MATADOR'S MEMOIRS SKEWERED BY BULL-LOVERS

BRITISH MATADOR'S BOOK SIGNING
CANCELLED AFTER ANIMAL RIGHTS PROTESTS

LONDON (AFP) – A 67-year-old Briton who has just made his comeback as a bullfighter in Spain has been forced to cancel book signings after protests from animal rights activists. Frank Evans, a grandfather of five known in Spain as El Ingles, returned to the bullring in southern Spain last month despite having undergone reconstructive knee surgery and a quadruple heart bypass. He has just released his autobiography, "The Last British Bullfighter," and had planned to sign copies of it for readers at branches of the Waterstones book chain in Manchester and Liverpool. But the plans were called off after protests by animal rights groups including PETA, the Born Free Foundation and the Fight Against Animal Cruelty in Europe.

Evans, who left to attend bullfighting school in Spain at the age of 22 and maintained his interest despite becoming a successful businessman, first retired as a matador in 2005. But he returned to the bullring on August 30, successfully slaying two bulls of around 500 kilogrammes (1,100 pounds) in Benalmadena, near Malaga in southern Spain. PETA spokesman said: "Bravo to Waterstone's for distancing itself from the sadistic cruelty and gore of bullfighting. There is nothing brave or admirable about anyone who participates in or pays to watch a violent spectacle in which the bull always loses", PETA spokesman said.

WHAT DO THE VEDIC TEACHINGS TELL US?

Life is also present within the nonhuman species, and it is no less qualified than the human position, but in the course of the evolutionary movement of the soul, it is thrown into such a condition as the result of karma. Wherever life is present, the soul is there within. ... Jesus told them, "Do unto others as you would have them do unto you." That is also good. But not only is the soul present there; God is also there, and everywhere. The lower species are also feeling pain and pleasure. In animals it is quite clear that when they are killed, they feel pain. So, there is life. The vibration of pain is there, consciousness is there, and the soul is a unit of pure consciousness.

Srila Bhakti Raksaka Sridhara Maharaja:
"The Search For Sri Krsna Chapter 7 : "Do Unto Others" Includes Animals "

CHAVEZ IN $2BN RUSSIAN ARMS DEAL

RUSSIA HAS AGREED TO LEND VENEZUELA
OVER $2.2 BILLION TO BUY WEAPONS

CARACAS (AP) - Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez said Russia will provide a $2.2 billion credit line for weapons purchases and will jointly develop oil fields and nuclear energy. Venezuela will buy 92 T-72S tanks, Smerch missiles with a range of 90 kilometers and an S-300 Antey-2500 anti-aircraft defense system including radar and missiles with a range of 400 kilometers, Chavez said yesterday during his weekly program “Alo Presidente” on state television. Chavez, 55, visited Russia last week as part of an 11-day trip to allied countries. “Thanks to the help and support of the Russian president Dmitri Medvédev and prime minister Vladímir Putin, we’ve reached an agreement to increase our defensive capacity, and to develop a nuclear energy program for “peaceful means,” Chavez said.

Venezuela doesn’t want to produce an atomic bomb, he said. “We’re not going to make an atomic bomb, so don’t bother us like with Iran,” he said. “We’re going to develop nuclear energy with peaceful purposes.” Mr Chavez said the weapons were intended to boost Venezuela's defensive capacity. The deal comes as tensions grow between Venezuela and Colombia over Bogota's plan to allow the US access to several military bases there. Colombia says the US forces will help in the war against drugs and left-wing guerrillas, and will not destabilise the region. Mr Chavez suggested that Colombia's decision to grant the US access to seven military bases was a threat to Venezuelan security. He said the anti-aircraft rockets systems would make it difficult to be attacked. "With these rockets, it is going to be very difficult for them [the US] to come and bomb us. If that happens, they should know that we will soon have these systems installed, [and] for an enemy that appears on the horizon, there it goes," he said.

WHAT DO THE VEDIC TEACHINGS TELL US?

Instead of enjoying peace, the leaders of big money-making countries are now making big plans how they can save themselves from the modern destructive weapons, and yet a huge sum of money is being thrown into the sea for experiments with such dreadful weapons. Such experiments are being carried out not only at huge monetary costs, but also at the cost of many poor lives, thereby binding such nations to the laws of karma. That is the illusion of material nature. As a result of the impulse for sense gratification, money is earned by spoiled energy, and it is then spent for the destruction of the human race. The energy of the human race is thus spoiled by the law of nature because that energy is diverted from the service of the Lord, who is actually the owner of all energies.

Srila A.C. BV Swami Prabhupada:
"The Journey of Self-Discovery - Chapter 6 - Material Problems, Spiritual Solutions"

NOBEL PRIZE WINNER NORMAN BORLAUG DIES AT 95

SCIENTIST NORMAN BORLAUG, FATHER OF THE
"GREEN REVOLUTION" DIED SATURDAY IN TEXAS

DALLAS (AP) – Agricultural scientist Norman Borlaug, the father of the "green revolution" who won the Nobel Peace Prize for his role in combating world hunger and saving hundreds of millions of lives, died Saturday in Texas, a Texas A&M University spokeswoman said. He was 95. Borlaug died at his home in Dallas from complications of cancer. The Nobel committee honored Borlaug in 1970 for his contributions to high-yield crop varieties and bringing other agricultural innovations to the developing world. Many experts credit the green revolution with averting global famine during the second half of the 20th century and saving perhaps 1 billion lives. Thanks to the green revolution, world food production more than doubled between 1960 and 1990.

