympus Has Fallen (Mar. 18) (Millennium Films) (Nu Image) (FilmDistrict) is an action thriller starring Gerard Butler as Secret Service agent Mike Banning, who helps rescue Pres. Benjamin Asher (Aaron Eckhart) from terrorists holding him in the White House; Morgan Freeman plays Speaker Allan Trumbull; Angela Bassett plays Secret Service head Lynne Jacobs; does $170.2M box office on a $70M budget. Jim Jarmusch's Only Lovers Left Alive (May 25) (Recorded Picture Co.) (Pandora Film) (Soda Pictures) stars Tilda Swinton and Tom Hiddleston (after Michael Fassbender drops out) as rock and roll-loving ancient vampires and lovers Eve and Adam, and John Hurt as Christopher Marlowe, who faked his 1693 death and claims to have written most of Shakespeare's plays; features music by Dutch lute player Jozef van Wissem; does $7.6M box office on a $7M budget; Sam Raimi's Oz the Great and Powerful (Feb. 14) (Walt Disney Pictures), a prequel to the 1939 film "The Wizard of Oz" set 20 years earlier stars James Franco as the Wizard of Oz, Oscar Zoroaster Phadrig Isaac Henkle Emmannuel Ambroise Diggs, Michelle Williams as Glinda the Good Witch of the South, Mila Kunas as Theodora the Wicked Witch of the West, and Rachel Weisz as Evanora the Wicked Witch of the East; does $493.3M box office on a $215M budget. Guillerrmo del Toro's Pacific Rim (July 1) (Warner Bros.) is a sci-fi monster film set in the future, when the gigantic Kaiju monsters begin emerging from the Breach, an interdimensional portal on the bottom of the Pacific Ocean and terrorize the coasts, causing humanity to fight back with Jaegers, gigantic humanoid mechas with "drift compatible" dual pilots joined mentally by a neural bridge; stars Charlie Hunnam as Jaeger pilot Raleigh Becket, Rinko Kikuchi as Jaeger pilot Mako Mori, and Idris Elba as commanding officer Stacker Pentecost; does $101.8M U.S. and $411M worldwide box office on a $190M budget; followed by "Pacific Rim: Uprising" (2018). James DeMonaco's The Purge (May 2) (Blumhouse Produtions) (Why Not Productions) (Universal Pictures) is set in 2022 U.S., which achieves a low crime rate and 1% unemployment by sponsoring the annual 12-hour Purge starting on June 7 evening, where all criminal laws are suspended by the New Founding Fathers of America, making the homeless into fair game; too bad, a stranger (Edwin Hodge) begs to be let into the fortified house of James Sandin (Ethan Hawke), and they wing it from there; does $89.3M box office on a $3M budget, becoming the lowest-budget film to hit the top of the box office charts in 25 years; spawns sequels incl. "The Purge: Anarchy" (2014), "The Purge: Election Year" (2016), and "The Purge: The First Purge" (2018); Ron Howard's Rush (Sept. 20), about the 1976 Formula One season stars Brad Pitt clone Chris Hemsworth as James Hunt, and Daniel Bruhl as Niki Lauda. John Lee Hancock's Saving Mr. Banks (Oct. 20) stars Emma Thompson as "Mary Poppins" author P.L. Travers, and Tom Hanks as Walt Disney, who talks her into selling the film rights. Steven Soderbergh's Side Effects (original title: "The Bitter Pill") (Feb. 8) (Open Road Films) stars Jude Law as pshrink Jonathan Banks, who treats mental patient Emily Taylor (Rooney Mara) with the experimental drug Ablixa, after which she kills her insider-trading convict hubby Matin Taylor (Channing Tatum), later discovering that she has a lesbian thang going with her previous pshrink Victoria Siebert (Catherine Zeta-Jones), along with a plot to use the scandal to make a killing on the stock market; does $66.7M box office on a $30M budget. Bong Joon-ho's Snowpiercer (Stillking Films) (CJ Entertainment) (July 20), based on the 1982 French graphic novel "Le Transperceneige" by Jacques Lob, Benjamin Legrand, and Jean-Marc Rochette about a future world where botched climate engineering causes an ice age, causing the remnant of humanity to live on a massive perpetual motion-powered train that travels on a circumnavigational track, where the elite live in the opulent front cars and the scum live in the back cars under the brutal bootheel of Minister Mason (Tilda Swinton), causing a revolution led by Curtis Everett (Chris Evans) and Gilliam (John Hurt); Ed Harris plays engine creator Minister Wilford; does $86.8M box office on a $40M budget. J.J. Abrams' 3-D Star Trek Into Darkness (May 16) has the same cast as the 2009 film, with Benedict Cumberbatch playing Cmdr. John Harrison, who turns out to be Khan Noonien Singh, who woke up after 300 years in cryosleep. Evan Goldberg's and Seth Rogen's This Is the End (June 12) stars James Franco and Jonah Hill in a comedy about a group of bachelors in LA who are awaiting the apocalypse. Mikael Hafstrom's The Tomb (Oct. 18) stars Sylvester Stallone as structural engineer Ray Breslin, who is wrongly convicted and sent to a maximum security prison he designed, allowing him to plot his escape with cellmate Emil Rottmayer (Arnold Schwarzenegger); Jim Caviezel plays evil warden Hobbs. Jonathan Levine's Warm Bodies (Jan. 16), a paranormal romantic zombie comedy loosely based on Shakespeare's "Romeo and Juliet" by Isaac Marion stars Teresa Palmer as Julie Grigio, and Nicholas Hoult as her zombie lover R; Rob Corddry plays R's friend