CentrePoint News News That Matters

By Newsmax/Zogby

President Barack Obama’s job approval rating is down to 42%, with a decline in approval from Democrats the leading factor.

The latest Zogby Interactive poll of 4,518 likely voters conducted from August 28-31 found 48% disapprove and 42% approve of the job Obama is doing. The poll found 75% of Democrats approve of Obama’s performance, a drop of 13 points among Democrats from an interactive poll done July 21-24 of this year. That same poll found 48% of all likely voters approving of Obama’s job performance, and 49% disapproving.

In the most recent poll, 8% of Republicans and 37% of Independents approve of Obama’s job performance. Both are down slightly from six weeks ago; two points among Republicans and three among Independents.

For the rest of the poll data, click here…

http://www.newsmax.com/insidecover/zogby_obama_poll/2009/08/31/254617.html?                         s=al&promo_code=87B8-1

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By Gulf News

KHOBAR, Saudi Arabia: Saudi Arabia has tightened security at oil facilities after the country’s anti-terror chief, Deputy Interior Minister Prince Mohammed bin Nayef, escaped a suicide attack, guards at Abqaiq, the world’s biggest oil processing plant, said yesterday.

“Thursday night we received a call to tighten security and car inspection at all gates,” one guard said. “Even Aramco employees undergo inspection. There’s a lack of trust as militants disguised in Aramco’s cars attacked the facility in 2006,” he said.

Interior Minister Prince Nayef yesterday defended the policy of enticing “repentant” militants after one tried to assassinate his son, but warned there could be more attacks ahead.

“The security efforts and strategy that the country is following will not change,” Prince Nayef said in Jeddah. “This incident will not change this policy by which we open the door for those who repent.”

Al Qaeda, meanwhile, claimed responsibility for the suicide attack and said that the bomber, Abdullah Hassan Taleh Al Asiri, had managed to pass security checkpoints and board a private aircraft, Site Intelligence said yesterday.

For more, click here…

http://www.gulf-daily-news.com/NewsDetails.aspx?storyid=258646

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By UCA News with lead by the Editor

Indian Orrisan Christians have had what one observer calls a ‘Catacomb Experience.’  That’s the opinion of Anto Akkara, a Catholic journalist who lives in India and who has covered the persecution in the Orissa Province.

The Catholic journalist and author recently launched an updated version of his book “Kandhamal: A blot on Indian secularism,” which he originally released in April.

Kandhamal district in Orissa was the center of four months of anti-Christian violence that began on Aug. 24, 2008, a day after Maoists shot and killed Hindu leader Laxmanananda Saraswati in the district. The first anniversary of his murder, however, passed uneventfully there.

Akkara, who visited the region several times to document the stories of victims, said the determination of poor and illiterate people to hold onto their faith and their readiness to die for it reminded him of the plight of the early Christian community of Rome, which buried its martyrs in the catacombs.

For the interview, click here…

http://www.speroforum.com/a/20207/Indian-Christians-catacomb-experience

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By Yomiuri Shimbun

The leading opposition Democratic Party of Japan swept to a landmark victory in Sunday’s House of Representatives election, evidently spurred by voters’ desire for a shift in power.

The electoral drubbing sets the stage for a new coalition government led by the DPJ, replacing the 10-year-old coalition of the Liberal Democratic Party and New Komeito.

Meanwhile, the LDP suffered a historic defeat, losing its status as the largest force in the 480-member lower house for the first time since its inauguration in 1955.

Yukio Hatoyama, president of the 11-year-old opposition party, is certain to be named the next prime minister and form a government with two other opposition parties.

For more, click here…

http://www.yomiuri.co.jp/dy/national/20090831dy02.htm

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By CTV

Japanese Prime Minister Taro Aso conceded defeat in Sunday’s election after media exit polls predicted a landslide victory for the opposition Democratic Party after nearly 54 consecutive years of conservative rule.

“These results are very severe,” Aso said in a news conference at Liberal Democrat headquarters. “There has been a deep dissatisfaction with our party.”

Aso accepted responsibility for the election results and hinted that he would resign as president of the Liberal Democrats, who have governed since 1955, with the exception of one 11-month stretch.

Japanese television network NHK predicted Sunday that the Democratic Party will win 300 of 480 seats in parliament’s lower house.

The network based its projections, which gave the Liberal Democrats about 100 seats, on exit polls of about 400,000 voters.

An exit poll by TV Asahi predicted the Democratic Party would win 315 seats.

For more, click here…

http://www.ctv.ca/servlet/ArticleNews/story/CTVNews/20090830/japan_election_090830/            20090830?hub=TopStories

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By Eric Talmadge for AP and second half, the BBC

TOKYO – Japan’s opposition swept to a historic victory in elections Sunday, crushing the ruling conservative party that has run the country for most of the postwar era and assuming the daunting task of pulling the economy out of its worst slump since World War II.

A grim-looking Prime Minister Taro Aso conceded defeat just a couple hours after polls had closed, suggesting he would quit as president of the Liberal Democratic Party, which has ruled Japan for all but 11 months since 1955.

“The results are very severe,” Aso said. “There has been a deep dissatisfaction with our party.”

Unemployment and deflation — and an aging, shrinking population — have left families fearful of what the future holds.

Fed up with the LDP, voters turned overwhelmingly to the opposition Democratic Party of Japan, which ran a populist-leaning platform with plans for cash handouts to families with children and expanding the social safety net.

Japan’s winner says ‘It’s a revolution!’

Japan’s opposition leader Yukio Hatoyama has hailed an election “revolution”, with exit polls suggesting a massive win for his party.

