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RFP Staff
♦ Is mainstream network news biased and sometimes faked?
During the past week, several national news organizations apologized for their biased reporting during the latest election cycle, evidently expecting the US public to forgive them and again invest their trust. The apologies may be too late for many Americans who stopped watching network news and reading corporate newspapers. Citizens found themselves tasked with ferreting out facts about the nation's politics, government, and power structure.
We are no longer guaranteed truth by our media. An entire generation have matured with biased and faked news and hardly noticed it. Some didn't notice it at all, or denied it could happen. Others joked about it, but kept watching. In recent months leading up to the presidential election of 2016, young and old alike noticed a heavier hand in the molding of what is called US news.
How did mainstream media become biased and sometimes faked?
Although many Americans are under the impression that the Truth in Broadcasting Act was passed in 2005, it was not. Many Americans are also under the impression that the Smith-Mundt Act, passed in 1948, still prevents the public within American borders from being subjected to propaganda. Not so. Smith-Mundt was revised and essentially nullified when President Obama signed HR 4310, the 2013 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) on December 29, 2012. Section 1078 of that act authorized the use of propaganda inside the US, which was previously banned since 1948 by the Smith-Mundt Act. The NDAA revised and renamed the act as the Smith-Mundt Modernization Act of 2012 and removed protections from the dissemination of false information within US borders. But the decline of the media began decades earlier, when Reagan vetoed a 1987 bill to make the Fairness Doctrine, a policy of the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) since 1949, a law. Since that veto, expectations laid out in the FCC's Fairness Doctrine for honest, equitable, and balanced presentation of controversial issues significant to the public declined. By the time the 2013 NDAA and the Smith-Mundt Modernization Act were signed into law, and false information could legally be disseminated within US borders, generations of Americans were already accustomed to daily saturation of biased and even faked news.
Did anyone notice fake and biased news before this year?
In March of 2005, a flurry of investigative reporting revealed that not only was the news Americans watched riddled with faked stories in the form of "video news releases" (VNRs). The Corporations and companies such as Pfizer, General Motors, and Panasonic promoted products, services, or events and government agencies promoted messages with VNRs. By the end of the 1980's, the common practice was that a VNR to present a development in pharmaceuticals or another profitable venture would be picked up by a station (sometimes hundreds of stations) and run as a news report without disclosure of who produced it. Often, the reels would end with a reporter signing off as if he or she worked for the station, such as, "This is John Smith, in Seattle". The Center for Broadcasting and Democracy investigated just how much news was faked in this way:
Also in March of 2005, The New York Times, whose apology for biased 2016 election coverage this year was released this week, railed the George W. Bush administration for its flood of government-produced and released reports that "to a viewer…looked like any other 90-second segment on the local news" and "fit seamlessly into the typical local news broadcast" because reporters did not state they worked for the government.
In 2006, during a White House press conference with then President Bush, a reporter asked for the president's views on government-produced news. The question was answered with not only an admission of its use, but also Bush's explanation about its usefulness abroad and why it did not seem likely to end soon. The reporter also asked if the news reels might would better serve the public if it included disclosures of the source and received a halting response:
Perhaps the most embarrassing fake news made known to the public was the infamous FEMA press conference that was faked, filmed, and sent to news stations in October of 2007. In that conference, Vice Adm. Harvey E. Johnson, the deputy administrator of FEMA, was asked staged questions he was prepared to answer by FEMA coworkers about a real crisis:
Time magazine reported, "FEMA had responded as it had trained to respond. Since 2000, the nation has held four full-scale exercises to simulate a major terrorist attack. Each time, the 'mock media' [was] played by fake reporters — paid PR people, to be specific — just like in the fake FEMA press conference last week." While the excuse that it was easier to film a fake conference may have been true, FEMA Director of External Affairs Pat Philbin (who had already planned to retire), stepped down.
In 2007, the late Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. gave a speech exposing that "giant multi-national news corporations" controlled almost all 1400 radio stations, all 5,000 TV stations (including CBS, ABC, NBC, FOX, CNN), 80% of the newspapers, and most of the Internet content providers. He stated that Americans are the most entertained and the least informed people on earth. Kennedy also touched on the surprising alignment of thinking of liberal college "kids" and staunch Republicans, both who were disillusioned and alarmed, when he addressed the groups about the state of modern American media:
Then and Now: US Government Media Operations
The roots of government sourced fake media in modern American history were first investigated during 1976 Congressional hearings on the CIA's dissemination of messaging and infiltration of the media, when the Church Commission's conclusions included that "in examining the CIA's past and present use of the U.S. media, the Committee finds two reasons for concern. The first is the potential, inherent in covert media operations, for manipulating or incidentally misleading the American public. The second is the damage to the credibility and independence of a free press which may be caused by covert relationships with the U.S. journalists and media organizations."
In a report released this month on October 2nd, 2016, the Center for Investigative Broadcasting (CFIB) revealed that the US Pentagon hired a London production company to create media for dissemination in Iraq. As the Church Commission of 1976 had forecast and forewarned, some of that faked media made its way to the American people. The CFIB's source indicated that the information was cleared directly by then General Petraeus. Three types of videos that were produced were commercials with negative portrayals of al Qaeda, news that looked like it was created by Arabic TV, and fake al Qaeda films. The third, considered "Black Ops", were intended to look like they were released by al Qaeda itself. CDs of the fake al Qaeda videos could allegedly be placed in certain locations that were raided.
Have you noticed more slanted, controlled, or manipulating media in the US since 2013?
When considering this question, we should keep in mind that is not illegal for Internet data providers to limit our access to certain areas of the web or to individual webpages. Search engines are not regulated for this type of controlled information, either. To see this illustrated, search a term in Google and then DuckDuckGo, and see the difference in the types of results you receive. Many folks have turned away from mainstream news because of blatant fakery only to find themselves blocked from information online or swimming in the Internet's own sea of fake news – some provided by ideologically-driven individuals or groups. Certainly, we should not tune out and not know what is taking place in our country or world. The information is out there, but we need more than ever to think critically when we look for facts and information and know the signs of what people say, do, and fake to manipulate our opinions.
How is news faked?
Video News Releases (VNRs)
The most common practice seems to be VNRs, or video news releases, which have become so much a part of Americans' lives over multiple decades that we do not realize it is fake news. A VNR looks like any another news report, with a reporter signing off at the end from Somewhere, USA, except that someone will profit from our watching and buying the pitch embedded in the "news release". News stations might receive full segments, ready to play, or raw footage that they can edit into their own reports in the studio. Medialink is a prolific of the VNR producers, creating full news reports for its corporate clients.
Here is a screenshot of four VNRs, played simultaneously, from the Center for Broadcasting and Democracy's website. The first is the pre-fabricated news story created by the maker of Trend Micro identity protection software. The others are pre-mixed versions by three different stations:
VNRs are so common that it is hardly surprising, even seeing them side by side and knowing the source. One type is called Satellite Media Tours (SMT), which are canned interviews with fake reporters played by actors. Radio's version is referred to as Radio Media Tours (RMT). Some VNRs resemble press conferences, and others seem to be reporters who share information and interviews. Still others are sets of raw footage with scripts to be assembled easily and cheaply by local or national news. No maker of VNRs, SMT, or RMT is required to disclose the relationship or connection between a company and someone is interviewed. Here are two VNR raw footage releases with an example of how footage can be edited into a faked station report with a script supplied by a corporate producer such as Medialink or other provider:
Corporate News Scripts
Another fake news tactic we've become accustomed to is a common script that is fed to affiliate stations and across multiple channels from the corporate hubs of mainstream news:
Adjusted Statistics
A fourth fakery is the statistical adjustment of media polls. Media who took part in adjusted polling results during the latest election cycle have said that they did so to match what seemed a new trend for elections not to reflect the polls. Some pollers limited numbers of some types of individuals polled by social status, race, or age, while others adjusted the numbers with an algorithm. Despite adjustments, the polls did not result in the polls better mirroring or forecasting election results. The result was media hype about expected results that did not materialize.
Computer Generated Imagery (CGI) and Green Screens
A third tactic is the use of computer generated imagery (CGI) and green-screen filming. Here, as a result of poor videography, CNN's Anderson Cooper's face and nose seem to disappear during an interview staged to look as if it is taking place at another location:
To create special effects with green-screen filming, the color of the green background can be replaced with any image the videographer wants. This includes any matching green item worn, held, used, or situated in front of the screen. In the interview footage above, Anderson Cooper's face partially disappears most likely because of reflections on his face of the green color on the screen behind him or the gleam of a green tinted light in front of him. Common mistakes, visible even in well-crafted movies such as Inception, that occasionally manifest during news broadcasts include visible shadows on the backdrop, partial disappearance during movements by actors, speckling of the computerized image where the color green is reflected or worn, digital meltdown or break-up of a person or thing staged in front of the screen, people or things in front of the screen looking transparent, background noises from the stage area, tinny sounding voices or sounds, indoor echo during an outdoor shoot, and more.
