TulipGirl and Le Sabot Post-Moderne are continuing to provide us with live coverage of the crisis in Ukraine including the news that Putin had offered to send in Russian troops.

Another new blog Blog Joel News has some more updates and analysis from people on the ground, including a letter from a Russian, Vitaly, who with his Ukranian wife is taking part in the protests. It’s a long pdf, but he has many great pictures that give an idea of what it’s like over there.

Update: The Ukranian parliament has decided to dismiss Prime Minister Yanukovych in the second round of a secret vote. Although he can remain acting prime minister for two months according to the constitution, it is still a big blow for him.

Update: Foreign Notes gives the voting breakdown.

“The Ukrainian Parliament just voted 229 to 8 to dismiss the governrment. There were 237 deputies there which was enough for a quorum so it was a legitimate vote.”

Update: It seems Yushchenko and Yanukovych have reached some kind of an agreement; there will be a re-vote and Yushchenko decided to stop his supporters from blocking government buildings.

A factor that has been largely ignored in the 2004 election is prayer. We don’t like to talk about it and it goes against our sensibilities to have God meddling in our “political” affairs. We have seen the paintings of George Washington praying before the battle, but somehow the fact that God is God of all life, including our political leaders continues to eludes us.

However there is ample reason to believe that God expects his servants to pray for righteous leaders and there is good evidence that he answers those prayers. In 1 Timothy Paul writes:

I urge, then, first of all, that requests, prayers, intercession and thanksgiving be made for everyone for kings and all those in authority, that we may live peaceful and quiet lives in all godliness and holiness. This is good, and pleases God our Savior.
1 Timothy 2:1-3 (NIV)

From raising up Joseph as the second in charge of Egypt to save his people to disposing the Pharaoh of Egypt when he led the Israelites to Canaan the Bible is replete with thousands of instances where God showed that he is indeed king of the nations.

God’s hand is also present in more recent history. In 1996 the five thousand or so Mongolian Christians decided to pray that God would change a government that was hostile to Christianity. Rick Leatherwood, an American who was there at the time says this about it:

“Then came the Parliamentary elections of 1996. The Communist party at the time held 73 of the 75 seats in Parliament and the “Democrats” were expected to gain only a dozen or so seats in the election. Weekly prayer meetings numbering upwards of 300 began, and were held each Sunday night for ten weeks leading up to the election. They heard a message of faith: that things can change; that God can call into being things that are not. And the people prayed accordingly. The meetings culminated the evening before the election in the large square in the center of the city. As this final prayer meeting began a rainbow broke out right over the square. The next day, June 30, 1996, the Mongolian people voted 50 “Democrats” into the Parliament and Mongolia made world headlines.”

This is just one experience out of many when after believers have humbled themselves and prayed, God disposed leaders, raised leaders up and changed the course of a nation in dramatic ways.

The Presidential Prayer Team has felt it is their duty to help Christians answer the commands of Scripture. The group has grown over the last few years from only a couple people to over 2.8 million — making it more than 1% of the population who are praying for our president. Non-partisan and non-sectarian, membership is free and there is no obligation. Besides sending out weekly e-mail updates they coordinate virtual prayer rallies where thousands decide to pray at certain times. Not content to pray just for our nations leaders, they have been very successful with an “Adopt a Troop” program, where members can pair up with one of the armed forces and commit to pray for them.

Before the election, The Presidential Prayer Team organized Pray the Vote. Both through them, other organizations, churches and by themselves, Christians committed to pray and fast for the election. And we see what happened, where we swept in the most pro-life Congress and President ever.

Bush and all our leaders need even more prayer now as they set an agenda for the second term, determine the makeup of the cabinet and reach out across the aisle. Let us bend our knees, praying that our leaders will indeed rule in the fear of the Lord.

The Raccoon already mentioned the Cornell Review’s article on John Ashcroft (in The Clocktower Sniper), but as it’s not online I thought I would include a couple paragraphs to give you the flavor:

“A specter is haunting the United States, social dancing. So John Ashcroft would have you believe. The man who uses daily anointments of olive oil to protect himself from Satan also believes that social dancing is thoroughfare to Hell. Unfortunately, for the dance-disinclined (i.e. yours truly) and those terrified of dancing, social dancing will persevere.