In Pakistan and India, two of the nations that benefited most from the new crop varieties, grain yields more than quadrupled over the period. A 2006 book about Borlaug is titled "The Man Who Fed the World." Borlaug began the work that led to his Nobel in Mexico at the end of World War II. There he used innovative breeding techniques to produce disease-resistant varieties of wheat that produced much more grain than traditional strains. He and others later took those varieties and similarly improved strains of rice and corn to Asia, the Middle East, South America and Africa. Equal parts scientist and humanitarian, he realized improved crop varieties and pressed governments for farmer-friendly economic policies and improved infrastructure to make markets accessible.

WHAT DO THE VEDIC TEACHINGS TELL US?

There are many traditionally pious activities in human society, such as altruism, philanthropy, nationalism, internationalism, charity, sacrifice, penance, and even meditation in trance, and all of them can be fully beneficial only when they lead to the satisfaction of the Supreme Personality of Godhead. The perfection of any activity - social, political, religious or philanthropic - is to satisfy the Supreme Lord. ... One's only concern should be to satisfy the Lord by one's activities. If the Lord is satisfied by an action, whatever it may be, then it is successful. Otherwise, it is simply a waste of time. That is the standard of all sacrifice, penance, austerity, mystic trance and other good and pious work.

Srila A.C. BV Swami Prabhupada:
"El Srimad Bhagavatam - Comentario en Canto 3 - Cap. 9 - Verso 41"

MORE THAN 200 MISSING AFTER BOAT CAPSIZES IN SIERRA LEONE

SIERRA LEONE ENDS BOAT RESCUE SURVIVORS OF
SHIPWRECK, MANY SCHOOLCHILDREN STILL MISSING

FREETOWN (Reuters) - Authorities in Sierra Leone are shutting down an operation to rescue survivors of a shipwreck that has killed 90 and left well over 100 missing, presumed dead, a police officer said on Friday. The boat, which officials believe was heavily loaded with goods and at least 250 people, capsized in a storm on Tuesday, sparking calls for better safety after just 40 of the passengers appear to have survived the accident. "We are no longer actively engaged in the rescue exercise as we now believe that the rest of the passengers onboard the boat have drowned," said Lt Mohamed Suma, head of the search operation.

He added that 90 bodies had been buried, 30 of which had to be put in mass grave as they were unrecognisable, and that now they are doing a search party to see how many of the remaining corpses they can get out of the sea. The exact number of passengers on the boat, which was travelling between two coastal villages, is not known as the captain picked up additional passengers onboard. Boat, car and rail accidents are frequent in West Africa, a poor region that has weak infrastructure, and overloading is often to blame. Police said that overloading caused the accident and that the boat was designed to hold 60 people and they didn't carry lifejackets and the boat didn't have the necessary communications devices.

WHAT DO THE VEDIC TEACHINGS TELL US?

Being subjected to samsāra, the cycle of birth and death, does not guarantee that one will necessarily get a similar facility for understanding Bhagavad-gītā in the next life. One may not necessarily be born again as a human being, or in America, or in India, or even on this planet. There is no certainty; it all depends on our work. On the path of birth and death we take our birth, remain for some time, enjoy or suffer, then again give up this body and enter into the womb of a mother, either human being or animal, then prepare another body to come out and begin our work again. This is called mrtyu-samsāra-vartmani. If one wants to avoid this path, he must take to Krishna consciousness

Srila A.C. BV Swami Prabhupada:
"Raja-Vidya: The King of Knowledge - Knowledge Beyond Samsara"

TAIWAN EX-PRESIDENT CHEN GIVEN LIFE TERM FOR GRAFT

FORMER TAIWANESE PRESIDENT CHEN
AND WIFE GET LIFE IN PRISON FOR CORRUPTION

TAIPEI, Taiwan (AP) - Taiwan’s former President Chen Shui-bian, who clashed with China over his efforts to assert the island’s independence, was sentenced to life in prison for corruption, fraud and money-laundering. Chen’s wife, Wu Shu-chen, also received a life sentence. Chen has denied the charges, saying they were politically motivated. The yearlong trial of Chen and his family has polarized opinion in the country of 23 million between pro-independence “greens” and the pro-China “blues” of President Ma Ying- jeou. Ma has led a rapprochement with mainland China in the 18 months since taking over from Chen, whose eight-year term was marked by confrontation with communist rulers in Beijing.

While most people believe Chen is guilty of at least some of the charges against him, many believe the way his case has been handled reflects Taiwanese politics, rather than justice at work. A cordon of police in riot gear guarded the Taipei district courthouse while Chen's supporters chanted "Justice is unfair" and "Judicial pandemic." About 200 protesters gathered outside the court carrying placards demanding the release of Chen, popularly known as Ah Bian, while police barricaded the detention center where he is being held. Chen's supporters, including long-time Taiwanese who do not identify with the KMT which came from China at the end of the civil war in 1949, believe the case is simply political revenge.

WHAT DO THE VEDIC TEACHINGS TELL US?

In the modern setup of the democratic states, the people themselves are fallen to the qualities of the śūdras or less, and the government is run by their representative, who is ignorant of the scriptural mode of administrative education. Thus the whole atmosphere is surcharged with śūdra qualities, manifested by lust and avarice. Such administrators quarrel every day among themselves. ... How can such low-grade men do good to the people? The result is corruption, intrigue and hypocrisy. They should learn from the Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam how ideal the administrators must be before they can be given charge of different posts.