For those who haven't used or don't know about green-screen videography and the computerized imagery that can be done with it, many effects that include faking locations can be achieved:
Why has this happened?
Accepting news releases handed to them is much more cost-efficient to the media than investigating and traveling to locations to gain facts and footage. There is a lot of air time and paper space to fill, and as is the case for most of middle-America – budgets are increasingly tight. Additionally, corporations have invested interests in profits. Their leaders invest in ideologies that they believe will further their profit-building goals. Additionally, there are some who work higher in media echelons or own corporate media who want power as well as profit. Perhaps we will find more to learn about deeper motivations for the dissemination of biased and fake news if whistleblowers shed more light on the connections between media, politics, power, profit, corporate interests, and government.
What can we do?
To curb the harm of covert corporate and government propaganda, we will now need legislation or a judicial doctrine to require the State Department and the Broadcasting Board of Governors to attribute their materials. The Truth in Broadcasting Act of 2005 could have done that, but it was never passed. Some investigative journalism did shine light on the fakery, but the trend for biased and fake news has burgeoned. It's been said that crimes take place when there is the opportunity, the means, and the motive. While we might not presume all news is fake, we might also make it a habit to question what we see, hear, and read. We can also ask our newly elected officials to pass a bill such as Truth in Broadcasting or to reconsider the Fairness Act.
Resources on Biased and Fake News


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subset: commoncrawl


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Digesting the lowest rung of pop culture so you don't have to!
I have a financial planner. His name is Terry. He's a good guy. I have completely faith in Terry and his office with my investments. Not just because I fully trust him, but because things like the stock market, Dow Jones, and Nasdaq are completely baffling to me. When talking heads start to babble on about such things and how some are good and bad, I tend tune this stuff out. Mostly because these people don't know what they are talking about, but also because if something was going to south, Terry would let me know.
Given my lack of knowledge and general disinterest in the stock market, I can't say I overly enjoyed time when I saw The Big Short this past weekend. Don't get me wrong. It is a good movie with some interesting performances by Steve Carell and Christian Bale. But I don't think I appreciated it as much as the film wants me to given that the film surrounds itself with a lot of stock market and banking lingo. Specifically with how it related to the housing market crash of 2008 and how a select group of individuals saw it coming and was able to profit from it.
To be fair, though, the film does do a good job of dumbing it down so the average film goer can pick things up as they go through humorous cut-away segments hosted by various pop-culture personalities. The film, for better or worse, does speed through these explanations fairly quickly that I found myself trying to absorb what I just learned while watching the next steps of the narrative. By the end of the movie, I understood what had happened and how it happened, but I could never fully become engrossed in the film as I would have liked given I was playing catch up as it went along.
This movie also defied my expectations a bit as I went into it expecting our leads, consisting of Carell, Bale, Brad Pitt, and Ryan Gosling, all teaming up to take down the banks in some sort of more-dramatic Ocean's Eleven style caper (but with playing the stock market instead of robbing places). All of this was based on the trailers for the film which somewhat reflected this premise. The final film is nothing like that at all. In fact, the film is divided between three stories in which three of the four leads never meet one another let alone scheme together.
I do have to say that it is interesting to see Adam McKay do something that doesn't involve Will Ferrell acting like a man-child for the Nth time. This is really the first "serious" mainstream film that he's done. While there is some room to grow for him (for example, the film suffers from too many quick montages of then-contemporary pop-culture segments and clips – I have no idea where he was going with any of that), I think he is on to something there. I'd like to see more of this Adam McKay.
I'm not sure about The Big Short (disregarding the poor marketing). I don't regret seeing it, but I never see it again, that'll be okay. This is one of those movies that you probably need to see twice to fully get everything that is going on (unless you are big into financial planning), but there is nothing that is really drawing me back into it. I guess if I was channel surfing one day and found it on HBO, I'd leave it on. But I wouldn't seek it out.


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The Chipmunk Bunch
Okay, I wrote this when I was completely bored and had an hour to kill, but actually got to like the idea halfway through, so I will probably do sequels to this, because I think there can be some pretty funny stories.
This is supposed to be a parody on the Brady Bunch. In case you aren't able to guess, the story is that Dave married Mrs. Miller and now the Chipmunks have to get used to having the Chipettes as sisters. This is supposed to be off of the cartoon version of the show.
"Here's a story, 'bout a crazy lady
Who was bringing up three very crazy squirrels.
All of them had hair of fur, not the mother
The oldest one wore pearls.
Here's a story, 'bout a man named Davie,
Who was bringing up three squirrels of his own.
They were four men living all together,
But they were all alone.
Till the one day when the lady met the fella
And they knew that it was much more than a hunch
That this group, must somehow form a family
That's the way they all became the Chipmunk Bunch
The Chipmunk Bunch, The Chipmunk Bunch
That's the way they became the Chipmunk Bunch
"Dave. Come on let's talk about this. Why on Earth would you want to get married to Mrs. Miller?"
"Alvin, the wedding was three weeks ago. When are you going to get over this?"
"When they pack their bags!"
Dave bent down to Alvin, "They aren't leaving. They are your sisters. Just talk to them, they aren't as bad as you make them out to be. Why don't you sit down and talk to Brittany?"
"Can't I do something less painful, like skydive without a parachute?"
"Okay, fine I'm going.
Alvin walked up to the girl's bedroom and knocked.
"Come in!" Eleanor yelled.
Alvin walked in.
"Get out!" Brittany yelled.
"What did I do to you?"
"Like I don't know who poured soda into my backpack!"
Jeanette looked up "Actually that was me Britt. I tripped and fell. Don't you remember me coming in and crying and telling you?"
"I'm waiting for an apology."
Brittany looked at Alvin, "Your right Alvin. Sorry I wasn't paying attention Jean. Now get out Alvin."
"I feel wounded. Here I am, with an olive branch in hand, and you stab me in the heart."
Eleanor stood up, "I love olives!"
Jeanette took off her glasses and rubbed the bridge of her nose, "Not what he meant Elle."
"Fine. Now what is it you wanted Alvin."
"Actually nothing. Dave told me I should try talking to you instead of just insulting you behind your back."
Brittany rolled her eyes, "Oh yeah. You're doing a great job of making friends. I'll make you a deal Alvin. If Dave asks, I will tell him we had a wonderful conversation about the meaning of life."
"Thanks Brittany!" Alvin shouted as he ran downstairs from the girls' room.
"Now that wasn't so bad was it?" Dave asked.
"Dave!" Brittany yelled from upstairs.
Dave went into the girls' room.
"What is it?"
"Why did Alvin come in here, make fun of us and then run away screaming 'thanks Brittany'?" She asked.
"ALVIN!" Dave shouted coming back down the stairs.
"Britt, that isn't what happened at all?" Eleanor pointed out.
"I know. I'm just keeping myself entertained."
Later that day.
Simon walked into the living room where Alvin was sitting. "Hi Alvin."
"Si! I've been waiting for you."
"I'm not doing it"
"Doing what?"
"Whatever crazy thing you are planning to do to the girls to get rid of them."
"Oh come on."
"Don't you want to get rid of them?"
"No. I really like spending time with Jeanette."
"Okay then. I didn't want to do this. I'll show everybody at school that note."
Simon stood up. "You wouldn't dare?"
"Oh yes I would. I'm showing everyone the little note you made after that concert at the hotel where we met the Chipettes. 'Oh Jeanette. How I long to spend time with…'"
"You can be the guy at school who is in love with his sister."
Simon dropped his head to the floor. "What do you want to do?"
He pulled out a gold pocket watch. "Just stick this in Eleanor's backpack."
"Why? And you shouldn't have that. Dave told us not to touch his gold watch after we almost lost it… Oh no. You wouldn't?"
"It's perfect."
"Please rethink this!"
Alvin walked up the stairs. "Okay. You go put this in Eleanor's bag, and I will stay out here."
"What are you doing?"
"I'm going to talk to Dave. He knows you and Theodore wouldn't take it, and he will be with me when he realizes its missing, so he will know the girls did it!"
"I take back the re-think this comment. You never thought this out the first time!"
"Just go you wimp."
Simon walked into the girls' room and put it in her bag.
Later that day.
"Dave?" Eleanor yelled.
"Yes Eleanor!" Dave replied
"Is this your watch?"
Dave went to her room. "Yes it is. Where did you get it?"
"I don't know. It was in here when I found it. Here you go. I really like it by the way. Maybe I'll get one like that someday."
Alvin and Simon snuck up in the bathroom so they could hear what was going on.
"You really like it Elle? Why don't you keep it for a while."
"Oh thank you. You're wonderful!" Eleanor yelled.
Simon growled at Alvin, "Alvin, I was supposed to get that watch for my 16th birthday. Can we just stop this before I lose my entire inheritance?"
"Stop being such a panic. I have another plan."
A few minutes later in the boys' room.
"I won't do it Alvin. This is the stupidest thing you have ever thought of. I've been saving up for that telescope for months."
Alvin rolled his eyes at Simon. "You kidding? This is genius."
