Nonie Darwish, executive director and co-founder of Former Muslims United (FMU) applauded the results of  a Swiss Republic referendum banning the construction of minarets among the approximately 150 Mosques serving 400,000 Muslims in Switzerland. Minarets are Muslim towers to call the faithful to prayers through loud speakers five times daily. These towers are symbols to both Muslims and non-Muslims of the Islamization of Europe, America and other Western democracies.
 
Ms. Darwish of FMU said: “the Swiss referendum victory  is the equivalent of banning what Turkish PM Erdogan called: ‘the bayonets of Islam.’ Supporters of a ban claim that allowing minarets would represent the growth of an ideology and a legal system – Sharia law – which are incompatible with Swiss democracy. The Swiss Referendum victory drew a red line  against Islamization in Europe.”   
 
She also noted that “this referendum victory is a credit to Swiss citizens, especially women voters who viewed  construction of Minarets as leading to adoption of other  graphic elements of Sharia law including wearing of burkas in public by Muslim women.” Darwish also  pointed out that polls  taken after the victory in the Swiss Referendum in neighboring Germany indicated that a similar effort there might  win a plurality of votes.
 
Darwish added that “many Muslim groups are denouncing the ban as oppression to freedom of religion. However, such Muslim groups will be more credible if they first denounced the oppression of religious minorities in Muslim countries who make it illegal to practice any religion other than Islam. Muslim groups who claim that they are oppressed in Europe should be the first to stand up and yell “not in the name of my religion” when Churches are burnt in Muslim countries. But instead all we hear from  Muslim groups is “I am a victim” and “I am offended” while the blood of non-Muslims is being shed in the name of Sharia.
 
Former Muslims United is a US-based civil rights organization with the goals of seeking the protecting the human and civil rights of Apostates from Islam in accordance with the laws of the United States and its Constitution.
 
  Co-founders of Former Muslims United
Nonie Darwish, Ibn Warraq, Amil Imani, Wafa Sultan,
Mohammed Asghar, Mano Bakh, Walid Shoebat

(Little Rock) — The updated Rabies Control Act has new rules passed by the State Board of Health that allow for a longer interval between rabies vaccinations for dogs and cats.  The new rules will become effective January 1, 2010.

 The updated Rabies Control Act was passed by the Arkansas State Legislature in 2009 (Act 159). Under the new rules, all dogs and cats four months of age or older will be required to have a rabies vaccination given by a licensed veterinarian. Currently no age limit is specified for initial vaccinations. Regardless of the age of the animal at initial vaccination, a booster vaccination should be administered one year later (as recommended by every licensed vaccine currently available).  Following the booster, dogs and cats should be placed on a vaccination schedule according to the labeled duration of the vaccine used. Both one- and three-year duration vaccines are available.  There is also a four-year vaccine for cats.

 If a veterinarian administers a one-year licensed rabies vaccine, the pet will need to be revaccinated one year later.  If a three-year vaccine is chosen, the pet will be required to be revaccinated three years later.  Pet owners should discuss the options of a one-year or three-year vaccine with their veterinarian, with the decision made in the best interest of the pet.

 Rabies primarily exists in wildlife.  In Arkansas, the host animals are skunks and bats, but any mammal can become infected if bitten by a rabid skunk or bat.  According to Dr. Susan Weinstein, State Public Health Veterinarian, the biggest issue for our state is that many pet owners do not get their dogs or cats vaccinated at all. Rural dogs and cats, especially those that live outdoors, are most commonly exposed to rabid animals in the wild.  These same outdoor dogs and cats are also the least likely to be vaccinated.  All dogs and cats should be taken to a licensed veterinarian to be vaccinated for rabies. Due to the routine physical contact between people and domestic pets, it is especially important to get these pets vaccinated in order to reduce rabies exposure to humans.

For additional information on updates to the new Act 159, go to the Department of Health website at www.healthyarkansas.com. To review changes in rabies vaccination requirements in the Rules Pertaining to Rabies Control, go to http://www.healthyarkansas.com/rules_regs/rabies_2009_draft.pdf

David Hale, cofounder of Knight & Hale GameCalls and host of the popular hunting show “Ultimate Hunting” is coming to your area!  Daivd Hale will be the featured speaker at the Tumbling Shoals Annual Wild Game Supper February 4 at 6:30 PM.  A good old fashioned venison dinner will be served.  There will be a prize drawing for a primitive weapon!  Event will be held at the Tumbling Shoals Baptist Church auditorium, located on Hwy 25 N, 2 miles north of the Greers Ferry Dam.  Tickets are just $8.00 per person and are on sale now at the church office.  Call 362-3987.  Seating is limited and tickets must be purchased in advance.