Marcus AKA M, and John Malkovich plays Col. Grigio; "He's still dead but he's getting warmer"; does $117M box office on a $35M budget. Martin Scorsese's The Wolf of Wall Street (Dec. 17) (Paramount Pictures), based on the 2007 memoir by stock broker Jordan Belfort stars Leonardo DiCaprio as Belfort, Jonah Hill as his buddy Donnie Azoff (modeled after Danny Porush), Margot Robbe as his babe Naomi Lapaglia, Matthew McConaughey as Mark Hanna, and Kyle Chandler as FBI agent Patrick Denham; first Hollywood film released entirely through digital distribution; most uses of the word "fuck" in a mainstream non-dcumentary film (506+x) ; does $392M box office on a $155M budget; financed by Red Granite Pictues, run by DiCaprio's drinking buddy Riza Aziz, stepson of the PM of Malaysia, who is later accused of using funds embezzled from the Malaysian sovereign wealth fund 1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB). Edgar Wright's The World's End (July 10) stars Simon Pegg, Nick Frost, Paddy Considine, Martin Freeman, and Eddie Marsan in a sci-fi comedy film about a group of friends who discover an alien invasion during a pub crawl. Nonfiction: Akbar Ahmed, The Thistle and the Drone: How America's War on Terror Became a Global War on Tribal Islam. Bill Ardolino, Fallujah Awakens: Marines, Sheikhs and the Battle Against al-Qaeda. Rick Atkinson (1952-), The Guns at Last Light: The War in Western Europe, 1944-1945; Liberation Trilogy #3. Andrew J. Bacevich (1947-), Breach of Trust: How Americans Failed Their Soldiers and Their Country; disses the neverending U.S. military mobilization. Sami Benjamin (Samir Amin Abdellatif), The Unknown History of Islam: A Theological, Linguistic, Historical, and Sociological Study (Apr. 20). James C. Bennett and Michael J. Lotus, America 3.0: Rebooting American Prosperity in the 21st Century - Why America's Greatest Days Are Yet to Come. A. Scott Berg (1949-), Wilson (Sept. 10) (NYT bestsller); bio. of Pres. Woodrow Wilson. Daniel Bergner, What Do Women Want? Adventures in the Science of Female Desire. Edward J. Blum and Paul Harvey, The Color of Christ: The Son of God and the Saga of Race in America. Max Blumenthal (1977-), Goliath: Life and Loathing in Greater Israel; pisses-off the Simon Wiesenthal Center, which accuses it of anti-Semitic and anti-Israel slurs, pointing to the chapter titles that "equate Israel with the Nazi regime" and quote "approvingly characterizations of Israeli soldiers as 'Judeo-Nazis'." Alexander Bolonkin, What to Do Now for Your Immortality or a Resurrection in the Future (Dec.); electronic immortality. Tara Brach (1953-), True Refuge: Finding Peace and Freedom in Your Own Awakened Heart (Jan. 22). Mathias Broeckers (1954-), JFK: Coup d'Etat in America. David Jay Brown, Mavericks of the Mind Live! Roundtable Discussions with Timothy Leary, John Lilly, Laura Huxley, Robert Anton Wilson, Nick Herbert, Carolyn Mary Kleefeld, Ralph Abraham, and Others (Feb. 9); The New Science of Psychedelics: At the Nexus of Culture, Consciousness, and Spirituality (May 5); too bad, on Nov. 19, 2012 rogue Wikipedia editor Qworty (Robert Clark Young) deletes his Wikipedia page. James MacGregor Burns (1918-2014), Fire and Light: How the Enlightenment Transformed Our World (Oct. 29) (last book). Ethan Casey, Home Free: An American Road Trip. Ben Caspit, Evasive: Ehud Barak, the Real Story; calls him "a dangerous man"; "Barak is a person who is convinced that he is what is good for the State of Israel. He suffers from megalomania, which is sad, because he had all the necessary skills to become a leader." David Caute (1936-), Isaac and Isaiah: The Covert Punishment of a Cold War Heretic; Isaac Deutscher and Isaiah Berlin. Jocelyne Cesari, Why the West Fears Islam: Exploration of Islam in Western Liberal Democracies (June); claims that Muslims are no threat to the West, and it's just a Western hangup that can be cured by integrating Muslims better like blacks. Phyllis Chesler (1931-), An American Bride in Kabul (autobio.) (Oct. 1). Nicholas David Christian (1946-) Cynthia Brown, and Craig Benjamin, Big History: Between Nothing and Everything (Aug. 9) backed with $10M by Bill Gates to put in public schools in the U.S. and Australia. Michael S. Coffman and Kate Mathieson, Radical Islam At the Door In the House: The Plan to Take America for the Global Islamic State. Tod Cooppee, Light Bulb Baking: A History of the Easy-Bake Oven. John Darwin (1948-), Unfinished Empire: The Global Expansion of Britain (Feb. 12). Eran Elhaik, The Missing Link of Jewish European Ancestry: Contrasting the Rhineland and the Khazarian Hypothesis (Dec.). pub. in Genome Biology and Evolution; claims that Ashkenazi Jews originate in the Caucasus not the Middle East, with any genetic marker in Jews coming from Iran not Judea. Sandra Espinet (1964-), The Well-Traveled Home (first book) (Aug. 1). Paul Farmer (1959-2022), Reimagining Global Health. Niall Ferguson (1964-), The Great Degeneration; How Institutions Decay and Economies Die. David Finkel, Thank You for Your Service; sequel to "The Good Soldiers" (2009), about the 2-16 Infantry Battalion in Baghdad, Iraq in 2007-8 and their struggles to readjust to civilian life; filmed