“As I personally blame dancing for my inability to find a consenting female, I hope that Mr. Ashcroft and his church, Assemblies of God, succeed in their goal to end dancing. The Assemblies of God, similar to its Islamic counterpart Hamas, has articulated less than coherent arguments. . . .

“. . . but as a devoted member of the Assemblies of God he believes this. Between busting internet bong dealers, anointing himself on a daily basis, opposing dancing, and God only knows what else, any reasonable person will determine that John Ashcroft is a little eccentric.

“According to Matt Drudge John Ashcroft will not join President Bush for a second term as attorney general. I think I speak for most of us when I say that this is probably for the best.”

This coming from one of Cornell’s “conservative” papers? The one Ann Coulter founded? Even the Cornell Daily Sun would hesitate to slam a church like the Assemblies of God. I guess your closest friends are truly your worst enemies.

Update: This is the same section where the Cornell Review slammed campus conservative Joe Sabia last year about this time. The editor-and-chief of Cornell’s other conservative newspaper, The Cornell American has assured me they will print a article praising Ashcroft. Will anyone stick up for the Assemblies of God?

I’ve been enjoying a short reprieve from school (Cornell University). We have a break from Wednesday afternoon till Monday morning, and then it’s full steam for the last week of classes, study week and our finals. The last day of finals is the seventeeth of December. After that we’re free till late January. (Cornell has a long winter break.)

So, I finished most of my physics homework Wednesday afternoon, and have been enjoying a time off since then, and catching up on some sleep. . . but I have to soon get back to work to finish some late homework and get a start on the week ahead. I’ve been duly rebuked by Dayton v. Kennedy and Kathryn at The Corner for reading their blogs during Thanksgiving when I should be enjoying the people around me. . . well, at least I didn’t post anything.

It’s been cold, and we’ve had our second snowfall (and the first one that is really sticking) over Thanksgiving here in Ithaca. Over in the basement in the room which I share with the Racoon, we’ve cleaned up the floor, put in some more lights, and are running a dehumidifier. The whole house has a cheery atmosphere.

There are so many things I find to be thankful for. For Bush’s re-election, the new snow that has made the world so bright and clean, being able to take a short break with my family, the multitude of ways the Lord has been taking care of me this semester, my good teachers, a warm place to live, for all the great blogs out there, including the neat ones with live coverage from Ukraine. . . .

Powerline linked to the the Le Sabot Post-Moderne blog in Ukraine earlier yesterday. There they have been posting frequent updates (along with Tulipgirl) on the evolving situation there. The blogger at Le Sabot Post-Moderne is a Christian who has been helping the opposition translate their news items into English.

If you haven’t been following this story this good article (curtesy again of Powerline) will bring you almost up-to-date. Since then the Supreme Court has put on hold the publication of the results and Yushenko (the pro-democracy candidate) has been gathering momentum.

Update: The Rada (Ukrainian parliament) says the election is not valid . Althoug non-binding, this has bolstered pro-democracy candidate Yushchenko. Regions in the East who favor Yanukovich are threatening secession. Yushchenko has also given a 24 hr. ultimatum to the sitting president, Kuchma. . . .

Our Republican candidate in the Washington gubernatorial race finished only 42 votes ahead after the recount ended today, Sound Politics reported. It is unclear what the Democrats will do; Rossi has declared victory, but the Democrat still has to concede. So far it looks like he is planning on asking for another recount.

Rossi’s lead slipped from a several hundred lead to only forty-two, so it’s very possible that another recount will tip the votes Gregoire’s way. And then shall we just keep recounting till someone gets a million vote margin?

Here is the the link to send an e-mail to the Gregoire campaign; please ask them to graciously concede.

After Specter wrote out, signed, and read aloud a pledge, saying he would not stop any of the President’s pro-life judges, the Senate Judiciary committe voted unanimously for Senator Specter to become the chair of the committee. It is very sad. In my mind, Specter is not honest, he does not have to oppose judges openly, he can do a lot secretly! Now is the President’s chance to appoint judges — like the American people want, and it is why they voted Republican last election. They want someone who will fight for the moral values of the populace, who will overthrow Roe Vs. Wade, and who will, when the need may arrise, make gay marriages, and even gay civil unions illegal. But with Specter. . . it might be very hard.