Srila A.C. BV Swami Prabhupada:
"El Srimad Bhagavatam - Comentario en Canto 1 - Cap. 12 - Verso 18"

NEW YORK TO REMEMBER 9/11 VICTIMS

MANY CEREMONIES TO HONOR SEPTEMBER 11 VICTIMS
AND OBAMA OBSERVING MOMENT OF SILENCE FOR THEM

WASHINGTON (AP) - Solemn memorial services in New York, Washington and Pennsylvania on Friday will mark the anniversary of the September 11, 2001, terror attacks. President Barack Obama will lead the country in pausing to remember the victims of the terrorist attacks. The eighth anniversary of the attacks on the World Trade Center is due to be commemorated in New York. A ceremony will be held at Ground Zero, where the twin towers stood, to remember those who died on 11 September 2001. Nearly 3,000 people died on that tragic day eight years ago as hijacked jetliners smashed into New York's World Trade Center, the Pentagon and a field in western Pennsylvania.

The president and first lady Michelle Obama will observe a moment of silence Friday at 8:46 a.m. Eastern Time, the moment the first jetliner struck the World Trade Center. Then the president will participate in a wreath-laying ceremony at the Pentagon memorial, where 184 people were killed. Obama and Defense Secretary Robert Gates are to meet with victims' relatives.

In the picture you can see the "Tribute in Light" near the World Trade Center site in New York City a day before the memorial services.

WHAT DO THE VEDIC TEACHINGS TELL US?

The 360 days and 360 nights combine to become the 720 soldiers of Candavega (time). One has to fight these soldiers throughout one's lifespan, beginning with birth and ending with death. This fight is called the struggle for existence. Despite this struggle, however, the living entity does not die. As confirmed in Bhagavad-gītā (2.20), the living entity is eternal:

na jāyate mriyate vā kadācin
nāyam bhūtvā bhavitā vā na bhūyah
ajo nityah śāśvato 'yam purāno
na hanyate hanyamāne śarīre

"For the soul there is never birth nor death. Nor, having once been, does he ever cease to be. He is unborn, eternal, ever-existing, undying and primeval. He is not slain when the body is slain." Actually the living entity does not take birth nor does he die, but he has to fight with the stringent laws of material nature throughout the entire span of his lifetime. He must also face different kinds of miserable conditions. Despite all this, the living entity, due to illusion, thinks that he is well situated in sense gratification.

Srila A.C. BV Swami Prabhupada:
"The Srimad Bhagavatam - Purport in Canto 4 - Chapter 27 - Verse 16"

UN CLIMATE TALKS COULD FAIL, EU MINISTERS WARN

EU STATES VOW TO STEP UP CLIMATE DIPLOMACY
TO REACH GLOBAL CLIMATE AGREEMENT IN DECEMBER

COPENHAGEN (AFP) - European ministers warned that December's landmark UN climate talks could fail, as the EU Commission urged rich nations Thursday to stump up tens of billions of euros to help the developing world combat global warming. The December 7-18 talks in Copenhagen, under the 192-nation UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), aim to craft a post-2012 pact for curbing the heat-trapping gases that drive perilous global warming. Britain, France, Denmark, Sweden and Finland agreed Thursday to intensify "green diplomacy" to rescue an ambitious global climate agreement in Copenhagen in December.

Differences between rich and poor countries over funds for dealing with the consequences of climate change have emerged as the main stumbling block to a new U.N. climate treaty which world leaders hope to agree in Copenhagen in December. Copenhagen would be judged as a success if there is the willingness from rich countries to help poorer ones deal with the effects of global warming. The European Commission in Brussels proposed that richer nations provide tens of billions of euros in global aid annually for poor nations to fight global warming. Developed nations acknowledge the need to help out their poor neighbours but are unwilling to write any blank cheques. And developing nations say that the rich, which have burned most fossil fuels since the Industrial Revolution, should promise deeper cuts of 40 percent or more below 1990 levels by 2020 to avert the worst of climate change. Poorer countries say cutting greenhouse gases will hamper economic growth and that richer countries should offer greater emissions cuts of their own.

WHAT DO THE VEDIC TEACHINGS TELL US?

The Vedic wisdom guides us to understanding our relation with the Supreme Lord Śrī Krishna and to acting accordingly in order to achieve the desired result of returning home, back to Godhead. But materialistic men do not understand this. They want to make a plan to become happy in a place where there is no happiness.

Srila A.C. BV Swami Prabhupada:
"El Srimad Bhagavatam - Comentario en Canto 2 - Cap. 2 - Verso 27"

We do not know that we are bound by the stringent laws of material nature. How can we become free from this material bondage? We have to take instruction from those who are not blind, whose eyes are opened and who are liberated from this material bondage. Otherwise, if one who is blind takes instruction from a blind man, it will not be possible for him to be liberated from material bondage.

Srila A.C. BV Swami Prabhupada:
"Krishna Consciousness the Topmost Yoga System - Chapter 3: Beyond the Laws of Nature"

GUATEMALA DECLARES HUNGER CRISIS

GUATEMALA DECLARES CALAMITY AS FOOD CRISIS GROWS
HALF OF ITS CHILDREN SUFFER CHRONIC MALNUTRITION

Guatemala City (CNN) - Guatemalan President Alvaro Colom has declared a "state of national calamity" because so many citizens do not have food or proper nutrition. Colom said his declaration will make it easier to get food to the thousands of Guatemalan families who are in dire need. The United Nations' World Food Programme says Guatemala has the fourth highest rate of chronic malnutrition in the world and the highest in Latin America and the Caribbean. Chronic undernutrition affects about half of the nation's children under the age of 5, the U.N. agency said. Colom said the nation's food problems are the result of a drought this year, global warming and the effects of the international economic crisis.

According to the World Bank, about 75 percent of Guatemalans live below the poverty level, which is defined as an income that is not sufficient to purchase a basic basket of goods and basic services. Almost 58 percent of the population have incomes below the extreme poverty line, which is defined as the amount needed to purchase a basic basket of food. This is the cause of the food and nutritional crisis that this country is going through," Colom said. "There is food. What we don't have are the financial means so that those who are affected can buy the available food. Let's not wait until we have a famine to act." Poverty is more pronounced among indigenous populations and those who live in rural areas. In the nation's highlands, where many indigenous people live, seven of 10 children under age 5 are malnourished, the World Food Programme says.