"How is shoving my money into Jeanette's desk going to get them to leave. They're making out like bandits. First the watch now my money, they are never going to leave at this rate."
"You just aren't thinking ahead like I am."
Alvin walked to Jeanette's desk put the money in and left.
"Don't worry Si. I shoved it with $50 of hers so you'll end up with the rest of the money you need for that stupid telescope of yours."
"Alvin, you should have…"
"DAVE!" Alvin yelled.
"Counted it." Simon said.
Dave ran up. "What is it Alvin?"
"I saw one of the girls take a bunch of Simon's money into their room."
Dave looked shocked, "That doesn't sound like the girls. I'll check."
Dave walked into the girls' room and saw Brittany and Jeanette. "Did either of you girls take Simon's money?"
Jeanette answered. "No but I did find some money that isn't mine in my desk. Eleanor probably thought it was my birthday money and put it in there. Here you go."
"None of this is yours?" He asked.
"Well I know I had at least $25 in my drawer already. I'm not sure how much I had exactly though."
"Simon get in here!" Dave yelled.
Simon walked in. "Yes Dave?"
"Eleanor accidentally took some of your money and put it in Jeanette's desk. Now I know this isn't all yours, so I'm just going to split it 50/50. How's that?"
"But Dave…" Simon answered.
"What Simon?"
"That was my telescope money. I had a lot saved up."
"How much?" He asked.
"I don't know exactly." Knowing he couldn't say all but $50!
"Well here is half. You'll have that telescope in no time."
"Fine." Simon looked upset, hoping he didn't lose too much.
"That's $125 each."
Simon went to Alvin, extremely mad.
"Alvin, I'm going to kill you. Run. Now. You won't be alive long."
"What is it Si?"
"He split the money in half and I lost $75!"
"Don't worry about it."
"Oh so you're going to pay me back?"
"No but I have a fool-proof plan to get rid of them."
"Alvin, I can't afford another plan of yours."
"Don't worry. You couldn't possibly lose any money doing this. Besides I already did it and I didn't even involve you."
"Well that's a relief."
Mrs. Seville came down the stairs. "Which one of you boys did this?"
Alvin answered, "Did what, Mrs. Seville?"
"Dump a bucket of worms into the girls' bathroom?"
Simon started to cringe at what was about to happen to Alvin.
"I don't know. Maybe it was the girls."
"Why would they do that?"
"Well Brittany told me this morning that she was going to get me into trouble."
"Well if it was her she did a bad job of doing it, didn't she Simon?"
Simon answered confused, "What do you mean?"
"There was one of your blue sweatshirts covered in mud in the dirty clothes. If she was trying to frame Alvin, I'd say she needs to work harder. Or is there something you would like to confess?"
"I didn't…"
Mrs. Seville cut him off, "I'm very disappointed in you. I'm not going to tell your father, if you clean it up. However, you aren't getting any of your allowance for two weeks."
She went back into her room.
"Alvin, you have cost me $125 and a gold watch in less than one hour, with nothing to show for it except that I have to clean up thousands of live worms from the girls' bathroom. Please end this."
"Don't worry Si. I'm going to end it."
"This plan is going to…"
"NO." Simon interrupted. "No more plans. Your plans never work. They are ridiculous. We are done."
After Simon finished cleaning up the bathroom, he went into the girls' room to talk to Jeanette.
Brittany growled. "Get out. After you put those disgusting things in my bathroom!"
"I actually came to explain to Jeanette."
"It's okay Brittany. Come on Simon, let's go downstairs and talk."
The two went to the kitchen.
"So what is it Simon?"
"Alvin wanted to get the three of you to move out, so he kept trying really stupid things to get you to move. I didn't do any of it."
"I didn't think you did Simon. Here's your $100 by the way. I only had $25."
"Only $75 of that is mine. There was $50 when we put it in."
"Oh. Thank you for being honest! Did you say you were saving up for a telescope?"
"You're welcome. Yeah I am saving up for one, but thanks to Alvin it will be another month. He made me lose $50 in allowance with that worm stunt and I needed that much to get the telescope I wanted."
"Do you think if I gave you my money towards the telescope, you would let me use it every once in a while. I'm really interested in astronomy?"
"Absolutely! Finally, someone else that understands how interesting the world around us really is!"
She handed him the $50. "So how did Alvin get you involved?"
"That's what I wanted to talk to you about. I wanted to tell you that there might be a rumor going around school tomorrow about us because of Alvin."
"What rumor?"
"Well after we finished that concert where we all met, I wrote a note that I liked you, and Alvin got it. Now he's threatening to spread it all around the school so that I get teased for having feelings about my sister."
"Come on."
"Let's talk to Brittany, she can help us."
"Really? Is she good at things like this?"
"Yeah, she's always coming up with ways to deal with problems."
"As long as she doesn't try to pull any stupid stunts like Alvin does!" Simon joked.
"Well.. she might. I don't know exactly what she'll come up with." Jeanette answered.
Simon whispered to himself, "Oh great. Two of them."
Jeanette explained the situation to Brittany.
Brittany looked up, "I've got a plan."
Simon looked relieved
"We'll write a note in Alvin's handwriting that talks about how much he loves me. Then we'll show it to him and threaten to spread that around the school unless he gives you your letter back."
Simon shuttered at the thought of a second Alvin in the house. "Brittany, don't you think we should…"
Brittany cut him off, "Don't worry Simon it will work great. I'll write the letter."
"Dear Brittany,
You are the most wonderful and gorgeous person on the face of the Earth. Every time I see another girl, I can't stop thinking how ugly she is compared to you…" She continued writing.
Jeanette whispered to Simon, "I'm sorry Simon. I had no idea she'd come up with such a stupid plan. I thought she would just steal the note."
Simon slapped his face. "Come on. Let's go see if we can find it."
The two left as Brittany continued to write her subtle letter to herself, "…I don't know how so much beauty can be packed into such a small figure…"
They walked into the boys' room.
"Now. He threatened to take it to school, which means it is probably in his desk or his backpack, since it would be with things he's taking to school." Jeanette pointed out.
"True." Simon answered, "But he never does his homework, so I doubt anything on his desk is school related. He grabbed Alvin's backpack. Sure enough the note was right on top.
"Thank's Jeanette!"
"No problem Simon."
They walked back into the girls' room. "And if I can't kiss you, I'll Die. With all my love, Alvie" Okay, the note is finished.
Jeanette looked at Brittany, "Uh Britt, we already took care of it?"
"What?" Brittany answered.
"We just went and took the note out of his backpack."
"After all the work I did coming up with things he would probably say about me, you guys did it on his own. Well I'm not letting this go to waste. Come on, I have a plan."
Simon looked at Jeanette, "Do you hate the words, 'I have a plan' as much as I do?"
"I'm starting to" Jeanette answered.
"Alvin!" Brittany yelled.
Alvin came down. "What is it Brittany?"
"Unless you go and confess that you were the one who put the worms in our bathroom, Simon is going to go show everyone at school this love note you wrote about me."
Alvin looked concerned, "How did you find that!"
Jeanette started laughing.
Simon looked up, "Actually we didn't. Brittany wrote this one herself."
Alvin shook his head in disbelief.
"You wrote a note about me." Brittany said as she ran up the stairs into the boys' room.
Brittany ran in and locked the door and searched until she found the note and came out.
"Oh now this is really a whopper. Listen to this Jeanette, 'Before I saw you, I hadn't seen a real beauty in my life. I wish I could be with you for all my days. I love you Brittany. –Alvin'"
Alvin ran towards her. "Give me that note Brittany. Please!"
"Say you love me and I'll give it to you!"
"Yuck no way. Just hand it over."
Dave walked in, "Hi everyone, I'm home. Did you guys have a nice walk?"
Alvin looked confused, "What do you mean?"
"When you walked to pick up Eleanor and Theodore from cooking class this afternoon like I asked you this morning."
"Oh yeah Dave. It was wonderful. In fact we're going for another walk right now."
They all ran out the door.
"I can't believe you forgot about my sister!" Brittany yelled.
"And our brother!" Simon added.
"Don't worry guys, they are probably still at the cooking school. It's only been 7 hours."
The four ran to the school.
"Great. It's locked and nobody is here. What are we supposed to do?"
"We'll just have to start looking. We'll check every street from here to home."
The four looked around for 3 hours, and never saw a trace of them.
"Alvin. I'm worried about Ellie. What do we do?" Brittany asked Alvin.
"Let's go home. Maybe they walked there. If not, we'll have to tell Dave what you did."
"What I did?"
"I mean we."
"We?" Brittany asked.
"Fine. What I did."
"I just hope they are okay." Brittany hugged Alvin.
"I know Britt. I know."
"Thank you Alvin. You aren't that bad of a brother."
"And you aren't that bad of a sister. Come on, let's find our family."
The four of them went home. "Eleanor? Theodore?" Nobody responded.
Dave came down, "What are you calling them for? Aren't they with you?"
