The Rain Maker

The World's Bogeymen

noreply@blogger.com (Rain Maker) — Thu, 01 Apr 2010 18:53:00 +0000

The liberal media salivates at any opportunity to attack Christians and/or Christianity. Case in point: the recent arrests of nine members of a Christian militia group called Hutaree. These were dangerous people, but to say they are anything but an oddity is disingenuous. Yet, considering the amount of media coverage the arrests have received--and the dire warnings about the growing danger of far-right (read: Christian) Americans--you would think this anti-government fringe movement was as widespread as the Bolshevik Revolution. The truth is that in our world Christians are more likely to be IN danger because of their religion than they are of being A danger because of it. Don't believe it?

These are headlines from just the past two weeks:

India Pastor Jailed For Converting Hindus, Corpse Exhumed
Over Dozen Christians Killed In Nigeria
Over 1,000 Anti-Christian Attacks In Indian State, report
Pakistan Burned Christian Dies At 38; Christians Protest
Somalia Militants Kill Church Leader; Crackdown On "Non-Islamic Culture"
China Christian Dissident Gao Zhisheng "Alive"

Keep these headlines in mind the next time the media downplays the threats of Islamic fundamentalism and nuclear-armed rogue governments, and instead tries to portray Christians as the world's bogeymen.

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Need a PR Specialist? Perhaps my 13 years of PR experience can satisfy those needs. I have publicized world champions such as Lennox Lewis and Evander Holyfield, and mega-events like Lewis-Tyson and De la Hoya-Vargas. Contact Donald Tremblay (The Rain Maker) at 718-664-3405 or at dtremblay@earthlink.net. For more info about me visit my LinkedIn Profile.

Now What?

noreply@blogger.com (Rain Maker) — Wed, 24 Mar 2010 23:42:00 +0000

Like most Americans I am completely baffled as to what awaits our nation now that healthcare legislation has been passed. I am not someone who supports bureaucracies, whether they be in the form of governments, corporations, or even religions. Bureaucracies are bloated institutions that inevitably collapse under their own weight. Bureaucrats exist only to obfuscate their group's responsibility to the public. So, not surprisingly, my initial reaction to a universal healthcare bill was one of skepticism, regardless of its contents.

Yet, there is no denying that healthcare needs fixing.

Healthcare costs are outrageous. Providers increasingly demand higher deductibles from their members while simultaneously reducing the number of tests they will approve. Republicans are either clueless or lying when they imply that many Americans who are without health insurance can afford to pay for it, but choose not to. That may hold true for the country club cronies of Republicans, but everyone I know who is without coverage lacks it because of financial shortage. They have had to make the choice between paying their mortgage/rent or paying a monthly premium for health coverage.

For the past 20-30 years Americans have urged that something be done about healthcare costs. Is this healthcare legislation the "something" that is needed? Maybe, but there are some concerns I have about it. Below are a few examples:

House Ways and Means Republicans "estimate the IRS will need nearly 17,000 new employees to meet its new responsibilities under health reform." 17,000? For what? Is this Pres Obama's idea of job creation? What is in this legislation that requires the IRS to become an even greater behemoth? And for those who argue that the 17,000 estimate is an exaggeration, why were the Democrats virtually silent in responding to it?
Democrat Rep John Dingell was quoted during a radio interview yesterday stating, "It takes a long time to do the necessary administrative steps that have to be taken to put the legislation together to control the people." Control the people? What does that mean? For those of us who believe that Democrats like Pres Obama and Nancy Pelosi increase government entitlement programs for the purpose of deepening the American public's dependence on government, this is a Freudian slip.
The nation's economy is already in shambles with unemployment hovering around 10%. (And if you add those who are underemployed, those whose unemployment benefits have expired, and those who have given up looking for work, the number is closer to 22%) If companies are forced to provide health insurance for their workers or pay fines, what are the chances of these companies hiring new employees anytime soon? If anything, these new regulations may cause unemployment to rise. Can our economy continue to withstand high, and maybe even higher, unemployment?

So I say again. Now what?

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Need a PR Specialist? Perhaps my 13 years of PR experience can satisfy those needs. I have publicized world champions such as Lennox Lewis and Evander Holyfield, and mega-events like Lewis-Tyson and De la Hoya-Vargas. Contact Donald Tremblay (The Rain Maker) at 718-664-3405 or at dtremblay@earthlink.net. For more info about me visit my LinkedIn Profile.