WHAT DO THE VEDIC TEACHINGS TELL US?

The modern theory that starvation is due to an increase in population is not accepted by the demigods or the devotees of the Lord. The devotees or demigods are fully aware that the Lord can maintain any number of living entities, provided they are conscious of how to eat. If they want to eat like ordinary animals, who have no God consciousness, then they must live in starvation, poverty and want, like the jungle animals in the forest ... but it is the duty of human beings to acknowledge the mercy of the Lord. As a matter of gratitude, they should feel obliged to the Lord for their supply of foodstuff, and they must first offer Him food in sacrifice and then partake of the remnants.

Srila A.C. BV Swami Prabhupada:
"The Srimad Bhagavatam - Purport in Canto 3 - Chapter 5 - Verse 49"

AT LEAST 31 DIE IN ISTANBUL FLASH FLOODS

FLASH FLOODS KILL 31 IN TURKEY
DUE TO THE HEAVIEST RAINS IN 80 YEARS

ISTANBUL (Reuters) - Flash floods killed 31 people in northwest Turkey, sweeping through the city of Istanbul, swamping houses, turning highways into fast-flowing rivers and drowning seven women in a minibus that was taking them to work. Thirty-one died in Istanbul, Turkey's largest city with 14 million inhabitants, Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan said, after two days of the heaviest rain in 80 years produced sudden flood waters which engulfed low-lying areas. Another 5 died in Saray, west of Istanbul, reportedly all from the same family. Nine more were missing, Prime Minister Erdogan said.

In Istanbul rescue workers, some on boats, put out planks and ladders to help drivers, stranded in fast-flowing waters, reach the safety of bridges and high land. The worst flooding occurred in areas in the west of the city, on the European side, where drainage is often poor. The waters began to recede late Wednesday revealing wrecked buildings and debris scattered across the streets, as distressed residents and workers started the clean-up. The bodies of seven women were discovered in a working-class suburb of Istanbul. They had drowned in a minibus that was taking them to jobs at a textile factory. Witnesses said waves of muddy waters pulling cars, trees and debris crashed into homes and buildings early Wednesday as people were getting up to break their fasting during the holy month of Ramadan.

WHAT DO THE VEDIC TEACHINGS TELL US?

There are multifarious miseries in material existence — those pertaining to the body and the mind, those imposed by other living entities and those imposed by natural disturbances. But a sādhu is not disturbed by such miserable conditions because his mind is always filled with Krishna consciousness, and thus he does not like to talk about anything but the activities of the Lord.

Mahārāja Ambarīsha did not speak of anything but the pastimes of the Lord. Vacāmsi vaikuntha-gunānuvarnane (Bhāg. 9.4.18). He engaged his words only in glorification of the Supreme Personality of Godhead. Sādhus are always interested in hearing about the activities of the Lord or His devotees. Since they are filled with Krishna consciousness, they are forgetful of the material miseries.

Srila A.C. BV Swami Prabhupada:
"The Srimad Bhagavatam - Purport in Canto 3 - Chapter 25 - Verse 23"

TORNADO KILLS 10 IN ARGENTINA AND 7 IN BRAZIL

'FREAK' STORM AND TORNADO KILLED AT LEAST
17 PEOPLE IN THE SOUTHERN PART OF SOUTH AMERICA

(CNN - AFP) - A violent storm that triggered a tornado has killed at least 10 in Argentina and 7 in Brazil people and destroyed hundreds of houses. Northern Argentina and southern Brazil, and the small countries of Uruguay and Paraguay wedged between them, were hit by fierce rain, hail and winds travelling at more than 70mph. In northeastern Argentina, 10 people died, including seven children, authorities said. More than 50 others were injured, and trees and power lines were toppled in the towns of Santa Rosa, Tobuna and Pozo Azul, said the local civil defence office. Witnesses and local media described the storm as a tornado. The other seven fatalities occurred in Brazil's southern states of Santa Catarina and Sao Paulo, where flooding and mudslides swept through unstable slums.

These high-speed spinning tubes of destructive wind could have been a tornado, said the Argentina's National Meteorological Service. "The phenomenon still hasn't been classified. Experts will have to evaluate the damage," they said. Local officials said they had no warning that a tornado was forming. The provincial minister for Argentina's hard-hit area, Daniel Franco, said it was clear that the storm was "not normal for this area." "We've always had very strong winds and torrential rains here. But this was a phenomenon never seen before. Houses were completely destroyed," he said.

WHAT DO THE VEDIC TEACHINGS TELL US?

Everything is done by nature in full consciousness; nothing is blind or accidental. This material energy is also called Durgā, which indicates that it is a force which is very difficult to surpass. No one can surpass the laws of Durgā by any amount of childish plans. To get rid of the sufferings of humanity is simultaneously a very difficult and also a very easy affair. As long as the conditioned souls, who are themselves bound up by the laws of nature, manufacture plans to get rid of the three miseries, there will be no solution. The only effective solutions are those mentioned in Bhagavad-gītā, and we have to adopt them in our practical lives for our own benefit.