"We never… I mean I never exactly remembered to pick them up."
"How could you. Where are they now? Do you even know?" Dave yelled running to the phone to call the police.
Just then the phone rang.
Dave answered the phone.
"Oh hi honey, I can't talk right now."
"Okay, I just wanted to let you know we would be home in a little bit."
"Okay, I have to go….did you say we?
"Yes, me Eleanor and Theodore"
"They are with you?"
"Yes. When Alvin didn't pick them up, and you didn't answer your phone, Eleanor called me."
"Oh. Okay then. Bye."
"Well Alvin, they are safe, but if you ever forget about your siblings again…"
"Don't worry Dave, I learned my lesson."
"By the way Alvin, how are things going between you and Brittany?"
Alvin answered, "Actually Dave, I think I can get used to the idea of having sisters."


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Sensex is currently trading lower by 310 points, or 1.18%, to 25,841 while the Nifty 50 of the National Stock Exchange (NSE) falls 115 points, or 1.42%, to 7,959
Sensex fell below the psychologically important 26,000-level, plunging over 300 points, and Nifty crashed below the key 8,000-mark due to heavy selling pressure amid mixed Asian cues. Barring IT and Teck, sell-off was seen in most of the sectors led by realty, financials, banks, auto, industrials, basic materials, capital goods, consumer durables, FMCG, metal, power, utilities and healthcare. Uncertainty reverted at stock momentum on sustained capital outflows in the midst of US interest rate hike worries and cash crunch over government demonetisation drive to curb black money hovered the sentiment.
"We believe currency demonetisation to continue putting its impact in the market emotion and consequently driving the sentiments. Moreover, there is not much of economic event due this week so it's all demonetisation news to play the role," said Abnish Kumar Sudhanshu, director & research head, Amrapali Aadya Trading & Investments.


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Recent Future Of Israel Conference
After the recent excitement over the "Strange Fire" conference, some may have overlooked another conference held earlier this month in New York. "The people, the Land and the Future of Israel" conference featured several speakers including Dr. Michael Vlach, and the videos are now available. I've listened to a few of the messages so far, including Dr. Vlach's and a panel concerning questions about current events in Israel.
Dr. Vlach's message gives a brief summary of church history in reference to Israel's future, considering the four main periods of church history: Patristic (A.D. 100 to about 450), Medieval, Reformation (16th century), and Post-Reformation (17th century to now). Using the same terminology as Barry Horner, he distinguishes between 'replacement' and 'restoration' views; the latter, restoration, refers to the belief of Israel now under divine judgment but having a future restoration as a nation (and restoration to their land). As noted in his lecture (and also in Dr. Vlach's book 'Has the Church Replaced Israel?'), the early church was premillennial but supersessionist — though with belief in a future salvation for ethnic Israel. Before the post-Reformation era, though, few Christians understood a restorationist view of Israel. Since the Reformation, though, and starting in the 17th century, we find many prominent theologians who have affirmed a future restoration of ethnic Israel.
What I've listened to from other messages is also interesting, including discussion about the middle East and current events related to Israel, and the future of Israel in light of the holocaust (Barry Leventhal).
Zechariah's Prophetic Burdens
I'm nearing the end of S. Lewis Johnson's Zechariah series, and the following is an overview concerning the book's outline and prophecies.
A basic outline of Zechariah includes:
- Chapters 1-6: prophetic visions given to Zechariah during one night
- Chapters 7-8: answer to a question about fasting and related matters
- Chapters 9-14: two prophetic burdens, one in chapters 9-11, the other in chapters 12-14
Each of the burdens begins with the words "The burden of the word of the Lord." The first burden is "against the land of Hadrach" (Zechariah 9:1), and the second burden "concerning Israel" (Zechariah 12:1).
The first burden's theme includes the First Advent and the Jewish rejection of the Messiah. It also stresses the judgment that would come on the Gentiles in Israel's deliverance. The second burden's theme is the blessing that God will give them when they return to their Messiah. It also stresses the deliverance amidst the judgments of the last days.
The First Burden: Zechariah 9-11
Zechariah 9 begins with a prophecy about Alexander the Great (verses 1-8) followed by a contrast: Alexander the Great, versus God's King, Christ the Lowly, in the familiar words of verse 9:
Rejoice greatly, O daughter of Zion! Shout aloud, O daughter of Jerusalem!
Behold, your king is coming to you; righteous and having salvation is he,
humble and mounted on a donkey, on a colt, the foal of a donkey.
The scene changes in verse 10, shifting from the First Coming to the Second. The next passage, verses 10-17, includes a prophecy of peace (v. 10), a prophecy of liberation beginning in verse 11, and praise for the Messiah of Israel. We see here God's sovereignty: for all the attempts of man to bring peace, man's attempts at disarmament contracts and treaties, that sought after peace will never happen until God brings it to pass. The prophecy does have some reference to the more immediate Old Testament situation (Greece), but the language goes beyond it, describing worldwide dominion (verse 10: from sea to sea … to the ends of the earth) and "in that day," a prophetic term used frequently throughout the Old Testament, always in connection with events at the last judgment and Second Coming.
Chapter 10 showcases the Shepherd-King amidst the climax of occultism, in the Great Tribulation period of great satanic opposition. God is mighty to save the people who have wandered because of idolatry (Zech. 10:2), without a shepherd. Verses 8 through 10 describe the regathering of the people of Israel, who had been scattered among the nations.
Chapter 11 begins with their rule by the Romans, until verse 4, which foretells their rejection of their Messiah. The "three shepherds also I cut off in one month" in verse 8 possibly refers to the three offices, or three groups, of leaders in Israel: kings, priests, and prophets. Certainly that is what happened, at the rejection of Christ, and the destruction in A.D. 70: no more prophets in Israel (or in the church), no more priests, and the king is in heaven, not on the Earth.
Zechariah, probably in ecstatic vision, acts out the scene of Christ coming to His people and being rejected and sold for 30 pieces of silver: the price of a slave that had been gored by an ox!
The national calamity is described in several verses of chapter 11, events fully described by Josephus in the historical records. Such a horrific judgment: the nations disavowed them (and sold them as slaves), their leaders disavow them; the Jews turned against each other. (Zechariah 11:5) The Lord Himself turned against them and did not pity them.
Zechariah 11:15 jumps ahead to the last days, describing the false shepherd: the antiChrist, also known as the man of sin, the son of perdition, the beast, the one who makes a covenant with the people but then turns against them in the middle of that seven-year period:
a shepherd who does not care for those being destroyed, or seek the young or heal the maimed or nourish the healthy, but devours the flesh of the fat ones, tearing off even their hoofs.
Insights From The Prophet Micah
From my recent study through Micah with S. Lewis Johnson, here are some highlights from Micah chapters 4 and 5.
Three Prophecies of Judgment Followed By Great Blessing
In Micah 4:9-10, then Micah 4:11-13 and Micah 5:1-6 we see a set of three prophecies, all of which begin with judgment, but end with a promise of future blessing. Each of these sets begins with the word "now":
- 1st prophecy: Now why do you cry aloud? …. There you shall be rescued; there the Lord will redeem you from the hand of your enemies.
- 2nd prophecy: Now many nations are assembled against you … you shall beat in pieces many peoples; and shall devote their gain to the Lord, their wealth to the Lord of the whole earth.
- 3rd prophecy: Now muster your troops, O daughter of troops; siege is laid against us; … and he shall deliver us from the Assyrian when he comes into our land and treads within our border.
As with all Bible study, looking at different translations shows some of the variations in the possible meaning. Micah 5:1 could refer to gathering troops (the translation in KJV and ESV), but could mean "gash yourselves" (HCSB: you slash yourself in grief) or "now you are gashing yourselves, O daughter of troops," in which gashing is a reference to mourning practices for the dead, in the manner of the heathens (reference 1 Kings 18: the Baal worshippers were slashing themselves while Elijah mocked).
The Preciseness of Bible Prophecies
The background setting for Micah 5:1 is the siege of Jerusalem by the Assyrians in Hezekiah's day. Then verse 2 shows a great contrast, with the well-known prophecy concerning Messiah's birth in Bethlehem:
But you, O Bethlehem Ephrathah, who are too little to be among the clans of Judah,
from you shall come forth for me one who is to be ruler in Israel, whose coming forth is from of old, from ancient days.
The Bible is so precise in its prophecies, so very unlike human prophets. Even the mention of Bethlehem leaves no room for doubt. Micah could have simply said "Bethlehem" and left open the possible interpretation to include the other Bethlehem in Israel: one in the north, in Zebulun's inheritance (reference Joshua 19:15). Instead, we know that it can only mean Bethlehem Ephrathah, the Bethlehem in the south near Jerusalem.