in 2017. Daniel J. Flynn, The War on Football: Saving America's Game. Allen Frances, Saving Normal: An Insider's Revolt Against Out-of-Control Psychiatric Diagnosis, DSM-5, Big Pharma, and the Medicalization of Ordinary Life (May 14). Oded Galor (1956-) and Quamrul H. Ashraf, Genetic Diversity and the Origins of Cultural Fragmentation (May); The Out of Africa Hypothesis: Human Genetic Diversity and Comparative Development. Kim Ghattas (1977-), The Secretary: A Journey with Hillary Clinton from Beirut to the Heart of American Power (Mar. 5). George F. Gilder (1939-), Knowledge and Power: The Information Theory of Capitalism and How It is Revolutionizing Our World (June 10); attempts to reformulate economics in terms of info. theory. Ben Goldacre, Bad Pharma: How Drug Companies Mislead Doctors and Harm Patients (Feb. 5). Doris Kearns Goodwin (1943-), The Bully Pulpit: Theodore Roosevelt, William Howard Taft, and the Golden Age of Journalism (Nov. 3); about the birth of muckraking journalism; causes the New York Times to call her "America's historian-in-chief". Billy Graham (1919-), The Reason for My Hope: Salvation (Nov.). Temple Grandin (1947-), The Autistic Brain: Thinking Across the Spectrum (Apr. 30); "Ignorance has become part of a society's belief system." Gary Greenberg, The Book of Woe: The DSM and the Unmaking of Psychiatry (May 2); the long tortuous road to DSM-5; "In my practice, it has virtually no clinical value. Its primary value is its ability to help patients use their insurance to pay for therapy." John Guandolo (1966-), Raising a Jihadi Generation: Understanding the Muslim Brotherhood Movement in America (Sept. 10). Sam Harris (1967-), Waking Up: Science, Skepticism, and Spirituality. Murray Holland, A Nation in the Red: The Government Debt Crisis and What We Can Do About It. David Albert Hollinger (1941-), After Cloven Tongues of Fire: Protestant Liberalism and Modern American History; examines how liberal Protestantism grew in the U.S. while yielding their symbolic capital to the conservative evangelicals. Raymond Ibrahim (1973-), Crucified Again: Exposing Islam's New War on Christians. Neil Irwin, The Alchemists: Three Central Bankers and a World on Fire. Henry Jackson Society, Al-Qaeda in the United States: A Complete Analysis of Terrorism Offenses (Feb. 25). Ian Johnson, A Mosque in Munich. Brian Jay Jones, Jim Henson: The Biography; NYT bestseller. Walter Johnson Jr. (1966-), River of Dark Dreams: Slavery and Empire in the Cotton Kingdom. Gary Kamiya, Cool Gray City of Love: 49 Views of San Francisco. Eric Kandel (1929-), The Age of Insight: The Quest to Understand the Unconscious in Art, Mind, and Brain, from Vienna 1900 to the Present. Rashid Khalidi (1948-), Brokers of Deceit: How the U.S. Has Undermined Peace in the Middle East; lets it all out. William Kilpatrick, Christianity, Islam, and Atheism: The Struggle for the Soul of the West; calls on Christians to take the fight to the Muslims by evangelizing them. Michael Muhammad Knight, Tripping with Allah: Islam, Drugs, and Writing. Ray Kurzweil (1948-), How to Create a Mind: The Secret of Human Thought Revealed; claims that the human mind works like a computer, complete with algorithms and data. Brian Latell, Castro's Secrets: Cuban Intelligence, the CIA, and the Assassination of John F. Kennedy (July 9); claims that Lee Harvey Oswald had close ties Cuba, which the CIA covered-up. Flynt Leverett and Hillary Mann Leverett, Going to Tehran: Why the United States Must Come to Terms with the Islamic Republic of Iran. Mark Levin (1957-), The Liberty Amendments: Restoring the American Republic (Aug. 13) (NYT #1 bestseller); proposes 11 new U.S. Constitutional amendments incl. SCOTUS justice term limits, a federal balanced budget, photo IDs requirements for voting. Wendy Lower, Hitler's Furies: German Women in the Nazi Killing Fields (Oct. 10). John Lukacs (1924-), A Short History of the Twentieth Century. Margaret Macmillan (1943-), The War That Ended Peace: The Road to 1914 (Oct. 29); WWI can happen again? Daniel Markey, No Exit from Pakistan: America's Tortured Relationship with Islamabad; U.S.-Pakistan ties a condition to be managed, not a problem to be solved? Ryan Mauro, Raising a Jihadi Generation: Understanding the Muslim Brotherhood Movement in America; "Part of the problem in getting Americans to see the imminent threat... they, like the U.S. security services, are completely focused on the kinetic stuff – bombings, shootings, etc. We need to worry about these, but it isn't how they intend to defeat us." Barr McClellan, The Verdict: Justice for John Kennedy, Justice for America (Nov. 5). David McRaney, You Are Now Less Dumb. Morrissey (1959-), Autobiography (Oct. 17). Douglas Murray, Islamophilia: A Very Metropolitan Malady. Greg Muttitt, Fuel on Fire: Oil and Politics in Occupied Iraq. Graham Nash (1942-), Entitled Wild Tales: A Rock & Roll Life (autobio.). Vali Reza Nasr (1960-), The Dispensable Nation: American Foreign Policy in Retreat; disses Pres. Obama in favor of Hillary Clinton and Richard Holbrooke. Ara Norenzayan, Big Gods: How Religion Transformed Cooperation and Conflict; belief in judgmental "big gods" was the key to building a large complex