Srila A.C. BV Swami Prabhupada:
"Elevation to Krsna Consciousness - Chapter Two: Hard Struggle for Happiness"

FROG FOUND IN DIET PEPSI CAN

DISMEMBERED FROG OR OTHER
AMPHIBIAN FOUND IN DIET PEPSI CAN

CNN News - Ready to grill dinner recently for himself and his wife, Fred DeNegri, of Ormond Beach, 55, popped a can of Diet Pepsi to sip while he cooked. But one swig of the cola was enough to put him off his meal. Fred and Amy DeNegri found what was either a frog or a toad disintegrating in a can of Diet Pepsi. "At the time, I asked him and he couldn't even describe [the taste]," said Fred's wife, Amy DeNegri, 54, of Ormond Beach, Fla. "He said, 'I've never tasted anything so awful in my life.'" Dumping the liquid, the couple said, they discovered a small animal macerating in the can. Fred told CNN television that he was taken aback by the "disgusting" blob he was not expecting in his drink, and his wife Amy said that "I would have been throwing up," if she had been the one drinking the soda. DeNegri purchased the drink at a wholesale grocer.

Testing by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration confirmed that these were some dismembered remains of an animal was either a frog or a toad, although the agency found no connection to the Pepsi plant where the soda was bottled. While the DeNegri's amphibian-infused soda sounds like the stuff of urban legends, in reality, such transgressions can occur. And while these incidents may not occur often or pose significant health risks, the ick factor can be through the roof. "It has been verified, and it was indeed a frog," Charles Watson, a spokesman at the US food inspection authority, said from Florida, noting that the animal had been identified by an FDA lab. The FDA has launched an investigation into how the incident occurred.

WHAT DO THE VEDIC TEACHINGS TELL US?

In Kali-yuga, the duration of life is shortened not so much because of insufficient food but because of irregular habits. By keeping regular habits and eating simple food, any man can maintain his health.

Srila A.C. BV Swami Prabhupada:
"El Srimad Bhagavatam - Comentario en Canto 1 - Cap. 1 - Verso 10"

For a human being there are eatables described in Bhagavad-gītā (17.8) as sāttvika - āhāra, or food in the mode of goodness. One should not indulge in eating food in the modes of passion and ignorance. This is called ucitāhāra, or appropriate eating. ... Unless one can become free from the influence of passion and ignorance, he cannot be pacified, and without being pacified, one cannot understand the science of God.

Srila A.C. BV Swami Prabhupada:
"El Srimad Bhagavatam - Comentario en Canto 4 - Cap. 26 - Verso 11"

PHILIPPINE FERRY SURVIVOR FOUND AT SEA

PHILIPPINE FERRY SURVIVOR DRIFTED
FOR 30 HOURS IN CHOPPY SEAS WAS RESCUED

MANILA, Philippines (AP) — A Philippine air force helicopter plucked to safety Monday a woman who drifted for about 30 hours in choppy seas after the sinking of a ferry that left nine dead. Only one of the nearly 1,000 people who were on board is now unaccounted for. Housewife Lita Casumlum, 39, was found bobbing with a life jacket about 8 miles (13 kilometers) from where the 7,269-ton Superferry 9 sank on Sunday. Although she was weak and could hardly speak due to a sore throat, Casumlum was upbeat and joked with reporters in a military hospital in southern Zamboanga city, telling them she had lost money at sea but found two small crabs in her pocket after her rescue. "I just prayed. I thought of my family," she said.
Rear Admiral Alex Pama, who helped supervise the rescue, called it "a miracle." "She has been drifting amid huge waves for a long time without any food or water," Pama said.

A massive air, land and sea search will continue for the lone missing passenger, and a special coast guard ship has been deployed to check signs of an oil spill, officials said. Coast guard chief Admiral Wilfredo Tamayo said an investigation will begin later this week to find out why the vessel — its power flickering on and off — sank off the southern province of Zamboanga del Norte province. Superferry 9 had set sail from General Santos in the south on Saturday and was headed to Iloilo city in the central Philippines. Capt. Jose Yap, who was among the survivors, issued the "abandon ship" order at 4:40 a.m. (2040GMT) after the ferry started listing. The vessel, built in 1986 in Japan, sank six hours later, the coast guard said. As panic ensued, passengers leapt into the dark sea and parents dropped children into life rafts bobbing in the choppy sea, according to witnesses.

WHAT DO THE VEDIC TEACHINGS TELL US?

Lord Krishna, the Supreme Personality of Godhead, is omnipotent, and if He wants to kill someone, no one can save that person. Similarly, if He wants to save someone, no one can kill him.

Srila A.C. BV Swami Prabhupada:
"Krishna Book - Chapter 72 - The Liberation of King Jarāsandha"

Everyone who is conditioned by material existence — whether he be a man or beast or demigod or bird — must suffer from ādhyātmika (bodily or mental) pains, ādhibhautika pains (those offered by living creatures), and ādhidaivika pains (those due to supernatural disturbances). His happiness is nothing but a hard struggle to get free from the miseries of conditional life. But there is only one way he can be rescued, and that is by accepting the shelter of the lotus feet of the Supreme Personality of Godhead.

Srila A.C. BV Swami Prabhupada:

"The Srimad Bhagavatam - Purport in Canto 3 - Chapter 5 - Verse 40"

US LARGEST SUPPLIER OF ARMS IN 2008

U.S. EXPANDS SALES OF ARMS IN 2008 AND
LEADS WORLD IN FOREIGN WEAPONS SALES

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The United States accounted for more than two-thirds of foreign weapons sales in 2008, a year in which global sales were at a three-year low, The New York Times reported on Sunday. Citing a congressional study released on Friday, the Times said the United States was involved in 68.4 percent of the global sales of arms. U.S. weapons sales jumped nearly 50 percent in 2008 despite the global economic recession to $37.8 billion from $25.4 billion the year before. Italy, the second ranked country, amassed only $3.7 billion in arms sales, while Russia ranked third. The United States also led in arms sales to the developing world, signing 70.1 percent of these weapons agreements at a value of $29.6 billion in 2008, the report said.