The Only Person Who Was Born A King
Also from this text and its citation in Matthew 2: where is He who was born king of the Jews? Human kings are never born as such. They may be born a prince, such as the Prince of Wales, but never a king. In some interesting trivia from actual history, I recall that a few have been declared kings from a very early age. In Judah's history, Joash and Josiah became kings as children of only seven and eight years of age. From secular history, Henry VI of England was a king at only 8 months of age when his father Henry V died. One human king in history was declared a king at birth, Alfonso XIII of Spain, whose father died before he was born. But such is clearly not the norm for human rulers — our Lord Jesus Christ alone is the only one who was truly born a king.
Where Does AntiChrist Come From: East or West?
Over the last few months I have become aware of the "controversy" regarding the location of the AntiChrist: East (Grecian / Syrian) or West (Rome). I first heard the common (and popular) view, as from John MacArthur and many others, that the antiChrist comes from the Roman Empire and therefore European (a king from the west). After all, Daniel 9 mentions the "people of the prince who will come" who destroy Jerusalem — the Romans. S. Lewis Johnson's Daniel series, however, brings out some interesting features of the texts and evidence that the antiChrist is the Syrian aka the "King of the North," as I blogged here.
One of the key points for the Western AntiChrist view is the identities of the two "little horn" figures in Daniel 7 and Daniel 8. The standard view is that these are different characters: the "little horn" in Daniel 7 is said to come out of the Roman Empire (west), whereas the "little horn" in Daniel 8 comes out of the third kingdom (Greece); also much of Daniel 8 appears to describe the actions of Antiochus Epiphanes in the 2nd century BC. Since one account has a "little horn" coming out of the fourth kingdom, and the second account out of Greece, it is said that these cannot possibly be referring to the same person.
However, as we all know, the Roman Empire covered vast territory, both in what is now Europe as well as the Middle East. Rome (the fourth kingdom) conquered Greece, and so such statements as found in Daniel 7 and 8 present no conflict when we realize that the third kingdom was included (as a subset) within the fourth kingdom.
Furthermore, the reference in Daniel 9:26 does not necessarily mean that the people who destroyed Jerusalem in 70 A.D. were Roman (Italians). As noted in this article ("From where the Antichrist will come"), Josephus tells us that the people involved were predominately Syrian. It was customary for Rome to conscript soldiers from their conquered territories, which in this case meant Syria.
Time and again throughout the Old Testament, God speaks of a certain person who will come against His people Israel, who will be defeated by God at the end, and without exception he is described as from the north (Greece/Syria) not the west. This individual is described as "the Assyrian" or "the Assyrian king" in Isaiah (see Isaiah 14:24-27), as the "King of the North" in Daniel 11-12, and as "Gog, of the land of Magog" in Ezekiel 38-39. Ezekiel 38:17 asks: Are you he of whom I spoke in former days by my servants the prophets of Israel, who in those days prophesied for years that I would bring you against them? The only text which might indicate a western antiChrist is that statement in Daniel 9:26 about the people of the ruler, related to the destruction of Jerusalem in A.D. 70. Yet Daniel's prophecies continue to further discuss the "King of the North."
As I first mentioned in this blog, the only reason that modern prophecy buffs think that Ezekiel's war is a separate event that happens sometime before the main Armageddon is because of the idea of the western-Roman AntiChrist, from that description in Daniel 9:26. Yet the verses immediately following Ezekiel 38:17 clearly describe the same event as Armageddon, and the whole idea of Ezekiel's war being a different event is a relatively new idea (since sometime in the 20th century).
In a sermon series through Joel, S. Lewis Johnson noted Joel 2:20, which speaks of "the northerner," and that this could well be a reference to the anti-Christ and his armies in the final day. Of special note is the fact that locust plagues in Judah almost always come from the south or southeast, not from the north. I followed up with a word study (from Johnson's suggestion here) on all the references to the term "northerner" and "north," to find that indeed many verses in the OT prophecies speak of the last days enemy as one from the north — not west as is popular thinking today.
Here is a sampling of additional references that well establish Israel's history, that in ancient times invaders came from the north. In many of these verses, the prophecy has a near-term sense with respect to the ancient armies of Assyria and Babylon, but in many cases the prophet also zooms out to the distant future (of which the near-term prophecy is but a type, an example):
- Isaiah 14:31 and 41:25
- Jeremiah 1: 13-15; 4:6; 6:1 and 22; 10:22; 46:10, 20, 24; 50:3, 9, 41; 51:48
- Ezekiel 23:24, 38:6, 15; 39:2
- Daniel 11
- Zephaniah 2:13
Jeremiah 46:20 has interesting reference to the future, as does Jeremiah 50:3. The verses immediately following in Jeremiah 50 clearly refer to other events associated with this judgment, events that did not occur in the 6th century BC.
Mark Hitchcock: Preterism series
Recently the name Mark Hitchcock came up again (through a question on Dan Phillips' blog) — one of the better Bible prophecy teachers. I had briefly looked at his church website last year, and enjoyed a general prophecy message that sounded solid enough. From the recent inquiry, I learned a few more things: Mark Hitchcock is "4.5 point Calvinist," and he does teach Calvinist soteriology, as in a recent Ephesians study. This was good to hear, as sermons on prophecy don't necessarily indicate one's understanding of the doctrines of Grace. Mark Hitchcock also does not hold to the "gutless grace" of the non-Lordship salvation group, and has been described as part-way between Ryrie and John MacArthur.
Hitchcock's church site, Faith Bible Church (Edmond, OK), has a good selection of online sermons going back to 2004, and among the offerings are series on the prophets, dispensationalism, and preterism. I've been listening to the 8-part series on Preterism (from 2006), and so far it's quite informative. Like Don Greene, who has a good paper concerning Matthew 24 and problems with Preterist interpretation, Hitchcock deals with partial or moderate preterism, the belief of a few prominent men including R.C. Sproul, Hank Hennegraff, Gary DeMar, and Kenneth Gentry.
Some of Mark Hitchcock's presentation was familiar, from Don Greene's paper, including the point about the context for Matthew 24 in the verses at the end of Matthew 23 — and Jesus' strong words to the Jews, that "you will not see me again until you say, 'Blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord'." Obviously the Jews did not repent in A.D. 70, so that event could not have been the time of Christ's Second Coming, even any "cloud coming" or "judgment coming."
Where I found Hitchcock's Preterism series especially helpful was its explanation of the preterists' view of the book of Revelation. Everything I had previously seen online, including from Don Greene as well as the pre-trib website, dealt with the Olivet Discourse, and so this supplied a lot of details concerning other preterist ideas. This 8-part series includes an overview of Revelation plus a few extra sessions discussing the preterist idea of Revelation 13, the claim that the beast was Nero.
Now for a few highlights, from my notes through Hitchcock's Preterism series:
Preterists emphasize "Reader Relevance" with the claim that the prophecies given in the Olivet Discourse and Revelation had to have meaning for the 1st century generation, and therefore fulfillment in their day. A good response here: what about Isaiah's prophecy concerning the virgin birth of the Messiah, 700 years before it happened? How was that one relevant to people in Isaiah's day? What about the prophecy in Genesis 3:15, written down by Moses 1400 years before the Messiah came? By such "reader relevance," we could not have any biblical prophecies for anything beyond a few years.
In reference to Reader Relevance, Preterists cite the High Priest Caiaphas as a case of one who was told by Jesus that he would see the Son of Man coming — and therefore Jesus must have been talking about a judgment coming in 70 A.D. It turns out, from biblical archeology findings, that Caiaphas didn't even live until 70 A.D., but had died some 20 years previously anyway. Caiaphas will see the Son of Man coming, certainly — at the future Second Coming, as one of the "every knee will bow and every tongue confess that Jesus is Lord."
Did Jesus' disciples ask Jesus two or three questions at the beginning of the Olivet Discourse? Mark Hitchcock makes a good case that, really, the disciples were only asking one question. When Jesus mentioned the temple being destroyed, their only point of reference was Zechariah 14, and so they associated Jesus' words about the destruction with God's deliverance of Israel, and His return, with one single future event. Of course Jesus knew that these were two separate events (the destruction of the temple in A.D. 70, then the future Second Coming), so He told them the signs associated with His return.
Preterism and the Book of Revelation
Whereas Mark Hitchcock sees the seven sealed scroll as a "scroll of doom," and John MacArthur has described it as the "title deed to the earth," preterists claim that this scroll is God's bill of divorce to the nation Israel. Throughout the overview of Revelation, the Preterists have an extremely obvious anti-Israel bias.
Preterists interpret numbers in a very inconsistent way, and don't even follow their own made-up rules. Their overall "rule" is that very large numbers are only symbolic, but small numbers are literal — but then in Revelation 11 they flip-flop and say that the two witnesses are symbolic of a small body of Christians remaining in Jerusalem to testify against it.
Inconsistent hermeneutics: as just one example of the many inconsistencies, how Preterists treat the period of 3 1/2 years. Any normal Bible reader, just reading the book of Revelation, would notice the descriptions of a period of time that is 3 1/2 years, also called 42 months, both in Revelation 11 and Revelation 13 — and reasonably conclude that both are talking about the same 3 1/2 year time period. But the Preterists claim that the 3 1/2 years in Revelation 11 happened from 67 to 70 A.D., but the 3 1/2 years in Revelation 13 occurred from late 64 to 68 A.D. And the events that they say "fulfill" Revelation 11 and Revelation 13 were only "about" 3 1/2 years. Approximations don't cut it when we are dealing with the exactness of God, who has shown great precision in past dating such as the amazing prophecy (Daniel 9) concerning the first 69 weeks.