NORTH LITTLE ROCK, Ark. – Only three days remain until the Jan. 2 deadline
for Arkansas state and local agencies and certain private non-profit
organizations that may be eligible for federal disaster assistance to submit
a Request for Public Assistance (RPA) form to the Arkansas Department of
Emergency Management (ADEM).

Public Assistance funds are available in 38 Arkansas counties as part of the
federal disaster declaration for severe storms, tornadoes and flooding
beginning Oct. 29 and ending Nov. 8. The main goal of the Federal Emergency
Management Agency (FEMA) and state Public Assistance program is to provide
reimbursement for eligible, disaster-related expenses and restoration of
eligible facilities to pre-disaster levels.

Jan. 2 is the deadline to submit an RPA for Boone, Bradley, Calhoun,
Carroll, Cleburne, Cleveland, Columbia, Conway, Cross, Dallas, Franklin,
Fulton, Grant, Izard, Jackson, Johnson, Lafayette, Lawrence, Lincoln, Logan,
Marion, Monroe, Nevada, Newton, Ouachita, Poinsett, Prairie, Pulaski,
Randolph, Saint Francis, Scott, Sharp, Stone, Union, Van Buren, White and
Woodruff Counties.

These areas were designated eligible for Public Assistance (PA) on Dec. 3.

Jan. 15 is the deadline for state agencies, local governments and certain
private non-profit organizations in Drew County to submit RPAs to the state.
Drew County was designated eligible for federal PA funds on Dec.16.

ADEM and FEMA have received more than 70 RPAs from state and local
governments and private non-profits that provide critical community
services.

To apply for Public Assistance funds, eligible agencies and organizations
must first submit an RPA to ADEM.  More information can be obtained by
calling the Arkansas Department of Emergency Management Recovery Branch at
501-683-6700.

The PA program is administered in Arkansas by ADEM and funded up to 75
percent by FEMA. The program reimburses local and county governments and
certain private non-profit organizations for expenses or damage incurred
during the disaster and may cover costs for emergency protective measures,
debris removal and public facility repair or replacement costs including
buildings, equipment, utilities, and other facilities.

Applicants must submit Requests for Public Assistance (RPA) to the state
within 30 days of the date the area was designated part of the federal major
disaster declaration.

Editors:  For more information on Arkansas disaster recovery, visit online
at www.fema.gov or http://www.adem.arkansas.gov/.

###

Disaster recovery assistance is available without regard to race, color,
religion, nationality, sex, age, disability, English proficiency or economic
status.  If you or someone you know has been discriminated against, call
FEMA toll-free at 800-621-FEMA (3362). For TTY call 800-462-7585.

The Arkansas Department of Emergency Management (ADEM) is the state’s
homeland security and emergency management agency. The agency works to
identify and lessen the effects of emergencies, disasters and threats to
Arkansas by developing effective prevention, preparedness, mitigation,
response and recovery actions for all disasters and emergencies.

FEMA’s mission is to support our citizens and first responders to ensure
that as a nation we work together to build, sustain, and improve our
capability to prepare for, protect against, respond to, recover from, and
mitigate all hazards.

WASHINGTON–Commenting on the failed Christmas attack of Flight 253, President Obama called the incident an act of “terrorism” and the would-be bomber an “isolated extremist.” Since his remarks, al-Qaeda has claimed responsibility for the attempted attack, showing the disconnect between the administration’s characterization of our enemy and the reality of the situation.

“America’s security depends on identifying precisely the enemy that threatens our lives–and then crushing it, rendering it a non-threat,” writes Elan Journo, a fellow at the Ayn Rand Center. “The enemy Washington evasively calls ‘terrorism’ is actually an ideologically inspired political movement: Islamic totalitarianism. It seeks to subjugate the West under a totalitarian Islamic regime by means of terrorism, negotiation, war–anything that will win its jihad.

“To defend American lives properly, we should target not terrorism, a tactic, but militant Islam, the ideology that motivates the terrorists.”

To learn more about our government’s failures since 9/11 and a proper course of action for the United States, read Winning the Unwinnable War, a new book by Mr. Journo.

# # #

Elan Journo is a fellow with the Ayn Rand Center for Individual Rights, and editor of and chief contributor to the book “Winning the Unwinnable War: America’s Self-Crippled Response to Islamic Totalitarianism.” He specializes in foreign policy and the Middle East. His writings have appeared in such publications as the Los Angeles Times, San Francisco Chronicle, Philadelphia Inquirer, Houston Chronicle, Chicago Sun-Times, and the Globe and Mail of Canada. He is also a contributing writer for “The Objective Standard,” a quarterly journal of culture and politics. Journo has been a guest on numerous nationally syndicated radio programs.

To interview Elan Journo or book him for your show, please contact: media@aynrandcenter.org or call 202-609-7470.

For more information on Objectivism’s unique point of view, go to ARC’s Web site. The Ayn Rand Center is a division of the Ayn Rand Institute and promotes the philosophy of Ayn Rand, author of “Atlas Shrugged” and “The Fountainhead.”