Egyptian society? Christiane Northrup, Beautiful Girl. John Julius Norwich (1929-) (ed.), Darling Monster: The Letters of Lady Diana Cooper to Her Son John Julius Norwich. Laurent Obertone, France Clockwork Orange; the "veritable cultural revolution" France is undergoing as a result of mass immigration, esp. Muslim, with crime worse than in the Apaches era of 1900. Peter Oborne and David Morrison, A Dangerous Delusion; challenges U.S. claims about Iran's push to get nukes. Bill O'Reilly, Killing Jesus. Sam Parnia, Erasing Death: The Science That is Rewriting the Boundaries Between Life and Death. John Parker and Richard Reid (eds.), The Oxford Handbook of Modern African History. Andrea Pitzer, The Secret History of Vladimir Nabokov. David Perlmutter, Grain Brain: The Surprising Truth About Wheat, Carbs, and Sugar - Your Brain's Silent Killers; disses gluten in the diet. Alan Power, The Princess Diana Conspiracy (Aug. 29); claims that she was assassinated by the Increment, a top-secret unit of British MI6 to keep her from talking about Prince Charles' sex life. Karl H. Pribram (1919-), The Form Within. Adrian Raine, The Anatomy of Violence: The Biological Roots of Crime (Apr. 30). Barbara Res, All Alone on the 68th Floor: How One Woman Changed the Face of Construction (July 10); first woman to oversee construction of an Am. skyscraper, the Trump Tower in NYC. Joel Richardson, The Islamic Antichrist; it won't be Rome? Linda Ronstadt (1946-), Simple Dreams: A Musical Memoir (autobio.); "I don't care" (response to Rock Hall of Fame induction). Howard Rotberg, TOLERism: The Ideology Revealed (Dec. 16); t he new age of tolerance without limits, except for certain marked people incl. racists, Islamophobes, and Zionists. SQuire Rushnell, Divine Alignment: How Godwink Moments Guide Your Journey (Mar. 12); claims that each person is born with a built in GPS, God's Positioning System. Sally Satel and Scott O. Lilienfeld, Brainwashed: The Seductive Appeal of Mindless Neuroscience (June 4); the abuse of fMRI. Mark Shaw, The Poison Patriarch: How the Betrayals of Joseph P. Kennedy Caused the Assassination of JFK; blames JFK's assassination on the Sicilian Mafia seeking payback, pointing to the fact that Mafia-connected Melvin Belli was chosen as Jack Ruby's defense atty. Peter Schweizer (1964-), Extortion: How Politicians Extract Your Money, Buy Votes, and Line Their Own Pockets (Oct. 22); "Washington is no longer about lawmaking, it s about moneymaking. Conventional wisdom holds that Washington is broken because outside special interests bribe politicians. The reverse is true: politicians have developed a new set of brass-knuckle legislative tactics designed to extort wealthy industries and donors into forking over big donations cash that lawmakers often funnel into the pockets of their friends and family." Walid Shoebat, The Case for Islamophobia (Mar. 15). Robert O. Smith, More Desired than Our Owne Salvation: The Roots of Christian Zionism. Lee Smolin, The Reborn (Apr.); claims that time is real rather than an illusion, and that the Universe might have been born inside a black hole. Thomas Sowell (1930-), Intellectuals and Race. Denise A. Spellberg (1958-), Thomas Jefferson's Qu'ran: The Founders and Islam (Oct. 1); Am. leftist Islamophile tries to frame Jefferson on being pro-Islam, even claiming the Quran as the source of the DOI, gag. Robert Spencer, Not Peace But A Sword: The Great Chasm Between Christianity and Islam. Daniel Stahl, Nazi Hunt: South America's Dictatorships and the Avenging of Nazi Crimes (Jan.); the half-hearted efforts of the "coalition of the unwilling" of postwar govts. to track down Nazi war criminals. Bob Stanley, Saint Etienne, Yeah Yeah Yeah: The Story of Modern Pop. Erik Stakelbeck, The Brotherhood: America's Next Great Enemy. Roger Stone (1952-), The Man Who Killed Kennedy: The Case Against LBJ (Nov. 4); reveals new info. incl. LBJ's alleged complicity in 6+ other murders incl. his own openly bisexual sister Josefa Johnson, and an alleged personal remark by Richard Nixon in 1989 that "Both Johnson and I wanted to be president, but the only difference was that I wouldn't kill for it", adding when pressed that it was "Texas" that killed Kennedy. Viktor Suvorov, The Chief Culprit: Stalin's Grand Design to Start World War II (Mar. 15); Stalin deliberately prepared for WWII to bring a Commie Paradise to Europe, helping Germany rearm so they would chew up France and Britain and soften them up for Commie takeover?; Red agitprop made the Red Army appear weak and outdated, when it was in fact the best equipped in the world?; the surprise German attack on Stalin was initially successful because Stalin was preparing for a surprise attack on them, and there were only offensive troops, with no defensive preparations? Meredith Tax, Double Blind: The Muslim Right, the Anglo-American Left, and Universal Human Rights; British leftist disses fellow leftists for aligning themselves with Islamists. Alan Shaw Taylor (1955-), The Internal Enemy: Slavery and War in Virginia, 1772-1832 (Pulitzer Prize). Elizabeth F. Thompson, Justice Interrupted: The Struggle for Constitutional Government in the Middle East. Ben Urwand, The Collaboration: