The Netherlands: Microsoft Signs New PPA for Wind Farm Electricity in the Netherlands - by Alyssa Danigelis

Microsoft signed a PPA with the Swedish state-owned energy company Vattenfall to purchase all the electricity produced from a new 180-megawatt wind farm being built in the Netherlands, according to an announcement this week. The farm will be located in the Wieringermeer polder, near Amsterdam, next to Microsoft’s data center operations.

The 10-year deal, one of the largest wind PPAs in the Netherlands, is Vattenfall’s first with a data center outside Nordic countries. Nuon, part of Vattenfall, will be responsible for constructing and operating the wind farm. Eventually the company plans to expand the project to include 100 windmills, according to Microsoft. “That will allow the production of approximately 1.3 billion kilowatt hours of renewable electricity,” the announcement says.

The tech giant’s data center operations in the Netherlands are a regional hub for Microsoft Cloud service customers in Europe, the Middle East, Africa, and beyond. Vattenfall and Microsoft already had a partnership prior to the PPA — the energy company uses Microsoft’s cloud-based tools for its business operations including the enterprise platform Azure for analytics.

Lately Microsoft has been on a roll with renewable energy. Last month the company signed a deal for 100% of the energy produced by GE’s new 37-megawatt wind farm in Ireland. Recently Microsoft opened a pilot for a data center in Seattle that uses integrated fuel cells and natural gas rather than power from the electrical grid. The company’s Cloud Infrastructure and Operations team hopes the fuel cells can one day work with renewable biogas instead.

The Wieringermeer site currently has 93 turbines that are set to be replaced with more powerful machines, Wind Power Monthly reported. “Combined with an adjacent extension the project’s additional capacity of 115 MW, Wieringermeer will have 100 turbines in total with a total capacity of 295 MW when completed,” reporter Craig Richard wrote. “Vattenfall will own 82 of these turbines, the nearby Energy Research Center of the Netherlands will own 17, and the remaining turbine will be reserved for local residents, the developer said.”

Construction on Vattenfall’s new wind farm is planned to start next year. The partners expect additional generation capacity to become available in 2020. Once the project is completed, it will likely be one of the largest wind farms in the Netherlands.

Read more: Microsoft Signs New PPA for Wind Farm Electricity in the Netherlands - Energy Manager Today

Our planet - Just Evil Terrorists? or do we live on a planet populated by Evil People?

Once again, the world has been shocked by another evil terrorist attack, committed by a radical, religiously and politically brainwashed human being, killing many innocent people. .

This act deserves nothing but condemnation - but when you really start thinking about evil, isn't there evil all around us, and unfortunately also in all of us.

Isn't it evil, when governments invest more in their military, than in universal healthcare, or in taking care of the environment? 

Isn't it evil, to carpet bomb and kill hundreds of thousands of civilians in proxy wars, and calling  the casualties "collateral damage ? "

Isn't it evil, when corporations consider profits more important than the health of human beings? re:industrial pollution; the genetic manipulation of foods;  the production and sale of pesticides, all of these having caused a number of health effects, which today are linked to a range of serious illnesses and diseases in humans, from respiratory problems to cancer ?

Of course many people reading this will say: "that is all good and well, but I am certainly not an evil person".

Really?  what about : jealousy, lies. cheating, gluttony,intimidation, lust, fornication, pride, - all evil acts .Can anyone honestly say they never had anything to do with any of those evils listed ?

Evil is evil, lesser, greater, middling - makes no difference. The degree is arbitrary, the definition blurred. If one would have to choose between one evil and another, It is better not to choose at all.

Christians, in contrast to all other beliefs, know, they are not alone in their sufferings and struggles against evil. They know they are all in this battle together, and that everyone will experience trials. 

"Woe to the inhabitants of the earth and the sea! For the devil has come down to you, having great wrath, because he knows that he has a short time” (Revelation 12:12).

