UPDATE: Confirmed: Jerusalem is on negotiating table

After months of denials, Israel admits 'mechanism' for 'dealing with holy city'

By Aaron Klein© 2008 WorldNetDaily
August 31, 2008

http://www.worldnetdaily.com/index.php?fa=PAGE.view&pageId=73965

Katrina was formed in the Caribbean when Bush, Rice and Sharon forced the Israelis from the Gaza three years ago this week. Gustav and Hanna were formed as Rice, Olmert and Abbas met this week working to divide Jerusalem and give much of Israel to her enemies.

http://www.worldnetdaily.com/index.php?fa=PAGE.view&pageId=73705

And in that day will I make Jerusalem a burdensome stone for all people: all that burden themselves with it shall be cut in pieces, though all the people of the earth be gathered together against it. (Zechariah 12:3)

DOUBLE TROUBLE!

Accuweather.com
August 30, 2008

http://www.accuweather.com/news-top-headline.asp?partner=accuweather&traveler=0&date=2008-08-30_08:04

Gulf Coast Prepares for Gustav
Hurricane Gustav will remain a major hurricane by the time it reaches the central Gulf coast early in the week. Uncertainty still remains about whether Hanna will add to the misery by late next week.

By late Saturday morning, Hurricane Gustav continued to strengthen as a Category 3 storm, packing winds near 125 mph. The hurricane is expected to continue strengthening to a dangerous hurricane as it slams west Cuba this afternoon.

The AccuWeather.com Hurricane Center reports that Gustav will cross the western tip of Cuba this afternoon as a Category 3 storm. Drenching rain of 6 to 12 inches will fall over western and central portions of the island with winds that could exceed 130 mph. The storm surge could be greater than 15 feet near where the eye crosses the island. The trek across the western tip of Cuba is not expected to subdue strengthening. In fact, Gustav is forecast to reach Category 4 status by Sunday morning in the Gulf of Mexico.

Related NewsVideo: Latest Weather Update Vlog: Elliot Abrams - Stunning Contrast Blog: Joe Lundberg - Anything but a Quiet Weekend Blog: WeatherMatrix - Gustav Update of Gustav

The current forecast takes the eye into the coast of Louisiana, west of the Mississippi Delta, late on Monday or early on Tuesday. However, all interests along the Gulf Coast from the Florida Panhandle to South Texas should monitor Gustav and prepare accordingly. The heavy rain and winds from Gustav will test levees breached during Hurricane Katrina. However, the storm surge will be less across Lake Ponchratrain if the hurricane makes landfall over the southwestern coast of Louisiana.

The track of Hurricane Katrina to the east of New Orleans first caused a storm surge into the city from the south out of the Gulf of Mexico. Then wind out of the north shoved the water south across Lake Ponchartrain. This was the worst case scenario for New Orleans, since it got a double whammy in regards to storm surge.

Federal, state and local officials are vowing that Gustav will not be a repeat of Katrina. The governors of Louisiana and Texas have issued disaster declarations in their states, and Mississippi Gov. Haley Barbour on Thursday declared a state of emergency.

According to the Times Picayune in New Orleans, Gov. Bobby Jindal said that Louisiana will open contraflow traffic patterns on interstates by "early, early Sunday morning". Preparations are being made to evacuate people out of at least 19 parishes where a state of emergency has been declared.

The Federal Emergency Management Agency has preposition personnel and supplies across the South, mindful of the intense criticism leveled at the agency in the wake of Katrina. FEMA Director R. David Paulison tried to reassure nervous residents that the levees protecting New Orleans are stronger than they were before Katrina. However, he added that dangers remain that make it critical for residents to follow evacuation orders.

On top of the destruction Gustav threatens to the land in the central Gulf, the hurricane will have a major impact on oil and natural gas operations in the Gulf, as well as refining operations along the Gulf Coast. Shell and BP are working toward a full evacuation of assets in the Gulf by this afternoon. ExxonMobil has initiated evacuation of nonessential personnel and is "prepared to evacuate remaining personnel from offshore facilities safely in advance of the storm."

Gross production of nearly 3 thousand barrels a day of oil and 50 million cubic feet a day of natural gas has been shut in. Fears of Gustav have caused hikes in global crude prices and wholesale gasoline prices in the Gulf region. Analysts say the storm could send pump prices back over $4 a gallon. According to Bloomberg News, Gulf Coast states contain 56 operable refineries that account for almost half of the U.S. refining capacity.

Katrina, which reached Category 5 before making landfall as a Category 3 storm, closed 95 percent of offshore output in the Gulf of Mexico. Almost 19 percent of U.S. refining capacity was idled because of damage and blackouts caused by hurricanes Katrina and Rita in 2005.

Gustav will have an impact on agriculture in the Deep South. According to Expert Senior Meteorologist and AccuWeather.com agriculture expert Dale Mohler, if the storm tracks into New Orleans it will be bad news for cotton farmers in the Mississippi Delta. Meanwhile, if it makes landfall farther west, crops in the Delta could be spared.

While the national focus is on Gustav, AccuWeather.com Hurricane Center forecasters are also monitoring Tropical Storm Hanna. This morning the tropical storm is located 240 miles north of San Juan, Puerto Rico, moving to the west at 14 mph with maximum-sustained winds estimated at close to 50 mph.

There are two potential scenarios for Hanna early next week. Energy moving over the Atlantic from the East Coast could absorb the storm, taking it north and eventually out to sea. The more likely scenario is that Hanna will move around the belly of high pressure over the East through the Straits of Florida and into the Gulf of Mexico. It could become a major hurricane later next week.