The "Smoke of Satan" Finally Revealed?

noreply@blogger.com (Rain Maker) — Wed, 17 Mar 2010 16:15:00 +0000

Ever since Pope Paul VI uttered his famous words on June 29, 1972 that "the smoke of Satan had entered through a crack in the Church", Catholics worldwide have wondered what part of the Mystical Body of Christ the former pontiff was referring to. Most believe he was criticizing Vatican II, a reasonable deduction considering the problems surrounding the council and its implementation, such as the alleged discovery that Archbishop Annibale Bugnini (Secretary of the Congregation for Divine Worship) was a closet Freemason; and the allowance of Protestant observers to participate in discussions about the formation of the Novus Ordo Mass. However, in a new translation published in The American Catholic, Father Stephanos Pedrano asserts that the "smoke" Pope Paul VI was referring to was actually scientism. (Scientism is defined as the belief that the assumptions, methods of research, etc., of the physical and biological sciences are equally appropriate and essential to all other disciplines, including the humanities and the social sciences.)

Pope Paul VI was not anti-science, but he was frightened about the insidious influence of science over all aspects of people's lives. As SpiritDaily.com explains it, the pope was worried that " the Church was succumbing to modern notions of 'research' and 'objectivity,' which, instead of accenting the genius of God, sought to cast doubt at every turn and negate the very roots of Christianity: mysticism and supernaturality." According to Father Pedrano's summary, among the branches of science that Pope Paul VI most distrusted is modern psychology. He believed that psychology sought to discard spirituality. "There is no longer trust in the Church. They trust the first profane prophet who speaks in some journal or some social movement, and they run after him and ask him if he has a formula for true life."

Pope Paul VI also added, "Science exists to give us truths that do not separate us from God, but make us seek Him all the more and celebrate Him with greater intensity. Instead, science gives us criticism and doubt. Scientists are those who more thoughtfully and painfully exert their minds. But they end up teaching us: 'I don't know; we don't know; we cannot know.' The school becomes the gymnasium of confusion and sometimes absurd contradictions."

It is difficult to argue with Pope Paul VI about the dangers of scientism. Many great things have been accomplished through science, such as vaccines and the cures of many diseases, but like anything else scientific knowledge can be abused, or even worse, worshiped as a god unto itself. Science for science sake and its resulting disregard for human life can be found in abortion, embryonic stem cell research, and the secret testing of human subjects. And let's not forget the damage being caused to ourselves and the environment through pesticides, additives, and preservatives.

The former pontiff's words are growing more relevant with each passing day.

Salt

noreply@blogger.com (Rain Maker) — Thu, 11 Mar 2010 17:37:00 +0000

If you want to see the future of our country should Congress pass universal healthcare legislation, look no further than the bill introduced by Brooklyn, NY state assemblyman Felix Ortiz. According to the NY Daily News, Ortiz has proposed legislation "that would ban the use of salt in New York restaurants - and violators would be smacked with a $1,000 fine for every salty dish." It would be easy to dismiss Mr. Ortiz as an idiot since at face value this proposal is even dumber than Mayor Bloomberg's trans-fat ban, but the Brooklyn Democrat is not stupid. In fact, his proposal is part of an overall strategy designed to increasingly encroach on the personal lives of Americans.

Politicians crave power and believe they are entitled to it. (Money is a corollary of this power) They view the masses with disdain, as little more than automatons that must be properly programmed. The greatest weapon government possesses to force this programming is money. Make Americans more dependent on government money and the more you will be able to bend their wills and their actions. This is the true motivation of universal "anything" proposed by the government.

There is no doubt that our healthcare system needs fixing. It is inexcusable that many American adults cannot afford basic healthcare. The problem is that should Congress pass a universal healthcare plan, the government will have even greater say over how we live our lives. Think I am being paranoid? Here is Rep Ortiz's justification for his salt bill: "It's time for us to take a giant step. We need to talk about two ingredients of salt: health care costs and deaths."

Bingo. Healthcare costs. In other words, if "we" foot the bill, "we" decide what you can and cannot do.

How long will it be before government bans sugar because of its role in obesity, heart disease, and diabetes? And alcohol? Get rid of it. It damages the liver and can be addicting. The actions Big Brother can prohibit under the guise of safety are endless. And as long as "he" is paying, what recourse will we have?

Free Love Not So Free

noreply@blogger.com (Rain Maker) — Tue, 09 Mar 2010 02:02:00 +0000

Since our pre-teen years we have been taught that it is wrong to "sleep around". We are admonished about the immorality of treating another human being purely as a sexual object. We are confronted with dire warnings of unwanted pregnancies and sexual diseases, some of which are potentially fatal. Yet, most people ignore these "free love" criticisms. The ethical prohibitions are brushed aside as arbitrary and subjective. The threats of pregnancy and disease are circumvented through birth control devices, such as condoms.

