Religion

Thursday marks the one year anniversary of the attacks on French satire mag Charlie Hebdo. 

Last January, gunmen killed 12 people at the magazine's offices in an apparent act of "revenge" for the publication's satirical depictions of the Prophet Mohammed.

For those struggling to understand how society has devolved to a point where such atrocities are possible, even commonplace, here's Hebdo with one explanation:

In case there's any ambiguity there, that's God with a Kalashnikov. The text reads: "The assassin is still out there."

Pope Francis has warned that the “end of days begin now” and that the crisis involving Iran and Saudi Arabia represents a “tribulation on a timeline” that will “climax in the end of the world.” Addressing crowds gathered in St Peter’s Square in the Vatican for the celebration of Epiphany, the Pope took the opportunity to warn followers that the Middle East crisis will lead directly to the fulfilment of various Bible prophecies.

Saudi Arabia has said it is breaking off diplomatic ties with Iran, amid an escalating row between the two country’s over the Saudi execution of Shia cleric Sheikh Nimr al-Nimr. Reuters news agency reported that the Saudi Foreign minister has asked Iran’s diplomatic mission to leave the country within 48 hours. While according to ccording to Dubai-based al-Arabiya TV, Saudi Arabia has evacuated its diplomats from Tehran. Iran’s Supreme leader Ayatollah Khamenei called Sheikh Nimr a “martyr” who had acted peacefully.

Full scale replicas of the ancient 15-metre Temple of Bel entrance in Syria are to be built in Trafalgar Square and Times Square. Some believe that the structure is one of the few remaining parts of the 2,000-year-old Temple of Bel in the Syrian city of Palmyra. It is apparently unknown if the Palmyra Arch was fully destroyed by ISIS over the past year.

The S&P 500 closed 2014 at 2058.90 and is currently trading below that level as the market opens. For the sake of faith in The Fed's "control" and trust in central planners ability to do "whatever it takes," it appears NYFed better "get back to work" soon to save the world.

Never mind that almost everything else is lower for 2015.