Title: Adoption Information Meeting
Location: Dillon International office, 4702 W. Commercial Dr., Suite B-1,North Little Rock, AR
Link out: Click here
Description: A representative of Dillon International will give an overview of the licensed, non-profit agency\’s adoption programs in China, Korea, Haiti, India and Hong Kong, plus new opportunities in Ghana and Nepal. Adoption programs in Ethiopia, Russia and Honduras, available through an affiliation with Buckner Adoption and Maternity Services, will also be discussed.
Start Time: 6:00 pm
Date: 2010-01-12

Title: Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat
Location: The Arkansas Repertory Theatre 601 Main Street, Little Rock, AR
Link out: Click here
Description: Take a rainbow ride through biblical Egypt on the wings of Andrew Lloyd Webber’s uplifting music and the humor and poetry of lyricist Tim Rice.
This colorful retelling of the biblical story of Joseph, his uncanny abilities and his designer coat sings out to young and old alike with a score which is wall to wall hits, including “Close Every Door” and “Any Dream Will Do.”

One of the biggest family hits at The Rep in the last decade, Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat makes its triumphant return for Christmas this year to delight Rep audiences with music, sound and spectacle!

Phone #: For Tickets and Subscriptions, Please contact our Box Office at 501-378-0405 or 1-866-6THEREP

Wednesday curtain 7 p.m, Thursday, Friday, Saturday curtain 8 p.m., Sunday curtain 2 p.m. and 7 p.m.

Start Date: 2009-12-04
End Date: 2010-01-03

WASHINGTON–Commenting on the failed Christmas attack of Flight 253, President Obama called the incident an act of “terrorism” and the would-be bomber an “isolated extremist.” Since his remarks, al-Qaeda has claimed responsibility for the attempted attack, showing the disconnect between the administration’s characterization of our enemy and the reality of the situation.
“America’s security depends on identifying precisely the enemy that threatens our lives–and then crushing it, rendering it a non-threat,” writes Elan Journo, a fellow at the Ayn Rand Center. “The enemy Washington evasively calls ‘terrorism’ is actually an ideologically inspired political movement: Islamic totalitarianism. It seeks to subjugate the West under a totalitarian Islamic regime by means of terrorism, negotiation, war–anything that will win its jihad.
“To defend American lives properly, we should target not terrorism, a tactic, but militant Islam, the ideology that motivates the terrorists.”
To learn more about our government’s failures since 9/11 and a proper course of action for the United States, read Winning the Unwinnable War, a new book by Mr. Journo.

On Sunday, January 10 at 2 p.m., Joe Biard, former mayor of Batesville, will tell about his parents’ businesses and their past as he remembers it. He will focus on their Batesville Fur Company, which at one time was the largest fur market in Arkansas.

In the 1950s Ernest Biards’ fur company brought in over $250,000 annually, and most times dealt with New York fur buyers. The company not only carried mink and fox and other fine furs, but also marketed skunk tails. A seasonal business, it operated from November through March. Biard will include some of his own story as he tells how he learned to grade fur and take care of the office as a young man.

Ernest and Erma Marshall Biard also owned several other businesses. One was Batesville Shell and Pearl, which bought mussel shells and made button blanks for shipment to Iowa where they made the buttons. At one time Biard owned one-half interest in a Black River pearl believed to be the largest in the world and it was featured on the “To Tell the Truth” television show.

The Biard family established Red River Marine Sales in Heber Springs where they sold larger boats and outboard marine engines. And they also owned Hi-Way Lumber Company, along with Batesville Woodworks.

Audience members may be stimulated to remember their own families’ history as it related to a bygone era.

Normal museum hours are: Tuesday-Saturday, 9 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. and from 1:30 to 4 p.m. on Sundays.  Admission is $3.00 for adults, $2.00 for seniors and $1.00 for children.  The museum is located at 380 South 9th street, between Boswell and Vine Streets in Batesville.

Old Independence is a regional museum serving a 12-county area: Baxter, Cleburne, Fulton, Independence, Izard, Jackson, Marion, Poinsett, Sharp, Stone, White, and Woodruff.  Parts of these present-day counties comprised the original Independence County in 1820’s Arkansas territory.

Those 50 years and older are at greater risk to develop poor circulation.

The Center on Aging-Northeast will present, “Poor Leg Circulation?  What You Need to Know,” on Wednesday, January 6th at 11:00 a.m. at Cleburne County Senior Center, 320 Trailwood Dr., in Heber Springs

The guest speaker for the program will be Melanie Hinchey, RN, with the Center on Aging-Northeast. Ms. Hinchey will discuss what symptoms to look for and what steps you can take if you have poor circulation in your legs.

For more information, call 1-800-745-0557.