Hollywood's Pactwith Hitler (Sept. 9). Jesse Ventura (1951-), Dick Russell, and David Wayne, They Killed Our President: 63 Reasons to Believe There Was a Conspiracy to Assassinate JFK (Oct. 1). Frans de Waal, The Bonobo and the Atheist: In Search of Humanism Among the Primates; claims that human morality is a product of evolution not religion. Eric Walberg, From Postmodernism to Postsecularism: Re-Emerging Islamic Civilization. Ibn Warraq (1946-), Sir Walter Scott's Crusades and Other Fantasies; incl. "George Eliot, Daniel Deronda, and Zionism: Some Observations". D.C. Watson, Through These Views: A View from Inside the Political Jihad Arena. Carrie Rosefsky Wickham, The Muslim Brotherhood: Evolution of an Islamist Movement. Brian Glyn Williams, Predators: The CIA's Drone War on al Qaeda (July); The Last Warlord: The Life and Legend of Dostum, the Afghan Warrior Who Led US Special Forces to Topple the Taliban Regime (Sept.). Lawrence Wright (1947-), Going Clear: Scientology, Hollywood, and the Prison of Belief (Jan. 17); expose of Scientology as a mind control cult; filmed in 2015. Malala Yousafzai (1997-) and Christina Lamb, I Am Malala: The Girl Who Stood Up for Education and Was Shot by the Taliban (autobio.) (Oct. 8). Plays: Douglas McGrath (1958-), Beautiful: The Carole King Musical (jukebox musical) (Curran Theatre, San Francisco) (Oct. 8) (Stephen Sondheim Theatre, New York) (Jan. 12, 2014) (Aldwych Theatre, West End, London) (Feb. 10, 2015); tells the life story of singer Carole King; the Broadway production stars Jessie Muller as King, Jake Epstein as Gerry Goffin, Anika Larsen as Cynthia Weil, and Jarrod Spector as Barry Man; the West End production stars Katie Brayben/Cassidy Janson as King, Alan Morrissey as Gerry Goffin, Lorna Want as Cynthia Weil, and Ian McIntosh as Barry Mann. Marc Shaiman (1959-), Scott Wittman (1954-), and David Greig (1969-), Charlie and the Chocolate Factory (musical) (Theatre Royal, Drury Lane, West End, London) (June 25) (1,293 perf.) (Lunt-Fontanne Theatre, New York) (Apr. 23, 2017); the West End production stars Douglas Hodge/Alex Jennings as Willy Wonka; based on the 1964 Roald Dahl novel. Berry Gordy (1929-), Motown: The Musical (musical) (Lunt-Fontanne Theatre, New York (Apr. 14) (738 perf.) (Shaftesbury Theatre, West End, London) (Feb. 11, 2016); based on Gordy's 1994 autobio. "To Be Loved: The Music, the Magic, the Memories of Motown"; features 66 songs; "The beat of a generation. The soul of a nation." Poetry: J.R.R. Tolkien (1892-1973), The Fall of Arthur (posth.); his take on the King Arthur legend. Novels: Margaret Atwood (1969-), MaddAddam (Aug.); sequel to "The Year of the Flood" (2009). Noah Beck, The Last Israelis; Israeli-Iranian nuclear holocaust. Dan Brown (1964-), Inferno; middle age Langdon solves a mystery about Dante. James S.A. Corey, Abaddon's Gate. Michelle Cohen Corasanti, The Almond Tree; Palestinian boy genius Ichmad takes on the evil Israelis. John Daniels, The Coming: A True Story of Horror; Marie Darrieussecq (1969-), It Takes a Lot to Love Men (Il faut beaucoup aimer les hommes) (Prix Medicis). Philippa Gregory (1954-), The White Princess (Aug. 1); about Elizabeth of York, daughter of Edward IV and Elizabeth Woodville, wife of Henry VII and mother of Henry VIII; turned into a TV series in 2016 by Starz. Mohsin Hamid, How to Get Filthy Rich in Rising Asia. Elijah Jones, Storm Front; a Lutheran prof. from Minn. digs up a stele in Israel that concerns King Solomon, and steals it. Stephen King (1947-), Joyland (June 4); Doctor Sleep: A Novel (Sept.); sequel to "The Shining" (1967). Kevin Kwan (1973-), Crazy Rich Asians; internat. bestseller about rich people in Singapore flocking to a wedding; filmed in 2018; followed by "China Rich Girlfriend" (2015), "Rich People Problems" (2017). David Mamet (1947-), Three War Stories. Megan Marshall (1954-), Margaret Fuller: A New American Life (Pulitzer Prize). Jason Matthews, Red Sparrow (June 4); Dominika Egrova is forced by her uncle to enroll at the Sparrow School, which teaches how to seduce the enemy. filmed in 2018. Colum McCann, TransAtlantic. Colleen McCullough (1937-), Bittersweet. Scott Rempell, Five Grounds; asylum seekers in the U.S. J.K. Rowling (1965-), The Cuckoo's Calling; pub. under alias Robert Galbraith. John Scalzi (1969-), The Human Division (May); Old Man's War #5. Eric Siegel, Predictive Analytics: The Power to Predict Who Will Click, Buy, Lie, or Die (Feb.). Charles Stross (1964-), Neptune's Blood; sequel to "Saturn's Children" (2008). Donna Tartt (1963-), The Goldfinch (Le Chardonneret) (Sept. 23) (NYT bestseller) (Pulitzer Prize); 13-y.-o. Theodore Decker survives a terrorist bombing at MoMA, where he loses his mother, taking her favorite, a Dutch Golden Age painting by Carel Fabritius with him and ending up living with a wealthy family friend Andy Barbour's family before being taken by his deadbeat dad to Las Vegas and going wild; 2013 Amazon Best Book of the Year: polarizes lit. critics; "A great bewitching novel" (Le Monde); "A children's book for adults" (London Review of Books); "No amount of straining for high-flown uplift can disguise the fact that The Goldfinch is a turkey" (The Sunday Times of London). Daniel H. Wilson (1978-), Amped (Feb. 12); about a world where amplified humans are discriminated against. Rick Yancey (1962-), The 5th Wave (May 7); 16-y.