The Democratic Party of Japan (DPJ) won 300 seats in the 480-seat lower house, ending 50 years of almost unbroken rule by the LDP, NHK TV predicted.

Turnout was about the same as in the previous election, only about half of eligible voters came to the polls. AFP photo.

Mr Hatoyama, 62, said people were “fed up” with the governing party.

Prime Minister Taro Aso said that he took responsibility for the defeat and would resign as head of the LDP.

Japan is suffering record unemployment and its economy is struggling to emerge from a bruising recession.

The DPJ has said it will shift the focus of government from supporting corporations to helping consumers and workers.

The White House has already said it hopes to forge a “strong alliance” with the incoming government.

The incoming government is promising major changes.  Asia watchers aren’t sure if the changes mean a departure from Japan’s traditional pro-American foreign policy.

For a CBC story, click here…

http://www.cbc.ca/world/story/2009/08/31/japan-election-prime-minister-aso-hatoyama485.html

For the BBC story, click here…

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/8229744.stm

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By Joseph Keenan

Christians have given an ultimatum to the Pakistani government to repeal the country’s blasphemy laws which they say are responsible for the attacks against Christians.

“We urge President Asif Zardari to repeal blasphemy law by an executive order immediately. If government fails to repeal blasphemy law up till September 15, 2009 … Christians shall be forced to launch a movement against government of Pakistan: Pakistan Christian Congress PCC,” said Pakistan Christian Post, which has been at the forefront of calling for the repeal of blasphemy laws in the country.

According to amendments added in the 1980s, “Use of derogatory remarks, etc; in respect of the Holy Prophet; whoever by words, either spoken or written or by visible representation, or by any imputation, innuendo, or insinuation, directly or indirectly, defiles the sacred name of the Holy Prophet Mohammed shall be punished with death, or imprisonment for life, and shall also be liable to fine.”

Pakistan Christian Congress (PCC), a political party launched by Pakistani Christians, has blamed the 1986 blasphemy law for the violence against the Christian community.

For more, click here…

http://www.christianpost.com/article/20090829/pakistani-christians-give-                                                                                     gov-t-ultimatum-on-blasphemy-laws/index.html

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By The Economist

GEORGE BUSH’S “war on terror” left America with a scarred reputation and many disturbing questions. Barack Obama has said that he wants to move forward, rather than look back. That is understandable. The new president has an ambitious agenda. Prising open the lid on previous mistakes might unleash a political hornet-swarm. But this week, with Mr Obama bunkered on Martha’s Vineyard, an ugly past roared into the present.

On August 24th the Department of Justice released a report on the CIA’s interrogation of detainees abroad, written by the agency’s internal watchdog in 2004. More important, Eric Holder, the attorney-general, directed a prosecutor to review whether interrogators may have broken the law. The announcement is part of a growing push to address past wrongdoing, by both the government and private firms.

On August 28th a federal judge will consider a suit charging Blackwater, a security contractor, with war crimes. Mr Holder’s announcement may even herald a new era of accountability. Those hoping for speedy reckonings, however, will probably be disappointed.

For more, click here…

http://www.economist.com/world/unitedstates/displayStory.cfm?story_id                                                                           =14323104&source=hptextfeature

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By Ed Corcoran

Afghanistan is clearly in a very difficult situation. There is a resurgent Taliban (actually a heterogeneous conglomeration of insurgents with varying motivations and loyalties) and a people tired of war and skeptical of the the US effort, a skepticism skillfully exploited by the Taliban. The central government is weak, corrupt, and now struggling to bring controversial elections to a close. Opium helps fuel the insurgency and greatly complicates stabilization efforts.

The war is not going well, as numerous administration officials have told us (the latest just this week from Admiral Mullen), the elections are underlining the disarray there, the casualties are going up, the public is increasingly skeptical of the operation — we are losing the support of the American people and of our allies. So the Taliban smell blood, a looming collapse of the US effort. Under these conditions, there is no incentive to negotiate with an ineffectual government; negotiation offers are bound to be seen more as a sign of weakness, or even desperation, than of reconciliation.

There have been a number of thoughtful strategy reviews, including by the Center for American Progress, the Asia Society, the Center for International Policy Studies, and Center for Strategic and International Studies. All of these address the same well know issues and make parallel recommendations on how to win, achieve success, stabilize the situation, etc. The current strategy is straightforward: stabilize areas and build up the economy. The focus of activities is now in the south and east, areas where the Taliban have always maintained a presence. It is not clear that the”benefits” of a central government — a corrupt central government propped up by the West — hold much attraction to the Pashtun tribesmen in these areas.

For more, click here…

http://sitrep.globalsecurity.org/articles/090829456-afghanistan-in-context.htm

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By BBC

Voting is under way in Japan in a general election which looks set to bring a historic change of government.

Opinion polls predict victory for the Democratic Party of Japan after more than 50 years of almost unbroken rule by the Liberal Democratic Party.

Current Prime Minister Taro Aso (left) and Democratic Party leader Yukio Hatoyama campaign for votes ahead of Sunday's election. AFP photo.

Japan is suffering record unemployment and its economy is struggling to emerge from a bruising recession.

Turnout is expected to be high and about 10% of eligible voters cast early ballots on Saturday.

The conservative Liberal Democratic Party (LDP), led by Prime Minister Taro Aso, has governed Japan for all but 11 months since 1955.

But analysts say voters blame it for the current economic malaise – and are angry enough to opt for change.

Several media polls predict that the Democratic Party of Japan (DPJ) will win more than 300 seats in the 480-seat lower house of parliament, reversing the election result of 2005.

Polls close at 2000 (1100 GMT) on Sunday. Japanese media will announce the results of exit polls immediately afterwards.

For more, click here…

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/8228278.stm

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