If we consider the whole picture, specially now we get bombarded daily by all kinds of alarming news, there should be no doubt in our minds, that this is Satan’s world and planet, rather than God’s. Paul even refers to these times as “this present evil age” (Galatians 1:4).

However, Satan will not always dominate planet earth. Biblical prophecy reveals that an astounding series of events will shake our world, as never before and usher in a new age—a 1,000-year era under the reign of Jesus Christ in the Kingdom of God (Matthew 6:10; Luke 21:31).

God never promised that believers wouldn’t have suffering, but He did promise to be with us through it.    Jesus said, “I am with you always, even to the end of the age.” (Matthew 28:20)

EU-Digest  

The Extreme Right in the EU: Why do Far-Right White Nationalists Support Zionism?

Wilders:Extreme Right, Nationalist or just an opportunist?

The success of Sebastian Kurz in Austria's recent election means that the extreme right Freedom Party, the FPO, will likely join the governing coalition. 

 Populist right-wing parties are on the rise in many European countries in recent years. 

These parties include the Party of Freedom in the Netherlands headed by Geert Wilders, the National Front in France headed by Marine Le Pen, the Sweden Democrats headed by Jimmie Akesson, and more. Although highly nationalistic in their politics, these right-wing parties are very similar to each other. They share an Islamophobic and xenophobic ideology, and very interestingly, they all share a strong support for Zionism and for the state of Israel.

 Michael Colborne wrote an article for the Haaretz newspaper with the title "Rise of a New Far-right: The European 'Philosemites' Using Jews to Battle Muslims," to address the seeming contradiction in the European far-right. Indeed, there really is no difference between philo-Semitism and anti-Semitism. 

There is no such thing as positive racism. The far-right groups did not replace their hatred of Jews with the hatred of Muslims. They continue to hate both groups. Richard Silverstein told The Real News about how the election of President Trump emboldened those groups in the United States.R. SILVERSTEIN I think that the anti-Semites in the United States are affiliated with the alt-right movement that you correctly associated with Breitbart, and this alt-right movement includes a very big cadre of anti-Semites, and they feel empowered by Trump's victory and his nativist, kind of populist, extremist kind of views. 

That's why a lot of the anti-Semitic attacks are happening, and they're very much linked to the attacks on the Muslim community, which is why American Jews should really be making common cause with Muslims. SHIR HEVER: White nationalism has its roots in Europe in the 19th century as it developed and took form in order to serve as justification for European colonialism. In those European countries that had smaller and fewer colonies, such as Germany, Italy, and Hungary, white nationalism turned inwards in the form of fascism, implementing the strict, hierarchical, colonial structure on their own citizens. It sought to find its enemies within and turned on minorities. 

During the Second World War, an unprecedented industrial genocide was perpetrated against Jews, against Sinti and Roma, against homosexuals and lesbians, against people with mental disabilities, and against others who were deemed enemies of the state. Since Jews were targeted above all other groups during this genocide, and since the State of Israel, which was founded three years after the Holocaust, defines itself as a Jewish state, it raises the question of why does the European racist right-wing support the State of Israel? 

Aren't they on completely opposite sides? There are two explanations for this. 

One is that the Zionist movement and the State of Israel seek to convince Jews from all over the world to migrate to the State of Israel. The prospect of European Jews and North American Jews leaving their homes and moving to the Middle East appeals to many racist groups. 

The second explanation for the alliance between the Western far-right and the State of Israel is that Israeli policies towards immigrants, towards Arabs and towards Muslims, are precisely the kind of policies that the European and North American far-right would like to implement. President Trump, during his campaign for the presidency, commented on Fox & Friends on how the US can and should imitate Israeli racial profiling.DONALD TRUMP: Our local police, they know who a lot of these people are. 

They're afraid to do anything about it because they don't want to be accused of profiling, and they don't want to be accused of all sorts of things. You know, in Israel they profile. They've done an unbelievable job, as good as you can do.

