'If They Want War - They'll Get War' Declares Hawkish Lieberman. - Speaking at the Yisraeli Beiteinu Hanukkah event today, Israeli Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman vowed a full-scale invasion and occupation of the Gaza Strip in the event of any rocket fire coming out of the strip in the future. “Any rocket attack mandates a wide-scale ground invasion of Gaza… Such an operation shouldn’t be restricted by any means, it should see (the IDF) take full control of Gaza,” Lieberman said. The comments are unlikely to be an expression of actual policy so much as political bluster ahead of the election, as Lieberman went on to rail at opposition figures who he insisted were “siding against Israel” on the question of more wars against the Palestinians, singling out virtually every leader on the left and in the center. Lieberman also went on to condemn Israeli soldiers who follow the military’s order not to open fire on Palestinian protesters, even if they throw stones during demonstrations, saying it was unacceptable for the soldiers to withdraw from protests instead of attacking the demonstrators.

US admits Al Qaeda "amongst" Syrian rebels, recognizes them as the "legitimate representative of the Syrian people."

As expected, after a long pause of feigned "consideration," the US has recognized the militants it has been arming, funding, aiding logistically and supporting diplomatically since as early as 2007, as the "legitimate representatives of the Syrian people," with the added caveat, "in opposition to the Assad regime." The Wall Street Journal would report that US President Barack Obama's announcement actually read:

"The Syrian National Coalition for Revolutionary and Opposition Forces is reflective and representative enough of the Syrian population that we consider them the legitimate representative of the Syrian people in opposition to the Assad regime."

The bizarre, uncertain wording sends a message of both uncertainty and resounding illegitimacy, indicating that the US itself recognizes the true nature of the so-called "Syrian" opposition is apparent to an increasing number of people both in public office and across the public, and that a certain degree of rhetorical distance must be kept. The overt, extremist nature of the militants operating in Syria has become increasingly difficult for the West to paper over. Torrents of videos and confirmed reports documenting militant atrocities, including several involving the machine gunning of bound prisoners, and a particularly gruesome video of a child handed a sword by militants to hack off the heads of bound men wearing civilian clothing, has confirmed the worst fears expressed by geopolitical analysts and foreign governments around the world - that the Syrian opposition is in fact Al Qaeda.

Stephen Lendman: Syria: Tightening the Noose
Wall Street Journal: U.S. Formally Recognizes Syria's Main Rebel Group
SANA: US Recognition of Opposition Syrian Coalition Contradicts Geneva Statement - Lavrov
Video: NATO Appears to be Rushing for Syria Conclusion (Webster Tarpley about Syria at the 4:25 mark)

Al-ManarTV: Syrian Armed Opposition Lets Children Cut off Civilians’ Heads (Video) - A video broadcast lately showed members of the so-called “Free Syrian Army” in Homs using children to cut off heads of civilians with a cleaver after putting their heads on stones. The video that shows civilians being butchered for the accusation of “supporting Al-Assad regime” was published Sunday by Al-Haqiqia opposition website which took it from the “electronic newspaper of General Khaled Ibn Al-Walid” facebook page. Such barbarism in the "Free Syrian army’s” practices is not the first of its kind, as images were previously published for the armed groups slaughtering Syrian regime supporters, such as members of Berri family in Aleppo.

WIKILEAKS publisher Julian Assange has confirmed his intention to run as a Senate candidate in the 2013 federal election and will announce the formation of a WikiLeaks political party early next year. Nearly six months after he sought political asylum in Ecuador's London embassy, Mr Assange doesn't expect his circumstances to change soon. Although he thinks it "inevitable" that the United States government will eventually drop its espionage investigation into WikiLeaks, he fears such an outcome may be "several years away". Mr Assange said plans to register an Australian WikiLeaks party were ''significantly advanced''. He indicated he would be a Senate candidate, and added that "a number of very worthy people admired by the Australian public" have indicated their availability to stand for election on a party ticket. Mr Assange said he is able to fulfil the requirements to register as an overseas elector in either New South Wales or Victoria and that he will shortly take a "strategic decision" about which state he would be a Senate candidate for.