Such deals with the developing world included a $6.5 billion air defense system for the United Arab Emirates, a $2.1 billion jet fighter for Morocco and a $2 billion attack helicopter for Taiwan. India, Iraq, Saudi Arabia, Egypt, South Korea and Brazil also reached weapons deals with the United States, the Times said. The report revealed the United Arab Emirates was the top buyer of arms in the developing world with $9.7 billion in arms purchases in 2008.

WHAT DO THE VEDIC TEACHINGS TELL US?

Even long, long ago, asuras, persons devoid of God consciousness, became the heads of state, and now this is happening again. The various states of the world are preoccupied with arranging for military strength. Sometimes they spend sixty-five percent of the government's revenue for this purpose. But why should people's hard-earned money be spent in this way? Because of the present world situation, Krishna has descended in the form of the Krishna consciousness movement. This is quite natural, for without the Krishna consciousness movement the world cannot be peaceful and happy.

Srila A.C. BV Swami Prabhupada:
"The Srimad Bhagavatam - Purport in Canto 10 - Chapter 1 - Verse 17"

NAVY WITH UNDOCUMENTED MIGRANTS WAS FOUND

EL SALVADOR FINDS BOAT WITH GROUP OF 76
UNDOCUMENTED BANGLADESHI ILLEGAL MIGRANTS

SAN SALVADOR, El Salvador (AP) – The Salvadoran navy says it has found 76 migrants from as far away as Bangladesh, Nepal and Eritrea aboard a boat in the Pacific. Navy Capt. Maximiliano Corado says the boat was detected about 50 miles (80 kilometers) off the coast, and "without doubt the final destination was to arrive in the United States." The migrants include 25 Bangladeshis, 25 Nepalese, 21 Eritreans and five Ecuadoreans. Navy Capt. Corado said Sunday that the boat set sail a week ago from the Ecuadorean port of Manta. He said all the migrants appeared to be undocumented, and all except the Ecuadoreans are to be deported. The Ecuadoreans were turned over to police for investigation of possible migrant trafficking.

WHAT DO THE VEDIC TEACHINGS TELL US?

The jīvas, or living entities, are now detached from the whole due to material contact. It is therefore necessary for us to strive to attach ourselves again through the latent Krsna consciousness that is within us. Artificially, we are trying to forget Krsna and live independently, but this is not possible. When we strive to live independent of Krsna, we come under the influence of the laws of material nature. If one thinks he is independent of Krsna, he becomes dependent on the illusory energy of Krsna, just as if one thinks that he is independent of the government and its regulations, he becomes dependent on the police force. Everyone is trying to become independent, and this is called māyā, illusion.

Srila A.C. BV Swami Prabhupada:
"On the Way to Krishna - Chapter 3: Seeing Krishna Everywhere and Always"

MEXICAN CANDIDATE, HIS WIFE AND 2 SONS KILLED

GUNMEN KILLED A STATE CONGRESSIONAL CANDIDATE
AND HIS WIFE AND TWO SONS IN SOUTHERN MEXICO

VILLAHERMOSA, Mexico (AP) – Jose Francisco Fuentes Esperon, 43, was found dead along with his wife, 38, and two sons aged 9 and 13, in the state capital, Villahermosa, in the Gulf coast state of Tabasco, in southern Mexico, according to state Attorney General Rafael Gonzalez Lastra. Fuentes Esperon was a former university rector, and was widely known in the state capital. The state government immediately offered to provide protection for any candidate who wants it ahead of Oct. 18 elections. President Felipe Calderon called Tabasco Gov. Andres Granier "to express his support and stress his decision to help in investigating the case to the end." "There are no words to express these events. We are deeply moved and at the same time indignant," Gonzalez Lastra said. The statement offered no information on the method or possible motive in the killings, but said they were carried out "with cruelty and viciousness."

Local and state politicians have increasingly become victims of violence that has cost over 13,500 lives since Mexico launched an offensive against drug cartels in late 2006. Also Saturday in the northern state of Chihuahua, a severed human head was found placed on a car hood in the border city of Ciudad Juarez, along with a message relating to drug cartels, state prosecutors reported.

WHAT DO THE VEDIC TEACHINGS TELL US?

Unfortunately, under the influence of illusory material energy, we accept this spot-life of only a few years as our permanent existence and thus become illusioned by possessing so-called country, home, land, children, wife, community, wealth, etc., which are false representations created by māyā (illusion). And under the dictation of māyā, we fight with one another to protect these false possessions. By cultivating spiritual knowledge, we can realize that we have nothing to do with all this material paraphernalia. Then at once we become free from material attachment.

Srila A.C. BV Swami Prabhupada:
"The Srimad Bhagavatam - Purport in Canto 1 - Chapter 8 - Verse 4"

MULTI-CITY PROTESTS CALL FOR 'NO MORE CHAVEZ'

COLOMBIANS PROTEST IN STREETS OVER
VENEZUELAN PRESIDENT HUGO CHAVEZ ACTIONS

BOGOTA (Reuters) - Several thousand people marched in the streets of Colombia's major cities on Friday to protest against what they criticize as meddling by Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez as tensions rise between the Andean neighbors. Opponents of Venezuelan President held protests against the leftist leader in cities across Latin America, in an effort coordinated through Twitter, Facebook and a Web site titled "No More Chavez!. "Chanting "No More Chavez" and waving Colombian flags, the marches snaked through Bogota. They were accompanied by smaller protests on Friday in other cities after organizers called for demonstrations in North America and Europe through the Internet social networks Facebook and Twitter.