This series has much more interesting information, a good resource on this subject — and I plan to listen to quite a bit more from Mark Hitchcock's teachings available online.
Bible Prophecy and Practical Christian Living
Again and again in my Bible study I encounter exhortations to holy living, in the light of our understanding of the prophetic word: from J.C. Ryle, S. Lewis Johnson, John MacArthur, David Jeremiah, etc. Certainly I can see some change within my own thoughts, over the last two years, as I continually conform my thoughts to the word of God (Romans 12:2) and appreciate the wonders of what God has revealed in His word.
Specifically, I can more readily accept the hardships and craziness of our world, knowing what the future holds. During a recent spell of extremely hot weather, for instance, I remembered Romans 8:20-21, the promise from God that the creation itself will one day be restored to how it was in the original perfect creation, and what awaits during that glorious Millennial Kingdom age when the weather patterns will no longer bring extreme heat and cold, or the terrible natural disasters; the ground will yield forth food instead of the thistles and thorns brought about in the curse. Just as we await the redemption of our bodies, so the creation itself will be liberated from its bondage. Such understanding brings God's grace to patiently endure the heat which I used to complain too much about.
Another area of difference: understanding the seeming craziness of the world and the rise and fall of nations, and the true nature of the visible Church. Certainly God's word in general (basic evangelical gospel) tells us to trust God, that He is in control of the big things as well as our lives, and that He is the one who appoints the governments and leaders, and one day we'll die and go to be with God in heaven. Without the added understanding from prophecy, though, it is much harder to accept the specifics of the things we actually see going on in the world. I first started learning about the rise and fall of nations from reading John MacArthur's sermon series through the book of Daniel in early 2009, a new, biblical perspective contrary to the popular "Christian America" moral message I imbibed during my early Christian years.
What I now realize that the Bible has to say concerning the future of certain locations — especially Israel, Asia (its very large population), and Babylon — makes perfect sense of the rapidly increasing decline of the U.S., and of the U.S.'s now declining relationship with Israel. It even makes sense of specific news items, such as what I found so disturbing a few years ago: that the U.S. was sending mega-bucks of our taxpayer money over to Iraq to rebuild its economy, even subsidizing its economy with cheap gasoline at the pump. When I consider the amazing implied prophecy in Revelation 11:9-12, that the Bible predicted over 1900 years ago a world that would have instant, worldwide communication including the transmission of visual images, I am that much more awestruck by our great God.
That the Bible predicts great apostasy within the visible Church, and increasing apostasy as the end nears, gives me peace of mind concerning the reality observed in the Church today, in contrast to the optimistic kingdom (as in the Church is the Kingdom) language that so popularly expresses the misconception of many confused believers.
Understanding what God's word has to say regarding the believer's rewards compels me toward holy and righteous living — not as though my salvation were dependent on works, but to "work out your salvation with fear and trembling," recognizing the need to redeem the time, since we must give account to God for how we used our gifts and spent our time — not in frivolous things of no value (wood, hay, straw), but in those things which build up God's people and glorify Him (gold and silver). John MacArthur's emphasis on the value of studying and meditating on the things of God, and the great reward ahead for those who do so — a reward that will include greater capacity to know, enjoy and love God — is an encouragement to persevere toward that end, to run the race to win the prize.
By contrast, the anti-futurist Christian view emphasizes the equality of all believers in Christ without distinctions, a view that is actually quite uncomfortable with the idea of rewards or differences among believers (as I even heard one such preacher admit recently): we're all equal, the Church has replaced Israel, and we will be judged along with unbelievers at the Great White Throne — to show that we're just as guilty as them but for the blood of Jesus. Yet such incomplete and unbiblical teaching lacks the extra motivation (the believer's rewards) — provided by the study of biblical eschatology — toward holy living in believers, instead destroying our great blessed hope of our Lord's imminent return for His people (1 Thess. 4:17-18, John 14:3). Truly, God's word including the prophetic picture is a great blessing that God has revealed to us, and those who endeavor to search and study the scriptures will gain this blessing (Revelation 1:3) and not be disappointed.


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I am a high school Life Science Teacher at Auburndale High School in rural central Wisconsin. Currently, I teach Life Science, AP Biology (dual credit with Univ. of WI-Oshkosh) and Anatomy & Physiology. I am a Wildlife Ecologist and have worked as a science educator at the secondary and post-secondary levels. I enjoy connecting students to the beauty and wonder of the natural world. I also enjoy teaching with technology and developing fully online courses. In addition to my face-to-face teaching, I currently teach an online high school course in AP Biology for Wisconsin Virtual School. I also have enjoyed faciliting teacher professional development as an online educator and in a former position as the Science Curriculum Specialist and Gifted Education Grant Coordinator for Cooperative Educational Services Agency (CESA 5) in central Wisconsin.
Auburndale Middle/High School, Auburndale, WI
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I thought it would be interesting to pose this question because it doesn't presuppose the supremacy of either side of the abortion issue. Instead it is a question that might show contrast between different viewpoints on the same side of the issue.
In order to explore this issue, I am going to pose a hypothetical.
Lets take a situation where a woman purposely pokes holes in her lovers condom with the hopes of getting pregnant. In this case lets say she does get pregnant and has effectively made a decision that is completely contrary to her lover's wishes. He might have strong reservations about population control, he might not be ready for the temporal and financial responsibility of raising a child, or many of the other reasons that a person might have not to carry a pregnancy to term.
Shouldn't he have a right to decide not to have a child?
For many of us, this issue is about autonomy. The right of a person to not have their body violated by state or citizen is fundamental. But with rights go responsibility and visa versa. A man is held to a level of responsibility for providing for his offspring, and he should have rights that are at least commensurate with that.
If you believe abortion isn't murder, and that there is no crime in the removal of a healthy fetus from it's mother's womb, then I think you should be open to the possibility that in the hypothetical laid out above, a forced abortion would be nothing more than the retrieval of stolen property. The traumatic invasion of the woman for the 10 minute procedure would be balanced against a lifelong traumatic impact that the father didn't want.
Hopefully you're getting the point, which is that the stronger our case against abortion=crime/murder, the stronger the case for the rights of the father.
I appreciate your comments.


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Saturday, May 30, 2015
Christmas in May...
4 comments:
Ooooh, very nice, and the first one has non-traditional colors too. Perfect for one of those friends that doesn't want any religious sentiment on their holiday card at all! I think you're right about the napkin from Peggy, just perfect alone. I'm trying to figure out what to do with my napkin art too, and it's not as easy as it would first appear! And I really, really, really have to get in gear with my Christmas cards, Um, 6 months at 5 cards a month,..I have to make 30 now. (hangs head)ReplyDeleteReplies
TK, TK, TK... get your rear in gear girlfriend!!Delete
Your cards are very beautiful and I find that not much is needed to be done with napkin cards. A small sentiment works, I have seen other more elaborate cards and I don't like them as well. Just let the pretty napkin do the work!!!1ReplyDelete
All are lovely, but my favorite is the middle. TFSReplyDelete


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Image from here.
1) That Yellow Bastard referred me to this Sony Bravia ad, filmed without special computer effects, but by letting 250,000 superballs bounce down the streets of San Francisco. The broadband feed is smooth- has sound of the sparse acoustic type- and is beautiful. If you're rockin' a fast connection, I think you'll enjoy the simple pleasure.
2) As Bookslut points out, it's an irresistable headline: Lesbian Stalker Loses Vampire Love Battle. I can imagine the lurid movie poster now.
3) If you're of astronomical leanings, it's cool news that Mars and Venus will be glowing brightly on Halloween.
4) The Anchoress points out this story about my current hometown. It's a sad comment, but I'd have wondered, too, if I'd noticed the general atmosphere of Manhattan smelled too good.
5) As we approach the holiday season, here's the recent state-organized Jerusalem Day in Tehran. Don't confuse it with St. Paddy's or Casimir Pulaski's or Christopher Columbus' or Puerto Rican Day which are celebrations of the existence of people from other lands. No, no. JDay is the holiday where since 1979, Iraqis have demonstrated their abiding hatred for Jews and Israel and confirmed their committment to Semitic eradication. By the way, Death to America, too.
6) I am not just a linky traffic cop in the blogopshere, despite my adherence to crediting where I find things. Daily, I slave to select the choicest morsels from the buffet for you, frame them, give them context, incorporate them into my lame titles and find stupid pictures to attach. Don't say it's nothing. I wade through loads of the yawny-yawny so you don't have to. With that defensive preface, I note that Michelle Malkin pointed me to the photo series titled Propaganda at Riding Sun who found it from apostropher, but about this I have original commentary, so back off!
