The End

introduction - part 2

VTT Global News:
The US government has accused the Russian government of giving arms to Islamic terror organizations. This comes as a new Islamic terror group called "Allah's warriors" has declared a jihad on the Western world. They are tired of the attacks against their prophet and their religion. A spokesperson for Allah's Warriors explained, "In some countries such as Denmark and Sweden, our holy Koran is being burned. In other countries, the media says bad things about our holy religion. Muslims are discriminated against and forced to live in ghettos. The West will suffer for not respecting the one true religion and the insults they give us.". The Secretary of Defence admitted that they are following the situation but citizens should not be alarmed.

Andrew:
I visited my parents today. They did not seem to have time for me, as my brother was visiting soon and my mother was busy baking and cleaning the house. He is a bishop! It's not as if royalty is visiting. They were also worried about the latest threats from the Muslims. I tried to tell her that we should not worry. The Muslims threaten to kill us every time someone dares to say they have a screwed-up religion. My parents wanted to say a prayer for peace. I passed on this. How could any religion have something called a jihad where it was good to kill anyone who disagreed with them? The Christian Church cannot boast they are better. How many wars in history have been done in God's name? I bet you that God was up there laughing as he watched humans fight over which religion was right. He probably gets a kick out of it when we go to war in his name. I suppose you have guessed that even though I somehow believe there is a God, that he is no friend of mine.

VTT Global News:
The government has announced that public health care as we know it is now a thing of the past. Our social welfare has been part of our country's identity for decades. Children could get a free education, the old people could get a pension and there was free health care. However, our population must get used to the fact that we can no longer afford all these things. Our national debt is now so high that some economists think that it's nearly impossible to pay back. This is a problem all over the world, where governments are spending more money than they get. In countries that do not have welfare like we do, the costs are so high and many people cannot afford insurance. The opposition in parliament has accused the government of "giving up". The health unions have told us that the health system was in trouble for years, and now it is broken. This will cause unnecessary deaths.

Bishop O'Keeffe:
I admire my parents and their faith. There has been so much bad news in the media. We hear about war and unrest as well as threats of terror. Now we hear that the welfare system is falling apart. This means that they could not afford to be sick and their old age pensions were in trouble. Yet they asked me to pray for the people who needed it more than they did. My parents were worried more about the single mothers or the families that had no job. They were worried about the children and what sort of society they would inherit. There were so many crises in the world. The failing economy, war and the climate changes. Still, my mother told me that I should pray for those that need it. "I know you do not pray a lot," she said, "but many people do not know Jesus. When someone does not know Jesus, they do not have hope. Jesus gives me the smiles and hope that I need. We need his light in the darkness. It will be hard for you to tell people the Good News when you have so many doubts yourself. Pray my son and return to Jesus"

Chloe:
There is one thing that I love. This is of course shopping. I have so many designer clothes and accessories that I could open my shop. I even have things that I may have only used once. The thing is that I love materialistic things. I have a good wage, so why not can I spoil myself? After all, if I do not spoil myself, then who will? I know some consider this as an addiction and some think I should donate the money to the poor. I cannot support every poor person in the world. I used to give money to charity organizations but stopped when I found out that a huge proportion goes to administration and wages. This makes my donations a waste of time. I honestly think it is the government that should help the poor. My husband told me that I could give them a dress that I never use, but what would a poor person do with a designer dress?

VTT Global News:
The Pope held a speech today at the Vatican urging people to turn back to God. He stressed that the world was becoming a very dark place to live in. People were becoming more selfish and no longer wanted to help others. People no longer took families or marriages seriously. People no longer trusted each other and enemies were being made every day. The results were the breakdown of families and a rise in hatred between groups. Crime and violence were skyrocketing. The gap between the rich and the poor was becoming worse. The Pope said that more and more people were becoming desperate. More people were becoming hardened or losing hope. The only solution was to give our hearts back to Jesus. We needed to find him and become his friend. The world needed love and compassion. When the Prime Minister was asked to comment on the Pope's latest statement, she asked "Who listens to what the Pope says anymore?"

Father Darby:
A Muslim woman visited me today. She had a problem. She helped Muslim women who were in controlling and bad marriages. It was hard for a Muslim woman to get out of the marriage. Even though civil laws allow divorce, a Muslim woman needed permission from the local Muslim leadership. In a way, the Muslims thought their religious laws were higher than our country's ones. This woman needed a place to meet. She knew that this was a Catholic Church and it was her last choice. I welcomed her and let her know that I thought that she was very courageous. I am sure some of my parishioners would be against that we help the Muslims. I would deal with that when they complained.

VTT Global News:
There was chaos at the EU leader summit today. The leaders could not agree on anything. They disagreed on sending aid to Ukraine thinking that the EU had done its duty and now Ukraine had to find peace while some believe we must fight to the end. The leaders also disagreed on how we could help the climate. The worst disagreement was about how we stop refugees from Africa trying to come to Europe. Some countries, including ours, refuse to accept refugees, leaving the responsibility to the southern countries in Europe. Our political analyst says it is a dark day for the EU and the situation is expected to get worse. Our prime minister said, "The EU needs a strong leader. I do not care if we get another Hitler. We need someone to lead us."