When the counting finally finished Dino Rossi (the Republican) won the gubernatorial election by 261 votes. It’s the first time a Republican has been elected since ‘80. There will be a recount, but he’s already given his victory speech. Also, according to the Rosenblog no WA recount has resulted in a different outcome.

The Cornell Review, one of Cornell’s centerist “conservative” papers, put out a new, and rather repulsive issue on November 16. The editorial “On Gay Marriage” tells of the Reviews opinion’s on that subject. It is not very easy to read, and although he says his point at the end, reading the article you can’t really see how he got to his conclusion. He seems to have an easier time refuting gay arguments, then Christian one’s, but outlines what he thinks as a plan to victory for homosexuals. He thinks that if gays fight for something besides marriage, call it “egairram” they will win, and then it will be a kind of “compromise”, because the “sacred” word marriage would not be messed with. He thinks if Christians compromise alot, and homosexuals “compromise” by not using the word “marriage”, then everybody will live happily ever after. The Cornell Review has been pretty good this semester, this is the first issue that I found completly disgusting.

Besides the editorial, they have a article blasting John Ashcroft’s faith, and comparing the Assembly of God church to “Hamas”! They also have an article about Bob Barr, the headline being that the constitution is his Bible, and in the article that his Bible is his constitution? Maybe…just maybe they don’t know what they are talking about!

In WA, the Democrat gubernatorial candidate is once again ahead in the last tally of votes counted. According to the Olympian, suddenly 10,000 more votes showed up, putting the the Democrat candidate, Christine Gregoire, a wee bit ahead. She is now 158 votes ahead.

Dino Rossi, the Republican, is pro-life, and from what I have heard also very conservative. If we win this we’ll have picked up a governor’s seat this election and get 29 governorships in all.

The Big Trunk at Powerline takes issue with us focusing on “values” instead of the self-evident truths that have existed since the founding of the Republic. By making such an exchange he warns we are trading our birthright for a mess of pottage.

“Alone in the world, the United States is founded on the “self-evident truths” that all men are created equal and are endowed by their Creator with the right to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness, and that government is instituted among men to secure these rights. These rights exist under what the Declaration of independence — the first of the founding laws of the United States — refers to as the laws of nature and Nature’s God.

“”Values” are by definition relative. They have no objective status or connection to a commonly shared nature. The supplanting of nature and self-evident truths by “values” is more or less the great project of modern liberalism, whose home is in the Democratic Party. It is but a short distance from the orthodoxy of “values” to the related dogmas of “multiculturalism” and “diversity” that permeate liberal thought. In this sense the Democratic Party is the party of “values.”

“On the other hand, the Republican Party has its roots in the founders’ thought. Recall, for example, that in its first platform the Republican Party condemned slavery and polygamy together as “the twin relics of barbarism.” Can anyone today explain why? Or how “homosexual marriage,” for example, should be viewed in light of such an explanation?”

Much has been happening this last week: Yasser Arafat has died, giving the Palestenians and the Israeli’s a chance for peace. Ashcorft has stepped down; Alberto Gonzales has become the first Hispanic attornery general.

Against the background of these historic events, Republican senators are still, according to reports, haggling behind closed doors on who should be the next judiciary chairman. Arlen Specter has been on a crusade to paint himself as conservative and fair-minded, but so far conservatives haven’t been letting him off.

Here at Cornell the Cornell Daily Sun has been running on average a couple articles a day on election ananlysis. Bush’s win shook Cornellians up, and they aren’t sure what they did wrong.

Well, as of Tuesday night, Aschroft has left public office, and is no longer America’s Attorney General! I really liked him, and enjoyed it when Naomi read aloud “Lesson’s from a Father to His Son“, his autobiography. There are reports that he will be replaced by Albert Gonzales, can anyone tell me anything about him? Is he liberal, conservative, mainline? (Anyone can leave a comment.)

One thing nice about Gonzales becoming Attorney General, is that Bush would have appointed the first Hispanic attorney general ever. It may just go well with Hispanic voters!

Yasser Arafat died this morning! He’ll be buried in Ramallah before Ramadan ends! I am pretty happy about it — but am a little worried that somebody even worse may take his place. There will be some sort of election’s soon, we have to pray that God would help a bit smarter person come to office! Now we have two terrorist’s down — and one more to go! (Hussein & Arafat down, Bin Laden still on the run.)