Read more: Why do Far-Right White Nationalists Support Zionism?

Spain-Catalan Conflict: In Belgium for 'safety', axed Catalan leader is summoned to Spain court

Spain's top criminal court on Tuesday (Oct 31) summoned Catalonia's axed separatist leader for questioning, hours after he appeared in Brussels insisting he remained the "legitimate president" of a region now under direct rule from Madrid.\

The National Audience in Madrid, which deals with major criminal cases, summoned Carles Puigdemont and 13 other former members of his administration, dismissed by Spain's central government last week, for Thursday and Friday.

The 14 are then set to be placed under formal investigation.

On Monday, Spain's chief prosecutor said he was seeking charges of rebellion - punishable by up to 30 years behind bars - sedition and misuse of public funds.

But the 54-year-old Puigdemont is in Brussels, where he surfaced after reportedly driving hundreds of kilometres to Marseille in France and taking a plane to the Belgian capital.

At a packed and chaotic news conference at the Brussels Press Club earlier on Tuesday, Puigdemont said he was there "for safety purposes and freedom" and to "explain the Catalan problem in the institutional heart of Europe."

"We want to denounce the politicisation of the Spanish justice system, its lack of impartiality, its pursuing of ideas not crimes, and to explain to the world the Spanish state's serious democratic deficiencies," he said.

He denied that he intended to claim asylum but said he and several other former ministers who travelled with him would return only if they have guarantees that legal proceedings would be impartial.

If Puigdemont and his former ministers fail to appear in court as requested, Spanish prosecutors could order their arrest.

And if they are still in Belgium when that happens, Spain could issue an international arrest warrant.

The National Audience also gave Puigdemont and his former ministers three days to pay a combined deposit against potential penalties of €6.2 million (US$7.2 million).

Read more: In Belgium for 'safety', axed Catalan leader is summoned to Spain court - Channel NewsAsia

Spain's direct rule takes hold in Catalonia as secessionists accept elections

"The party is over" for Carlos Puigdemont

Reuters reports that Spain's direct rule over Catalonia took hold smoothly on Monday as employees ignored calls for civil disobedience to turn up for work, and secessionist parties agreed to stand in new elections, implying acceptance that the regional government was dissolved.

Ousted Catalan President Carles Puigdemont travelled to Belgium with several other members of his sacked administration, a senior member of Spain's ruling People's Party said. After a day of rumours on his whereabouts, Umberto Gambini, the head of office of Catalan legislator Ramon Tremosa, on Monday said, "He is in Brussels.Yes confirmed.

Spain's state prosecutor, Attorney-General Jose Manuel Maza, called for charges of rebellion and sedition, as well as fraud and misuse of funds, to be brought against Catalan leaders.

Some of the most prominent ousted Catalan leaders, including Puigdemont and Vice-President Oriol Junqueras, had said they would not accept their dismissal. But their respective parties, PdeCat and Esquerra Republicana de Catalunya, said on Monday they would take part in the election, a tacit acceptance that parliament had been dissolved.

A call for widespread civil disobedience from the main civic groups behind the secessionist campaign failed to attract many followers. Most public sector workers such as teachers, firefighters and the police started worked as normal on Monday and there was no sign of widespread absenteeism.

A trade union, Intersindical-CSC, which had called for a general strike in Catalonia, said on Monday it had cancelled it.

There were no signs of any spontaneous demonstration taking place.

Two opinion polls also showed support for independence may have started to wane. A Sigma Dos survey published in El Mundo showed 33.5 per cent Catalans were in favour of independence while a Metroscopia poll published by El Pais put that number at 29 per cent. This compared to 41.1 per cent in July according to an official survey carried out by the Catalan government.

Opponents of secession largely boycotted the Oct. 1 referendum, when participants voted overwhelmingly for independence on turnout of 43 per cent.