Chavez, a Cuba ally who urges socialist revolution to counter U.S. influence, says allowing the U.S. military more access to Colombian bases for anti-drug and counter-guerrilla missions is a threat to Venezuela and South America. However, Colombian President Alvaro Uribe and U.S. officials say the plan does not include using the bases to attack other nations. In Bogota and other cities, protesters carried banners demanding Chavez respect Colombian sovereignty. "Chavez has to know that Latin America doesn't belong to him," said one protest organizer. "We're protesting with our Colombian brothers because we know what we have in Venezuela is a tyranny, a dictatorship disguised as a democracy," added a Venezuelan man marching in Bogota. Some people were protesting due to Chavez's growing authoritarianism, while others said he should stop meddling in other countries' affairs.

WHAT DO THE VEDIC TEACHINGS TELL US?

An ideal king thoroughly trained by culture and devotional service with the martial spirit makes a perfect king. Such a personal monarchy is far better than the so-called democracy of no training and responsibility. The thieves and rogues of modern democracy seek election by misrepresentation of votes, and the successful rogues and thieves devour the mass of population. One trained monarch is far better than hundreds of useless ministerial rogues, and it is hinted herein that by abolition of a monarchical regime like that of Mahārāja Parīksit, the mass of people become open to many attacks of the age of Kali.

Srila A.C. BV Swami Prabhupada:
"El Srimad Bhagavatam - Comentario en Canto 1 - Cap. 18 - Verso 43"

Being fourth-class men, śūdras are not very intelligent. Since the population is fallen in these democratic days, they can only elect a person in their category, but a government cannot run very well when it is run by śūdras.

Srila A.C. BV Swami Prabhupada:
"El Srimad Bhagavatam - Comentario en Canto 4 - Cap. 14 - Verso 17"

HITMEN KILL 17 IN MEXICO REHAB CENTRE

GUNMEN MASSACRE 18 AT
MEXICO DRUG REHABILITATION CLINIC

CIUDAD JUAREZ, Mexico (Reuters) - About a dozen hooded gunmen burst into a Mexican rehabilitation clinic near the U.S. border on Wednesday, lining up patients before killing 18 of them. Gunmen stormed into a drug rehabilitation clinic in Mexico and shot dead 18 people, in the worst of a string of drug-related atrocities that killed 40 in the troubled states of Chihuahua and Michoacan yesterday. Drug gangs have targeted rehab clinics in the manufacturing city of Ciudad Juarez across from El Paso, Texas, accusing them of protecting dealers from rival gangs. The attack was one of the deadliest in President Felipe Calderon's three-year war against drug cartels, despite the presence of 10,000 troops and federal police in Ciudad Juarez who constantly patrol the city's streets.

The attackers broke down the door of El Aliviane centre - an alcohol rehab clinic in the Bellavista suburb of Ciudad Juarez, lined up their victims against a wall and opened fire. Five people were wounded in the massacre - a copycat incident to a similar attack last year that left eight dead. Masked police guarded the scene as dozens of weeping relatives flocked to see if their loved ones had survived. Police said that the death toll may rise. The violence-torn city in the north-western state of Chihuahua is home to the Juarez drug cartel, which is battling other gangs for trafficking and territory. The police did not immediately name any suspects for the clinic killings, but recent violence in the city has been blamed on a feud between rival drug cartels in El Paso, Texas, a few miles away across the US border.

WHAT DO THE VEDIC TEACHINGS TELL US?

Nondevotees must undergo material hardships because they are prone to commit sinful fruitive activities. The desire to commit sinful actions continues in their hearts due to ignorance. These sinful actions are divided into three categories — pātaka (preliminary sin), mahā-pātaka (greater sin) and ati-pātaka (topmost sin) — and also into two divisions; prārabdha and aprārabdha. Prārabdha refers to sinful reactions from which one is suffering at the present, and aprārabdha refers to sources of potential suffering.

Srila A.C. BV Swami Prabhupada:
"El Srimad Bhagavatam - Comentario en Canto 6 - Cap. 1 - Verso 15"

SCORES DEAD AFTER EARTHQUAKE STRIKES INDONESIA

DEATH TOLL STANDS AT 46 AS HOSPITALS STRUGGLE
TO COPE WITH INJURIES AFTER QUAKE OFF JAVA COAST

JAKARTA, Indonesia — The death toll from a powerful earthquake and several strong aftershocks continued to rise Thursday and Indonesian officials said the figure was likely to increase significantly in the coming days. Indonesia’s disaster management agency said at least 46 people were killed by the 7.1 magnitude quake that struck the principal island of Java on Wednesday afternoon, rocking the province of West Java and causing panic throughout the country’s most populous region. Rescue workers continued to search Thursday for survivors among thousands of collapsed buildings along Java’s southwestern coast. Dozens of people were also reportedly buried beneath a landslide that was triggered by the quake in Cianjur, about 60 miles south of the capital, Jakarta.

The earthquake was felt throughout Java, where half of Indonesia’s 240 million people live, and as far away as the resort island of Bali. Many Indonesians feared a possible repeat of the earthquake and subsequent tsunami in 2004 that killed some 170,000 people in the country’s northernmost province of Aceh. That quake, with a 9.1 magnitude, struck off the western coast of northern Sumatra and created tsunamis that rolled across Aceh and into the Indian Ocean. In all, 227,898 people were killed, according to the U.S. Geological Survey. Since then, Indonesia has been hit by 29 quakes of 6.3 magnitude or higher. A tsunami warning issued minutes after the quake on Wednesday was quickly canceled. Indonesia’s state news agency reported that the tsunami early warning system installed following the 2004 tsunami failed to work in several areas along Java’s coast following Wednesday’s earthquake.In Jakarta, residents fled office towers, shopping centers and some apartment buildings on Wednesday, causing major traffic jams. Indonesia straddles the Pacific “Ring of Fire” where three major tectonic plates, and several smaller ones, continuously grate. The U.S. Geological Survey calls Indonesia the most “complex active tectonic zone on Earth.”