-o. Cassie Sullivan fights an ET invasion by the Others; the "Twilight" for aliens?; followed by "The Infinite Sea" (2014), "The Last Star" (2016). Births: English royal heir prince George Alexander Louis of Cambridge on July 22 (16:24 p.m.) in London; son of Prince William (1982-) and Princess Catherine (1982-); Carole Middleton is their first nanny. Deaths: Austrian-born Am. historian Gerda Lerner (b. 1920) on Jan. 2 in Madison, Wisc. Am. "The Warriors" novelist Sol Yurick (b. 1925) on Jan. 5 in Brooklyn, N.Y. Am. novelist-poet Evan S. Connell (b. 1924) on Jan. 10 in Santa Fe, N.M. Chilean-born Brazilian artist Jorge Selaron (b. 1947) on Jan. 10 in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil (found dead on the Selaron Steps). Indian-born Am. musician Harihar Rao (b. 1927) on Jan. 13. French Etch A Sketch inventor Andre Cassagnes (b. 1926) on Jan. 16 in Paris. Am. tennis player Gussie Moran (b. 1923) on Jan. 16 in Los Angeles, Calif. Am. columnist Pauline Esther Friedman Phillips (AKA Ann Landers) (b. 1918) on Jan. 16 in Minneapolis, Minn. (Alzheimer's). Am. baseball player Stan Musial (b. 1920) on Jan. 19 in Ladue, Mo. Am. baseball hall-of-fame player-mgr. Earl Weaver (b. 1930) on Jan. 19 in the Caribbean; dies aboard the Celebrity Silhouette. Polish cardinal Jozef Glemp (b. 1929) on Jan. 23 in Warsaw. Am. scientist-activist Dan Massey (b. 1942) on Jan. 26 in Washington, D.C. (cancer). Am. journalist-historian Stanley Abram Karnow (b. 1925) on Jan. 27 in Potomac, Md. (heart failure). South African industrial psychologist John E. Karlin (b. 1918) on Jan. 28. Am. Remote Viewing co-creator Ingo Swann (b. 1933) on Jan. 31 in New York City. Am. New York City mayor #105 (1978-89) Ed Koch (b. 1924) on Feb. 1 in New York City (heart failure). Am. "American Sniper" Navy SEAL vet Chris Kyle (b. 1974) (150+ kills) on Feb. 2 in Erath County (near Chalk Mountain), Tex.; killed on a shooting range along with Chad Littlefield by fellow Marine vet Eddie Ray Routh, who suffers from PTSD, and is charged with two counts of murder and given a life sentence without parole; subject of the 2014 film "American Sniper" dir. by Clint Eastwood, starring Bradley Cooper. U.S. Rep. (D-Ill.) (1973-97) Cardiss Collins (b. 1931) on Feb. 3 in Alexandria, Va. South African model Reeva Steenkamp (b. 1983) on Feb. 14 in Pretoria; shot by Paralympic athlete beau Oscar Pistorius, who is convicted of culpable homicide on Sept. 12, 2014. Am. writer Debbie Ford (b. 1955) on Feb. 17 in San Diego, Calif. (cancer). Chinese ping-pong champ Zhuang Zedong (b. 1940) on Feb. 10 in Beijing. Am. country singer Mindy McCready (b. 1975) on Feb. 17 in Heber Springs, Ark. (suicide); kills herself on the same front porch where her ex-boyfriend killed himself 1 mo. earlier. Am. economist Armen Alchian (b. 1914) on Feb. 19 in Los Angeles, Calif. Am. pianist Van Cliburn (b. 1934) on Feb. 27 in Fort Worth, Tex. (bone cancer). Am. actor Dale Robertson (b. 1923) on Feb. 27 in La Jolla, San Diego, Calif. Am. bubble chamber physicist Donald Arthur Glaser (b. 1926) on Feb. 28 in Berkeley, Calif.; 1960 Nobel Physics Prize. Venezuelan pres. (1999-2013) Hugo Chavez (b. 1954) on Mar. 5 in Caracas (cancer); dies after reducing poverty from 55.4% in 1998 to 27% in 2012; on Mar. 13 new pres. Nicolas Maduro announces an investigation into foul play (poisoning by the CIA). Am. Creationist biochemist Duane Gish (b. 1921) on Mar. 5 in San Diego, Calif. English Yes guitarist Peter Banks (b. 1947) on Mar. 7 in London (heart failure). German celeb Ewald-Heinrich von Kleist-Schmenzin (b. 1922) on Mar. 8 in Munich; last surviving member of the July 20, 1944 Plot. Bangladeshi physicist Jamal Nazrul Islam (b. 1934) on Mar. 16 in Chittagong. Am. immigration reform adviser Lawrence Fuchs (b. 1927) on Mar. 17 in Canton, Mass. (Parkinson's). Am. porn star Harry Reems (b. 1947) on Mar. 19 in Salt Lake City, Utah. Am. opera singer Rise Stevens (b. 1913) on Mar. 20 in Manhattan, N.Y. Nigerian novelist Chinua Achebe (b. 1930) on Mar. 22 in Boston, Mass. Am. basketball player Ray Williams (b. 1954) on Mar. 22 in New York City. Russian exiled businessman Boris Berezovsky (b. 1946) on Mar. 23 in Surrey, U.K. Canadian bodybuilding magnate Joe Weider (b. 1919) on Mar. 23 in Los Angeles, Calif. Norwegian Olympic speed skater Hjalmar Andersen (b. 1923) on Mar. 27 in Oslo. Am. Crawdaddy! rock journalist Paul S. Williams (b. 1948) on Mar. 27 in in San Diego, Calif. (Alzheimer's). English statistician George E.P. Box (b. 1919) on Mar. 28 in Madison, Wisc. English "Vernon Dursley in Harry Potter" actor Richard Griffiths (b. 1947) on Mar. 28 in Coventry (heart failure). Am. record producer Phil Ramone (b. 1934) on Mar. 30 in Manhattan, N.Y. (brain aneurysm). Am. Olympic sprinter Ronnie Ray Smith (b. 1949) on Mar. 31 in Los Angeles, Calif. German-born Anglo-British "Howards End" novelist Ruth Prawer Jhabvala (b. 1927) on Apr. 3 in New York City. Am. #1 film critic Roger Ebert (b. 1942) on Apr. 4 in Chicago, Ill. (cancer). Am. Atlanta Hawks gen. mgr. (1954-70) Marty