Note EU-Digest: It is hoped that the Belgian Government puts the rebellious Catalan leaders back on an airplane to Spain, where they can be prosecuted for inciting rebellion against the legitimate government of Spain.

Read more: Spain's direct rule takes hold in Catalonia as secessionists accept elections - World - CBC News

Spain: The illegal Catalonia independence: Huge Barcelona Pro-Spain Unity Rally

Some 1 million Pro-Spain Unity demonstrated today in Barcelona

Hundreds of thousands are attending a rally for Spanish unity in Barcelona after Catalonia was stripped of its autonomy for declaring independence.

Many of those protesting in the region's largest city chanted that sacked Catalan leader Carles Puigdemont should be jailed.

Mr Puigdemont was dismissed as Spain's central government took control of Catalan institutions.

On Sunday, a minister in Belgium said he could get political asylum there.

Spain has been gripped by a constitutional crisis since a referendum, organised by Mr Puigdemont's separatist government, was held earlier this month in defiance of a ruling by the Constitutional Court which had declared it illegal.

The Guardia Urbana, a Catalan municipal police force, said at least 300,000 people had turned out in Barcelona. Organisers and the government in Madrid put the turnout a more than a million people.

Veteran Catalan politician Josep Borrell, a former president of the European Parliament, told demonstrators that Catalonia's former separatist leaders had no right to speak on behalf of the entire region.

Among the demonstrators was Marina Fernandez, a 19-year-old student, who said she was unhappy with the actions taken by the Catalan authorities.

"I am enraged about what they are doing to the country that my grandparents built," she told the AFP news agency.

Another protester, Maria Lopez, told Reuters news agency: "What do we want? That they don't break us up. This is a disgrace. We are not going to consent. They are shameless, shameless, and Mr Puigdemont needs to be taken to prison."

Read more: Catalonia independence: Huge Barcelona pro-Spain rally - BBC News

Spain: Catalonia: Not one country in the world has so-far recognized Catalonia's declaration of independence

Carles Puigdemont: "to be or not to be?

Spain’s Senate on Friday voted to grant Madrid powers to impose direct rule on Catalonia, shortly after the semi-autonomous region’s parliament approved a motion declaring independence
.
Herewith are five questions about what it means to make a unilateral declaration of independence:

Known by its acronym UDI, the term was first coined in 1965 when the former Rhodesia’s minority white government declared unilateral independence from British colonial rule.

The process itself is when a new state is established within an existing country, declaring itself sovereign and independent without the consent of the entity, country or state from which it is seceding.

“Any entity has the right to declare its independence. But to become a state that of course requires a territory, a population and authorities,” said Jean-Claude Piris, a Brussels-based international law consultant and former EU legal services director for 23 years.

“But what matters most is recognition by the international community,” he said. “Everyone has the right to issue a declaration of independence, but that in itself has no international consequence.”
Piris said very few countries will recognize Catalonia and “I guarantee you no one will recognize them” in the EU.

“Therefore it will remain an empty declaration: Catalonia will not be represented in international organizations, they will not sit in the EU, they will not be able to do anything and legally they will remain part of Spain,” he said.

Is Catalonia’s UDI legal and what will happen next: -

“What matters now is what will happen nationally and in the streets,” said Piris.

“Are there going to be demonstrations, barricades? Will people accept and submit” if Spain triggers Catalan guardianship . . . “or will there be violence?”

Spain “experienced a civil war not so long ago and just before World War II,” Piris pointed out.

If Catalonia becomes an independent state the implications “cannot be underestimated” said Narin Idriz, a researcher at the Hague-based Asser Institute
.
“All European Union member states cherish their territorial integrity, they will not want the same thing to happen to them, therefore it will be very difficult to find any support,” she said.

Bottom-line: at this point deposed Catalan leader Mr.Carles Puigdemont declaration of independence is not recognized by any country, and he personally risks arrest if he continues to defy the Spanish Constitution.

EU-Digest