As I've said, I'm not much for "message art." Usually the message is unsubtle and overwhelms the aesthetics which end up taking a rung so much lower in the artist's attentions as to require a spelunking helmet to detect them. Nope, Chuck, that's just another mold deposit, not visual intention. However, I do find these photographs by Eolo Perfido well executed, no pun intended. (His own site has the nicest versions. Flop open an extra window and let's go through them together.)
UPDATE: I fixed the broken Eolo link, dagnabbit. You could've reached the photos through the other blogs' links above, but I didn't intend you should work so hard. And tx, apostropher, for the add'l kind words.
Onto the art. I like the palette, the dramatic lighting, the crispness and the care with which they're done. I find the bandaged heads reminiscent of "See No Evil" (or perhaps the Mummy Returns), and the protruding teeth of a flayed skull. I find myself also a little generally reminded of the shivering heads from the move Jacob's Ladder. Coming from Europe, this is hardly groundbreaking conceptualism, and if I don't find it all genius, it's still good looking. But, and you knew there'd be one coming, I do have issues with the set dressing.
Popcorn Man. His flag is tied to a branch, much more trouble and more expensive than the ubiquitous plastic flap-on-dowel at every megamart and drug store. Perfido should understand it's like the pre-wrapped Japanese instagifts available everywhere in Tokyo to satisfy the social customs. Since it's mandatory for U.S. citizens (and pretenders) to bear flags at all times in public locations and in private ones where more than three non-family members are gathered, we don't spend a lot of money or time on them. Like commuter umbrellas. The popcorn in a bowl instead of chips out of a bag? No paneling on the bunker walls or a foam fan finger? And this guy's underwear don't look right either. Look closely. The strappy tee part is no ribbed wifebeater and what about the shorts with buttons? This is obviously a furrin notion of proper undergarmentry. Might I suggest this inspiration to greater accuracy?
Scrawny Woman and Child. As everyone knows, America's jingo poor are fat, and the quilted wrap robe might be iconic for the 50's but hardly current. Think knee-length sleeper-T , preferably with crackled cartoon character decal and worn-to-elastic-fatigue sweatpants. Greasy ponytail and/or bad bleach job for sure.
Whore Girl. That's a solid depiction. Nailed that one, Eolo. High five, whooo.
Dreadlock Man in Cart. Dare I mention the bone structure and skin of this guy look a little youthful and Euro model-stubbly to go with the hair unless he's a skater dude? The cart-riding crowd in NYC usually look older, even in their twenties, and less, uh, robust.
KKK Guy after nose job and eye lift. The stained flag isn't likely though. See how they elevate the symbolic. In these photos, you'll see all the flags and basements are sparkling clean. Americans know the Klan are great at three things: the mentality of supremacy, wall arrangements, and laundry.
Electric Chair. I guess it's possible a brawny old guard would attack a convict's cranium like a zombie looking for a Lunchable, but once the little guy's strapped in, isn't it easier just to flip the switch?
Cyberpriest. I suppose I'm just grateful Eolo didn't go for the more predictable kneeling boy here. Still, doesn't this priest resemble the young Fr. Karras from The Exorcist? Hey, did you know actor Jason Miller's son Jason Patric is Jackie Gleason's grandson? Sorry, distracted by imdb.
Camo Battery Guy. Not much to say except the age makes the guy look like the war ended a while ago but not for him, blah blah... Where are the hardbodies from our current conflict? Where are the conductive dog tags?
Corporate Mummy. I realize there may be difficulties getting an actual flag to tie-size, but this guy's neck knot is way bigger than any normal Yankee shill who isn't a double-Windsor devotee of the Brit stylings of Thomas Pink.
I guess what I'm saying is that Eolo Perfido's beefs may be legit, but I can't shake the feeling that this Frenchman living in Rome doesn't really get us. Failing in the specific, he may be a little simplistic in the broad. And isn't it's a little- okay I'll say it- small-minded and maladjusted to spend so much time shaking your fingers at the distant and unalterable when you don't have any skin in the game? I don't know of any American artist devoting his time to relentlessly bashing another country unless he's an expat. Even then, the art of criticism often shows tremendous affection for the lost land. See many Cuban-American artists as examples. Does Perfido's exacting work show any particular understanding of or compassion toward its subjects, or does it fail to move the spirit because it treats its substance as inhuman, safe to demonize once reduced to easy, if hackneyed, abstractions?
Friday, October 28, 2005
Bouncing Art Stinks but Good say Martian Vampires
Posted by Rusty Hinge at 2:24 PM
2 comments:
- matt weiner said...
JDay is the holiday where since 1979, Iraqis have demonstrated their abiding hatred for Jews and Israel and confirmed their committment to Semitic eradication.
In Tehran?
(Which is my attempting-to-be-funny way of saying, I think there's a typo.)
- Decorative Bra Straps said...
You have done a good job with the post.
Thank you so much.
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Gina's Creative Chaos
Monday, December 17, 2012
National Blogging Day of Remembrance
(as originally posted in Craftaholics anonymous.)
As my prayers are added to the ocean of prayers washing over the Newtown families, I ask that we keep this attitude of compassion throughout the holiday season and beyond.
God Bless you.
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Friday, December 14, 2012
Glass Block gifts for 2012
As usual, I hurriedly finished my blocks, wrapped them and gave them out at our family Christmas party, without taking photos ! Here is a photo of one and I Photoshopped out the smiling recipients face. ( She didn't want her picture on a blog). On this particular 8 x 8 block I used etching cream twice on the face prior to applying my vinyl design. Although the block was thoroughly cleaned with both soapy water and then alcohol, my etching was less then perfect. I left the cream on for more than an hour each time. This is the case with many tempered glass products. It was enough to obscure the glass and diffuse a light placed inside. For other projects I still prefer the look of a piece of vellum placed inside and secured with a glue dot. The vellum method is quick, clean and cheap. All in favor raise your glitter dusted hand.
I combined a couple of the Nativity files I found on the Silhouette online site. It was tempting to buy them all during their big sale the beginning of December. If I find a photo of the other blocks I will post them as well.
Merry Christmas my crafty friends!
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awesome software for your Silhouette or other die cutting machine, no longer supports Cricut products
Sure Cuts A Lot 2
Goodbye from Sugar !
Email Gina at
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In a shockingly bad public relations decision, the Western Area Water Supply has published an official public support position of the Water (Royalty) Tax in House Bill 1020. WAWS Goes Political Here is what WAWS is now saying about the provisions in HB 1020 to tax private frack water sales: A water royalty clause was also introduced in HB1020. As ...Read More »
Home / Tag Archives: North Dakota Watchdog Network
Tag Archives: North Dakota Watchdog Network
ND Watchdog Network 2017 Legislative Half-Time Report
Yesterday marked the end of the first half of the legislative session. Next week, bills that passed one chamber will cross the hall to the opposite chamber to be discussed and voted on. Here are just a few of the highlights of the good bills that are still alive in the legislature: House and Senate Pass Corporate Welfare Reform HB1182 shifts costs of ...Read More »


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Monthly Archives: October 2012
I am reading so many wonderful things. I need to give back.
I just read about a woman who teaches organization. Now who in heaven's name would need to learn that? Aren't we all organized, in our lives, in our closets, and most and foremost in our kitchens? Or is there something … Continue reading
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I enjoy Laura Child's Tea Shop Mysteries, set in Charleston, SC. The owner of this tea shop continually becomes involved in murder and mystery as she operates her shop. However, we learn a great deal about tea in the process.
Some of these mysteries include:
The Teaberry Strangler
Death by Darjeeling
The English Breakfast Murder
Shades of Earl Grey
The Jasmine Moon Mystery
Have you read any of these? Do you have any favorites?
Wednesday, February 03, 2010
The Tea Shop Mysteries by Laura Childs
Posted by Mary Emma Allen at 10:39 AM
Labels: A Tea Shop Mystery, Charleston SC, Laura Childs, Mary Emma Allen, tea, tea mysteries, tea shop, Tea Time Notes
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Lates Cellphone Review , latest cellphone information , news and other info . All brand , like Nokia cellphone , Samsung, verizon, sprint, LG, t-mobile and more
LG KS20 On Sale now !
Yes ! this phone on sale now ! slim and sexy LG Smartphone KS20 , Not only sexy this smartphone also powerful with 3.6 HSPDA feature so you can connect to internet with high speed access and enjoy the 35 MBps connection. Look at the photo above this phone is very slim with only 12.8mm thick, this phone also come with 2MPx camera, microSD, WiFi, BlueTooth and running Windows Mobile 6. And wait , a 2MPX camera also available. No words on pricing
Diposting oleh angga di 4:03 AM
Label: cellphone review, LG
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Here's 2 songs to energise the new week. They both go into the "Play Them As Loud As You Can" category. Hopefully they'll get you jumping off your chair, ready to start a revolution. The first is by Gogoll Bordello, one of the bands that initiated the Gypsy Balkan craze. I remember seeing them on the small stage of the Melkweg in Amsterdam, thinking, this is what we want to do, play as loud as this band on this very stage. A year later we did.