Blake (b. 1927) on Apr. 7 in Atlanta, Ga. Am. fashion designer Lilly Pulitzer (b. 1931) on Apr. 7 in Palm Beach, Fla. Am. Mousketeer singer-actress Annette Funicello (b. 1942) on Apr. 8 in Bakersfield, Calif. (MS). British "Iron Lady" PM (1979-90) Margaret Thatcher (b. 1925) on Apr. 8 in London (stroke): "There is no such thing as society"; "The problem with socialism is that you eventually run out of other people's money." Am. comedian Jonathan Winters (b. 1925) on Apr. 11 in Montecito, Calif. Am. "Lumpy in Leave it to Beaver" actor Frank Bank (b. 1942) on Apr. 13 in Rancho Mirage, Calif. (prostate cancer). Am. actress Christine White (b. 1926) on Apr. 14 in Washington, D.C. French biologist Francois Jacob (b. 1920) on Apr. 19 in Paris. Am. USA Today founder Al Neuharth (b. 1924) on Apr. 19 in Cocoa Beach, Fla. Am. country singer George Jones (b. 1931) on Apr. 26 in Nashville, Tenn. Am. singer-actress Deanna Durbin (b. 1921) on Apr. 20 in Neauphle-le-Chateau, France. Am. Slayer thrash metal guitarist Jeff Hanneman (b. 1964) on May 2 in Los Angeles, Calif. (liver failure from a spider bite in a hot tub?). Belgian biochemist Christian de Duve (b. 1917) on May 4 in Grez-Doiceau; 1974 Nobel Med. Prize. Am. FBI agent Robert K. Ressler (b. 1937) on May 5 in Spotsylvania County, Va. (Parkinson's). Am. "Angie Baby" songwriter Alan O'Day (b. 1940) on May 17 in Westwood, Calif. (brain cancer). Am. "Wes Parmalee in Dallas" actor Steve Forrest (b. 1925) on May 18 in Thousand Oaks, Calif. Am. Doors organist Ray Manzarek (b. 1939) on May 20 in Rosenheim, Germany (cancer). Am. journalist Haynes Bonner Johnson (b. 1931) on May 24 in Bethesda, Md. (heart attack). Am. novelist Jack Vance (b. 1916) on May 26 in Oakland, Calif. Am. "Edith Bunker in All in the Family" actress Jean Stapleton (b. 1923) on May 31 in New York City. Am. hall-of-fame football player Deacon Jones (b. 1938) on June 3 in Anaheim Hills, Calif. Am. "Million Dollar Mermaid" swimmer-actress Esther Williams (b. 1921) on June 6 in Los Angeles, Calif. Am. serial murderer Richard Ramirez (b. 1960) on June 7 on death row in Greenbrae, Calif. (B-cell lymphoma). Scottish "Consider Phlebas" sci-fi novelist Iain Banks (b. 1954) on June 9 in Kirkcaldy, Fife (gallbladder cancer). Japanese world's oldest living person Jiroemon Kimura (b. 1897) on June 12 in Kyotango, Kyoto. Canadian historian Donald Mackenzie Schurman (b. 1924) on June 16 in Kingston, Ont. Kiwi writer Michael Baigent (b. 1948) on June 17 in Brighton, England. Am. "Tony Soprano in The Sopranos" actor James Gandolfini (b. 1961) on June 19 in Rome, Italy (cardiac arrest). Am. blues singer Bobby Bland (b. 1930) on June 23 in Memphis, Tenn. Am. "Family Ties", "Spin City" writer-producer Gary David Golberg (b. 1944) on June 22 in Montecito, Calif. (brain cancer). Am. "I Am Legend" novelist-screenwriter Richard Matheson (b. 1926) on June 23 in Los Angeles, Calif. Am. plant psychiatrist Cleve Backster (b. 1924) on June 24 in San Diego, Calif. Australian political philosopher Kenneth Minogue (b. 1930) on June 28. Am. "Enter the Dragon", "Black Belt Jones" actor Jim Kelly (b. 1946) on June 29 in San Diego, Calif. (cancer). U.S. Rep. (D-Penn.) (1979-91) William Herbert Gray III (b. 1941) on July 1 in London, England. Am. historian Edmund Sears Morgan (b. 1916) on July 8 in New Haven, Conn.: "History at its best is vicarious experience"; "I would say that my ideal of writing history is to give the reader vicarious experience. You're born in one particular century at a particular time, and the only experience you can have directly is of the place you live and the time you live in. History is a way of giving you experience that you would otherwise be cut off from." Iraqi secret service head Sabawi Ibrahim al-Tikriti (b. 1947) on July 8 in Baghdad (cancer); dies awaiting a sentence of death by hanging. Am. "Cochise in Broken Arrow" "Kang in Star Trek" actor Michael Ansara (b. 1922) on July 31 in Calabasas, Calif. (Alzheimer's). Canadian "Finn Hudson in Glee" actor-singer Cory Monteith (b. 1982) on July 13 in Vancouver, B.C. (OD); found dead in his hotel room. Am. bluesman T-Model Ford (b. 1923) on July 16 in Greenville, Miss. (respiratory failure). Am. "Kazuo Kim in Hawaiian Eye" actor Poncie Ponce (b. 1933) on July 19 in Los Angeles, Calif. Am. journalist Helen Thomas (b. 1920) on July 20 in Washington, D.C. Am. architect Natalie de Blois (b. 1921) on July 22 in Chicago, Ill. (cancer). Am. "Joe Fontana in Law & Order" actor Dennis Farina (b. 1944) on July 22 in Scottsdale, Ariz. (blood clot in lung). Kiwi archeologist Mike Morwood (b. 1950) on July 23 in Darwin, Australia. Am. installation artist Walter De Maria (b. 1935) on July 25 in Los Angeles, Calif. Am. "After Midnight" songwriter J.J. Cale (b. 1938) on July 26 in La Jolla, Calif. (heart attack). Am. Penn. gov. #38 (1963-7) William Scranton (b. 1917) on July 28 in Montecito, Calif. (cerebral hemorrhage). Am. basketball player (first basket in NBA history) Ossie Schectman (b. 1919) on July 30 in Delray Beach, Fla. Am. singer Eydie Gorme (b. 1928) on Aug. 10 in Las Vegas, Nev. Am. "Laurie on That '70s Show" actress Lisa Robin Kelly (b. 1970) on Aug. 13 in Los Angeles, Calif. (cardiac arrest