WHAT DO THE VEDIC TEACHINGS TELL US?

The wheel of material miseries is also a creation of the Supreme Personality of Godhead, but He is not under the control of the material energy. Rather, He is the controller of the material energy, whereas we, the living entities, are under its control. When we give up our constitutional position (jivera 'svarupa' haya — krishnera 'nitya-dasa' [Cc. Madhya 20.108]), the Supreme Personality of Godhead creates this material energy and her influence over the conditioned soul. Therefore He is the Supreme, and only He can deliver the conditioned soul from the onslaught of material nature (mām eva ye prapadyante māyām etām taranti te [Bg. 7.14]). Māyā, the external energy, continuously imposes upon the conditioned souls the suffering of the threefold miseries of this material world.

Srila A.C. BV Swami Prabhupada:
"The Srimad Bhagavatam - Purport in Canto 7- Chapter 9 - Verse 22"

AFGHANISTAN: 23 DEAD IN BLAST

DEPUTY INTELLIGENCE CHIEF IS SLAIN
AMONG OTHER 23 PEOPLE IN AFGHANISTAN

Mehtar Lam, Afghanistan (Reuters) - A suicide bomber killed at least 23 people, including the country's deputy head of intelligence, in an attack near a mosque in eastern Afghanistan on Wednesday, officials said. Lutfullah Mashal, governor of Laghman province who escaped injury in the attack, told Reuters the bomber burst from a shop and blew himself up while officials were getting into cars outside the mosque in the provincial capital Mehtar Lam. He said the 23 dead included two provincial officials as well as Abdullah Laghmani, deputy head of the powerful National Directorate for Security and one of the highest-ranking security officials in President Hamid Karzai's government to be killed. "It is obviously the work of the Taliban who are trying to destabilize Afghanistan by trampling Islamic values," Mashal said. He said 36 people were wounded. Eight ambulances left the scene headed toward Jalalabad, the nearest major city.

Violence in Afghanistan this year reached its highest level since the Taliban were ousted by U.S.-backed Afghan forces in 2001, escalating further in the runup to a presidential election last month, the result of which has yet to be announced. The election was a major test for Karzai after eight years in power and for U.S. President Barack Obama, who has sent thousands of extra troops to Afghanistan this year a new strategy to defeat the Taliban and stabilize the country and neighboring Pakistan. A Taliban spokesman, Zabihullah Mujahid, said the Islamist group had sent a suicide bomber to carry out the Laghman attack. The presidential palace confirmed the death toll, including Laghmani.

WHAT DO THE VEDIC TEACHINGS TELL US?

A ksatriya is allowed to kill only for maintenance of the law and order of the state; he is not allowed to kill or commit violence without reason. Violence is certainly a path leading to a hellish condition of life, but it is also required for maintenance of the law and order of the state. Here Lord Manu prohibited Dhruva Mahārāja from killing the Yaksas because only one of them was punishable for killing his brother, Uttama; not all of the Yaksa citizens were punishable. We find in modern warfare, however, that attacks are made upon innocent citizens who are without fault. According to the law of Manu, such warfare is a most sinful activity.

Srila A.C. BV Swami Prabhupada:
"El Srimad Bhagavatam - Comentario en Canto 4 - Cap. 1 - Verso 7"

FIRE NEAR LOS ANGELES GROWS IN SIZE

CALIFORNIA RESIDENTS RETURN TO RUBBLE
AS FIRES SPREAD UP TO MOUNT WILSON

LOS ANGELES (AP) – A relentless Southern California wildfire raged Tuesday with 53 homes up in smoke, thousands more threatened and new rounds of evacuations as towering flames crackled close to foothill neighborhoods in the path of the blaze. Flames plowed through half-century-old thickets of tinder-dry brush, bush and trees just 15 miles north of downtown Los Angeles. Firefighters awaited daybreak to learn the new extent of the 6-day-old fire, which is now expected to burn for weeks. Fire crews set backfires and sprayed fire retardant at Mount Wilson, home to at least 20 television transmission towers, radio and cell phone antennas, and the century-old Mount Wilson Observatory. It also houses two giant telescopes and several multimillion-dollar university programs in its role as both a landmark for its historic discoveries and a thriving modern center for astronomy. If the flames hit the mountain, cell phone service and TV and radio transmissions would be disrupted, but the extent was unclear.

Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger on Monday toured the Auburn area, where only charred remnants of some homes remained. At some houses, the only things left on the foundation are metal cabinets and washers and dryers. East of Los Angeles, a 1,000-acre fire damaged one home, threatened 2,000 others and forced the evacuation of a scenic community of apple orchards in an oak-studded area of San Bernardino County. Brush in the area had not burned for a century, fire officials said. Flames burning like huge candles erupted between rocky slopes of the San Bernardino Mountains and the neat farmhouses below. A few miles away, a 300-acre wildfire that erupted on the edge of Yucaipa forced the evacuation of 200 homes. With highs topping 100 degrees in some areas and humidity remaining low, the central and Southern California mountains were under a weekend warning of extreme fire conditions, the National Weather Service said.

WHAT DO THE VEDIC TEACHINGS TELL US?

Thus people are trying to become happy within the material world, but this is like trying to be happy in a forest fire. No one need go to a forest to set it ablaze: fire takes place automatically. Similarly, no one wants to be unhappy in family life or worldly life, but by the laws of nature unhappiness and distress are forced upon everyone.

Srila A.C. BV Swami Prabhupada:
"The Srimad Bhagavatam - Purport in Canto 5 - Chapter 13 - Verse 6"