Of the next band I couldn't find a good clip on the internet. A shame, because these ladies rock! Iva Nova is an all female folk punk band from Saint Petersburg. We once opened for them in the OCCII, another great venue in Amsterdam. When these witches started to play we were all flabbergasted, our jaws on the floor, ready to give up music. The video doesn't do service to their actual live performance. If I'll find a better video I'll replace this one.
A Persian Amsterdammer Blogs.
Monday, 8 September 2008
Monday = Revolution Day!
Posted by Sahand Sahebdivani at 19:41
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Edible Birdnest farming can be considered an ideal, most exciting and a very lucrative business. This venture is suitable for those who live in parts of Cambodia, Southern Thailand, Burma, Malaysia, Vietnam, the Philippine and Indonesia. This blog is dedicated to my findings, crazy ideas, encounters with newbies, comments from friends, local news, pictures relevant to Birdnest plus my personal experiences and knowledge gained in swiftlet farming.
Saturday, March 9, 2013
Blocking Any Opening On Your BH Walls !!!
I was a bit sore when I saw those ventilation holes from both the inside and the outside.
"What kind of experience this particular BH consultant is doing? He can event understand the purpose of those ventilation holes plus blocking from becoming those unwanted tenants."
During my first inspection of this Taiping BH I was very upset with the way the air ventilation holes were covered and the were too much sunlight coming from each "covered" hole.
The whole floor was so bright and you can see all the four walls from any corner of the floor.
I keep telling the owner about his so called "Consultant".
"Mr O I do not wish to upset you but I have to say this. Your so called consultant have very little knowledge about erecting a BH. Something basic like covering the ventilation holes was not done properly."
I never realized that there were more mishaps waiting outside the BH.
When inspecting the hole from the outside it was a disaster.
"Holy crab, he did not cover with any wire mesh or netting at all. You are inviting those mynahs, chak rumah and tiong birds to invade those holes".
Unbelievable and disgusting.
Once those birds found these holes they will start filling them with those twigs and grass leaves. Soon your BH will have a choked BH with lots of twigs/dried grass on the floor.
They will not only bring these twigs/dried grass but also lots of worms and ants with it.
I told the owner that I have very little choice but to get my boys to cover them with a special coated wire mesh over all those holes.
This was not in my proposal to him.
More mistakes that you need to avoid.
To any new BH owners please avoid this type of mistakes.


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Source : Addictive Tips
Disappointed that your favorite website does not have a mobile web variant? Looking for a way to create an app for your own website without having to learn how to code? Look no further. AppYet is a web service that allows you to create, in just a few clicks, reasonably feature-rich and presentable AndroidRSS feed readers for websites of your choice. All you have to do is specify an RSS feed(s) for one or multiple sites of your choice and enter a name for the app. You can alter the package name and icon of the app as well. AppYet adds all information to an app template, builds your app and mails it to the email account that you used to register with the service. More after the break.
To begin creating apps with AppYet, head on over to the website (link provided at the end) and Sign Upfor a new account. Once registration is done, simply select Create App from the top-left corner of the page. In the Create New Application page that follows, fill in the required fields and hit Create App. In theRSS/Atom Feed(s) field, you can enter multiple RSS feeds for multiple websites, separating one RSS feed URL from the other with a semicolon (;). From within the next page, you can change the icon for your app and make final changes before clicking on the Submit to Build button within the Submit tab.
After your app is successfully built, AppYet automatically mails it to your registered email account. If the same account is registered with your Android device, you can download the app directly to your device.
Alternatively, you can download it to your computer from the My Apps page. From the same page, you can edit created applications.
The result is impressive, to say the least. AppYet's RSS reader has a sleek yet simple interface that sports both a light and dark theme, automatic updates after user-defined intervals, the option to restrict background updates for articles and/or their images over WiFi, store image and podcast cache to the SD card, toggle and customize update notifications and back up both application settings and feeds to the SD card.
Another feature that caught our eye was the scrolling feed item bar that appears just above the task bar when an article/feed item is opened. You can swipe left and right across the screen to switch between feed items one by one but said scroll bar provides a much faster, more convenient way of doing so. And no need to worry about it cluttering the screen and ruining your reading experience. The bar disappears as soon as you swipe along the screen/scroll down.
The app allows offline reading and therefore, may take quite some time downloading images during automatic/manual updates for sites or blogs with post frequencies considerably greater than the update interval.


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The english we speak(BBC教学)第173期:Not enough room to swing a cat 空间拥挤
(Li is accompanying Finn as he goes flat hunting) (莉陪芬恩去找公寓) Finn: This is flat number five, Li. I'm happy you came along to help me find a nice place to live. 芬恩:莉,这是五号公寓。我很高兴你过来帮我找好的居住地。 Li: Renting a new place is a big step, Finn. This one looks good. Look here. Big windows, lots of light coming in. Isn't it nice? 莉:芬恩,租新公寓是个重大的决定。这间公寓看起来不错。看看这里。这么大的窗户,有很多光线可以照射进来。是不是很棒? Finn: Yeah. It's good but… 芬恩:是。是很好,但是…… Li: It's been painted recently. Look, the wooden floor is lovely! 莉:这间公寓近期刚粉刷过。看啊,那个木门多可爱啊! Finn: Yes, you're right, it's lovely but… Li… there's not enough room to swing a cat! 芬恩:是,你说得对,是很可爱,但是,莉……这里太狭小了,连转身的地方都不够! Li: A cat? Are you sure? No problem. I saw one outside. I'll be back in a minute. 莉:一只猫?你确定吗?没问题。我刚在外面看到了一只。我马上就回来。 (She leaves the room for a few seconds) (她离开了房间几秒钟) Finn: Li, what is this?! 芬恩:莉,这是什么? Li: It's a cat, Finn. I didn't know you liked swinging cats around, but… well, this cat was just outside and you can try swinging it! Just be gentle with it. 莉:芬恩,是只猫。我不知道你喜欢晃动猫咪,不过……嗯,这只猫刚刚就在外面,你可以试着摇摆它!你要对它温柔点。 Finn: No, Li. I don't swing cats. In English, you use the expression 'there's not enough room to swing a cat' when you want to say a place is much too small. 芬恩:不是,莉。我并不是要摇摆猫。在英语中,你用there's not enough room to swing a cat这个表达该来来形容一个地方非常小。 Li: What a relief! 莉:真是松了口气! Finn: 'Not enough room to swing a cat' is today's expression in The English We Speak. Let's hear some examples of how to use it. 芬恩:Not enough room to swing a cat就是今天地道英语节目要学的表达方式。我们来听些例句学习一下这个表达的用法。 Examples 例句 The library at my college was really small. There wasn't enough room to swing a cat! 我学校的图书馆非常小,连转身的地方都不够! I can't work in this office. There's not enough room to swing a cat! Where will I put my books and my computer? 我不能在这间办公室工作,它真是太狭小了!我要把我的书和电脑放在哪里啊? Finn: So, not enough room for me in this flat, Li. But thanks for coming with me all the same. 芬恩:所以,莉,对我来说这间公寓的大小不够。不过还是谢谢你和我一起过来。 Li: So what are you going to do, Finn? 莉:芬恩,你打算怎么做? Finn: I think I'll just move in with my brother. 芬恩:我想我会搬去和我哥哥一起住。 Li: Is his flat small? Could you… swing a cat there? 莉:他的公寓小吗?你能……在那里和猫玩吗? Finn: In my brother's house cats rule! He loves furry little animals. 芬恩:我哥哥家猫可是宝贝!他非常喜欢毛茸茸的小动物。 Li: Well, I think this cat might join you there. Let's go, Finn. Bye. 莉:嗯,我想这只猫可以和你一起住在你哥哥家。我们走吧,芬恩。再见。 Finn: Bye. And no cat was harmed in the recording of this programme. Isn't that right, Tubby? 芬恩:再见。没有猫咪给这期节目的录制带来影响。对吧,图比? Tubby: Meow. 图比:喵。 来自:VOA英语网 文章地址: http://www.tingvoa.com/html/20180110/527044.html


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Learn to Earn: A Beginner's Guide to the Basics of Investing and Business
Peter Lynch
abridged edition
Publisher: Simon & Schuster Audio
Format: Compact Disc
Many investors, including some with substantial portfolios, have only the sketchiest idea of how the stock market works. The reason, say Lynch and Rothchild, is that the basics of investing — the fundamentals of our economic system and what they have to do with the stock market — aren't taught in school. At a time when individuals have to make important decisions about saving for college and 401(k) retirement funds, this failure to provide a basic education in investing can have tragic consequences. In Learn to Earn, Lynch and Rothchild explain in a style accessible to anyone who is high-school age or older how to read a stock table in the daily newspaper, how to understand a company annual report, and why everyone should pay attention to the stock market. They explain not only how to invest, but also how to think like an investor. For those who know what to look for, investment opportunities are everywhere.
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