from multiple drug intoxication). Am. "Laurie Forman in That '70s Show" actress Lisa Robin Kelly (b. 1970) on Aug. 14 in Altadena, Calif. Spanish billionaire Rosalia Mera (b. 1944) on Aug. 15 in A Coruna, Galicia. Am. economist-historian David Saul Landes (b. 1924) on Aug. 17 in Haverford, Penn. Am. jazz critic Albert Murray (b. 1916) on Aug. 18 in Harlem, N.Y. Am. jazz musician Cedar Walton (b. 1934) on Aug. 19 in Brooklyn, N.Y. Am. "Get Shorty" novelist Elmore Leonard (b. 1925) on Aug. 20 in Bloomfield Hills, Mich. (stroke). Am. "Dash Riprock in The Beverly Hillbillies" actor Larry Pennell (b. 1928) on Aug. 28. Irish poet Seamus Heaney (b. 1939) on Aug. 30 in Dublin; 1995 Nobel Lit. Prize. English TV host David Frost (b. 1939) on Aug. 31; dies aboard MS Queen Elizabeth en route from Southampton to Rome. Am. boxer Tommy Morrison (b. 1969) on Sept. 1 in Neb. (AIDS). British-born Am. economist Ronald Coase (b. 1910) on Sept. 2 in Chicago, Ill. Am. historian Lacey Smith (b. 1922) on Sept. 8 in Greenboro, Vt. Am. car dealer Cal Worthington (b. 1920) on Sept. 8 in Orland, Calif. Am. "Rebecca Boone in Daniel Boone" actress Patricia Blair (b. 1933) on Sept. 9 in North Wildwood, N.J. (breast cancer). Am. electrical engineer Ray Dolby (b. 1933) on Sept. 12 in San Francisco, Calif. (leukemia). Spanish-born Am. world's oldest man Salustiano Sanchez (b. 1901) on Sept. 13 in Grand Island, N.Y. Am. Colo. gov. #37 (1973-5) John David Vanderhoof (b. 1922) on Sept. 19 in Glenwood Springs, Colo. English rocker Jackie Lomax (b. 1944) on Sept. 15. English engineer George Alfred Hockham (b. 1938) on Sept. 16. Upper Volta pres. #3 (1980-2) Saye Zerbo (b. 1932) on Sept. 19. Canadian filmmaker Michel Brault (b. 1928) on Sept. 21 in Toronto, Ont. Am. "Caligula in The Robe" actor Jay Robinson (b. 1930) on Sept. 27 in Sherman Oaks, Los Angeles, Calif. Italian cookbook writer Marcella Hazan (b. 1924) on Sept. 29 in Longboat Key, Fla. Am. basketball player Bob Kurland (b. 1924) on Sept. 29 in Sanibel Island, Fla. English filmmaker Anthony Hinds (b. 1922) on Sept. 30. Am. "Patriot Games" novelist Tom Clancy (b. 1947) on Oct. 1 in Baltimore, Md. Vietnamese gen. Vo Nguyen Giap (b. 1901) on Oct. 3 in Hanoi. Am. skier Mike Gallagher (b. 1941) on Oct. 3 in Pittsfield, Vt. Iraqi-born Israeli Sephardic chief rabbi (1973-) Ovadia Yosef (b. 1920) on Oct. 7 in Jerusalem. U.S. Sen. (R-Minn.) (1995-2001) Rod Grams (b. 1948) on Oct. 8 in Crown, Minn. Am. astronaut Scott Carpenter (b. 1925) on Oct. 10 in Denver, Colo. English-born Australian New Age writer Nevill Drury (b. 1947) on Oct. 15 (liver failure). English auto racer Dan Wheldon (b. 1978) on Oct. 16 in Las Vegas, Nev. (collision at the 2011 IZOD IndyCar World Championship at Las Vegas Motor Speedway). U.S. House Speaker #57 (1989-95) Tom Foley (b. 1929) on Oct. 18 in Washington, D.C. English actor-singer Noel Harrison (b. 1934) on Oct. 19 in Exeter, Devon (heart attack). English abstract sculptor Sir Anthony Caro (b. 1924) on Oct. 23 in London (heart attack). French spy novelist Gerard de Villiers (b. 1929) on Oct. 31; sold 100M copies worldwide. Am. basketball player Walt Bellamy (b. 1939) on Nov. 2 in College Park, Ga. English "The Grass is Singing" novelist Doris Lessing (b. 1919) on Nov. 17 in London; 2007 Nobel Lit. Prize. English biochemist Frederick Sanger (b. 1918) on Nov. 19 in Cambridge; 1958 and 1980 Nobel Chem. Prize. Am. psychic Sylvia Browne (b. 1936) on Nov. 20 in San Jose, Calif. Am. serial murderer Joseph Paul Franklin (b. 1950) on Nov. 20 in Bonne Terre, Mo. (executed by lethal injection). Am. basketball player Vern Mikkelsen (b. 1928) on Nov. 21 in Wayzata, Minn. Am. "Det. David Toma in Toma" actor Tony Musante (b. 1936) on Nov. 26 in Manhattan, N.Y. (hemorrhage). Am. historian Michael G. Kammen (b. 1936) on Nov. 29. Am. "Brian O'Conner in The Fast and the Furious" actor Paul Walker (b. 1973) on Nov. 30 in Santa Clarita, Calif.; crashes into a tree. South African pres. (1994-9) Nelson Mandela (b. 1918) on Dec. 5 in Johannesburg; the U.S. lowers its flag for him, making him the 3rd foreigner after Winston Churchill and Pope John Paul II; the memorial on Dec. 10 is attended by 100+ world leaders incl. Pres. Obama and Raoul Castro, who shake hands; Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu begs off, citing cost: "Never again shall it be that this beautiful land will again experience the oppression of one by another." Australian chemist Sir John Cornforth (b. 1917) on Dec. 8 in Sussex, England; 1975 Nobel Chem. Prize. Irish "Lawrence of Arabia" actor Peter O'Toole (b. 1932) on Dec. 14 in London. Am. evangelist Harold Camping (b. 1921) on Dec. 15 in Alameda, Calif. Am. "Release Me" country singer Ray Price (b. 1926) on Dec. 16 in Mount Pleasant, Tex. (pancreatic cancer). Canadian Seagrams Ltd pres. (1971-94) Edgar Bronfman Sr. (b. 1929) on Dec. 21 in Manhattan, N.Y. Russian AK-47 rifle designer Mikhail Kalashnikov (b. 1919) on Dec. 23 in Izhevsk; wrote a letter in 2012 to the head of the Russian Orthodox Church, asking if he was responsible for all the deaths. Am. computer engineer Gary W. Boone (b. 1945) on Dec. 12 in Colorado Springs, Colo

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