पंडित रविशंकर के निधन की खबर आते ही लोगों के बीच में घनघोर निराशा फैल गयी है। बैंगलोर के आईटी कंपनी में काम करने वाले इंजीनियर मोहित श्रीवास्तव ने ट्विटर पर लिखा है कि जैसे ही ऑफिस पहुंचा वैसे ही एक पंडित रविशंकर के निधन की दुखद खबर से सामना हुआ जिसके कारण मन एकदम निराशा में भर गया है। पता नहीं एक के बाद एक भारत के नायाब सितारे क्यों हमें छोड़ कर जा रहे हैं? सितार की दुनिया के नायाब बादशाह पंडित ऱविशंकर की जगह आने वाले सौ सालों में भी कोई नहीं ले पायेगा. उनका निधन भारत और संगीत की दुनिया का बहुत बड़ा नुकसान है जिसकी भरपाई कोई नहीं कर सकता है।

आपको बता दें कि सितार सम्राट पंडित रविशंकर का आज सुबह 6 बजे न्यूयार्क में निधन हो गया है। वो 92 साल के थे। सितार सम्राट पंडित रविशंकर पिछले कुछ समय से बीमार चल रहे थे। उन्हें 1999 में भारत रत्न से सम्मानित किया गया था। उनकी बीमारी की खबर अमिताभ बच्चन ने कुछ दिन पहले दी थी और कहा था कि 92-वर्षीय सितार वादक हार्ट के ऑपरेशन के लिए कैलिफोर्निया में हैं।

मालूम हो कि पंडित रवि शंकर का जन्म 7 अप्रैल 1920 को बनारस में हुआ था। उन्होंने भारतीय शास्त्रीय संगीत की शिक्षा उस्ताद अल्लाऊद्दीन खाँ से प्राप्त की। अपने सितार की तान से भारत का नाम पूरी दुनिया में रौशन करने वाले पंडित रविशंकर को साल को कला के क्षेत्र में भारत सरकार द्वारा सन १९६७ में पद्म भूषण भी दिया गया था। (For a translation, go here.)

BBC: Ravi Shankar, Indian sitar maestro, dies - Video
The Statesman: Parliament mourns death of Pt Ravi Shankar
The Statesman: Ravi Shankar - A global ambassador of Indian music
EcoPark: World Music Icon Ravi Shankar Dead at 92
NDTV: Leaders, artistes remember sitar legend Pandit Ravi Shankar
Daily Herald: Indian sitar virtuoso Ravi Shankar dies at 92
Reuters India: Reactions to sitar maestro Ravi Shankar's death

"Once upon a time there was a radical president who tried to remake American society through government action. In his first term he created a vast network of federal grants to state and local governments for social programs that cost billions. He set up an imposing agency to regulate air and water emissions, and another to regulate workers' health and safety. Had Congress not stood in his way he would have gone much further. He tried to establish a guaranteed minimum income for all working families and, to top it off, proposed a national health plan that would have provided government insurance for low-income families, required employers to cover all their workers and set standards for private insurance. Thankfully for the country, his second term was cut short and his collectivist dreams were never realize. His name was Richard Nixon."

Add another name to the list of critics concerned with attempts to rewrite the International Telecommunication Union to give governments control of the Internet: Silicon Valley’s Mozilla now officially opposes the ITU. - Mozilla, the makers of the highly successful Firefox Web browser for Macs, PCs and smart phones, have come out to condemn a top-secret meeting in Dubai this week that could lead to changes with how the world is wired to the Internet. The details of the closed-door discussions being held between members of the United Nation’s World Conference on International Telecommunications (WCIT) this week in the United Arab Emirates remains a secret, and that’s exactly why Mozilla is speaking up. In a plea posted on Mozilla.org, the developers write,

“The issue isn't whether our governments, the UN or even the ITU should play a role in shaping the Web. The problem is that they are trying to do it behind closed doors, in secret, without us.” “The Web lets us speak out, share and connect around the things that matter. It creates new opportunities, holds governments to account, breaks through barriers and makes cats famous. This isn't a coincidence. It's because the Web belongs to all of us,” insists Mozilla. “We all get a say in how it's built.”

Now in order to raise awareness of what the WCIT can do by rewriting the ITU, Mozilla has released an “Engagement Kit” in order to get people around the globe talking about what could happen to the Web without their input ever being considered. “Mozilla has made it our mission to keep the power of the web in people's hands,” the developers say.

A recent US assassination drone in Pakistan has again killed a number of civilians as the surging frequency of such strikes raises growing concerns at the United Nations, Press TV reports. - Confirming the civilian fatalities, unnamed US officials who spoke on the condition of anonymity also claimed this week that two missile strikes fired from the American terror drones killed a couple of al-Qaeda leaders. Targeting and killing of civilians in military operations is a violation of the Fourth Geneva Convention. Additionally, the aerial operation of the assassination aircraft over the sovereign nation of Pakistan by the US also violates the international treaty. In response to a question by Press TV’s New York correspondent regarding the most recent US drone strike in Pakistan, UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon's spokesman Martin Nesirky noted his growing concerns regarding the civilian casualties caused by American assassination drone strikes.