The Calm Before the Storm

 

For the regular readers of e-watchman, in case you were wondering, the Current Events feature with headlines from around the world has been discontinued—for now anyway. Instead, the page is just updated periodically with timely stories of Jehovah's Witnesses in the news. Hopefully, it will not turn into a JW crime blotter.

But, there is a lot happening in the world these days. So, this commentary is devoted to recent news on the topic of war and rumors of war.

One attention-grabbing headline was Vice President Cheney's recent remarks that terrorists are feverishly working to acquire nuclear weapons and that there is the distinct possibility of terrorists using weapons of mass destruction to kill hundreds of thousands of Americans, in what he called "a single day of horror."

A few months ago, British intelligence also warned Britons that a terror attack with WMD was only a matter of time. On October the 9th, a Mossad intelligence official reiterated that Western nations and Britain should brace for an eventual WMD attack.

In these reports the Anglo-American establishment has made it clear that they cannot protect their citizens from terrorism.

This past weekend radiological experts from around the world met in Stockholm, Sweden, to discuss how best to deal with the aftereffects of a nuclear terror attack.

Also in the news: The notorious Osama Bin Laden, who incredibly enough, has been able to elude capture for many years, reportedly now has a small rag-tag "navy" of sorts. Officials are concerned that the next terror attack may involve loading a nuclear device onto a container ship and detonating it in a U.S. port.

Even Pat Robertson, the television evangelist, has gotten in on the act; echoing the call of radical Islamic fundamentalists, the "Christian" fundamentalist suggested that an exploding nuclear device could actually remedy some of the deficiencies of American institutions. 

Rumors of war continue: suggesting that Syria is the next front in the so-called war on terror. Also, it is a distinct possibility that Iran may become the next battlefield. Recent reports cited that Israel has drawn up plans to strike nuclear facilities in Iran and Israeli submarines are now outfitted with nuclear-tipped cruise missiles—allowing the tiny nation to launch nuclear missiles from land, air and sea.

It seems that the nuclear arms race, after a brief respite, is proceeding apace; with third world nations and criminal gangs seeking to equalize the playing field by procuring black market weapons of mass destruction. Not since the dark days of the Cuban Missile Crisis of 1962 has there been such a persistent and ominous threat of imminent nuclear attack. It does appear that it is indeed only a matter of time until weapons of mass destruction are used.

Sometimes more can be discerned from what is not in the news than from what is. In the United States one of the leading presidential candidates, Lyndon LaRouche, recently spoke publicly in Los Angeles on various topics. He fielded questions concerning 9-11 and the global threat of synarchism. In his view, terrorism is controlled from within the Anglo-American establishment and is being exploited as a pretext to eliminate democratic institutions and implement a totalitarian regime. Apparently, though, no American media outlet thought his comments were newsworthy. Instead the media seems intent on distracting the population with a steady stream of pop news concerning the latest antics of first-named celebrities like Arnie, Kobe, and Rush; J-Lo and Ben, Madonna and the like. Ironically, the maligned Arabic news agency, Al-Jazeerah, covers what the American media neglects.

According to the Bible, the real rulers of this world are the demonic principalities in the heavenly places. The 12th chapter of Revelation reveals that as soon as Christ is given the kingdom of the world, war erupts in heaven and the Devil and his demons are cast down to the earth. That initiates a brief but intense period of unprecedented trouble that culminates in the final war of Armageddon. That being the case, it appears as if the demons are now behaving much like desperate criminals when faced with capture and are preparing to take the entire world as their hostage. The implied threat is that if Christ moves to take over the world, he will wind up ruling over an ash heap.

The Watchtower has, of course, taught us that the Devil was hurled down way back in 1914. But, let the reader be reminded that they were still using horse-drawn cannons, cavalry and dropping hand grenades from paper-winged airplanes back then. Besides, the First World War was a slow and grinding affair.

It is not in our best interest to suppose that Satan's great wrath was originally expressed so long ago. Instead, we ought to follow the advice of the Anglo-American propagandists and brace ourselves for the inevitable "single day of horror." Apparently, they know.