But what if free love wasn't so free? What if science was to discover that sexual "freedom" is capable of altering our brain's hardware with respect to emotions?

In his recently released book Hooked: New Science on How Casual Sex is Affecting Our Children, Dr. Joe McIlhaney of the Medical Institute for Sexual Health in Austin, TX, argues that recent studies suggest sleeping around when you are younger can ruin the happiness of your marriage years later.

"'When women are skin-to-skin with a man, their brain secretes oxytocin that causes them to bond emotionally to that man. Men secrete a hormone called vasopressin when they're having that kind of intimate behavior. And that hormone has even been called 'monogamy hormone' for men. And it bonds them to the woman,' McIlhaney explained."

So powerful is this oxytocin says McIlhaney that just a "20-second hug can cause a female to become bonded to a male."

Sexual promiscuity is a problem because it rips away at that bonding until eventually the oxytocin and vasopressin are ineffective at forming the bond. McIlhaney compares it to the constant tearing apart of velcro. Constantly pull apart velcro and eventually it will cease to adhere. "The brain actually gets molded to not accept that deep emotional level that's so important for marriage."

Fascinating . . . and disturbing.

Celebrity Boxing: Naomi, Bunning, and Rangel

noreply@blogger.com (Rain Maker) — Wed, 03 Mar 2010 16:40:00 +0000

I have never been a fan of celebrity boxing, but I would like to make an exception in this one case. I suggest a 10 round bout with no head gear or extra-padded gloves between runway lunatic Naomi Campbell and Kentucky Senator Jim “Let Them Eat Cake” Bunning. The winner of the bout would face Congress’ latest political leper, House Representative Charles “What, Me Worry?” Rangel. And since the champion should win some sort of award, I recommend a trophy--one in the shape of a burro’s back-end.

Campbell, who obviously fancies herself the reincarnation of Cleopatra, believes it is her divine right to haul-off and belt her minions at the slightest provocation. Her alleged attack against her limo driver a few days ago is hardly her only brush with the law. In 1998 Campbell plead guilty to assaulting a personal assistant with a telephone and of threatening to throw the woman out of a moving car. (Campbell was later sued by another personal assistant who accepted an out-of-court settlement) Evidently unhappy with the limited damage caused by the phone, Campbell upgraded to a BlackBerry and beat her housekeeper with it in 2006. Photos were shown of the blood-drenched shirt collar the victim wore during the attack. Campbell plead guilty to the charge. And perhaps her finest assault happened at Heathrow Airport in 2008 when she was arrested for accosting two police officers. She plead guilty to that charge as well. I have a feeling that when Sean Connery made his ill-advised comment that “I don’t think there is anything particularly wrong in hitting a woman,” he had Naomi Campbell in mind.

It’s unfortunate for Republican Senator Jim Bunning that he is a former baseball player and not a former boxer. At least if he was a fighter he could blame some of his more bone-headed comments and decisions on having received too many punches to the head. In 2004 during the gubernatorial campaign he made the brilliant observation that his Democratic opponent, Daniel Mongiardo, “looked like one of Saddam Hussein’s sons”. Callous? Sure. But not as callous as when he predicted that Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsberg, a pancreatic cancer victim, would be dead by the end of the year. Well, the blowhard Kentucky senator outdid himself this time, graduating from making asinine comments to making asinine decisions. On Friday, Feb 26 Bunning refused to sign-off on a $10 billion extension of emergency federal programs, including unemployment insurance benefits, citing the extension as an example of poor fiscal discipline. It did not matter to Bunning that unemployment benefits are the only safety net protecting many Americans from declaring personal bankruptcy. When confronted about the damage he would cause to Americans by objecting to the benefit’s extension, Bunning reportedly replied, “tough shit”. Although Bunning relented yesterday, clearing the path for unemployment to be extended for another 30 days, he should be verbally tarred and feathered for his stupidity.

So slick is Democrat Charlie Rangel that it must be difficult to stand next to him without falling down. He’s the kind of guy who can convince you that the sun is shining brightly even as you stand under an umbrella in the middle of a thunderstorm. Today Rangel announced that he will temporarily step down as chairman of the House Ways and Means Committee, citing the ethics investigation into his actions as a distraction for fellow-Democrats who are up for re-election. Republicans have been after Rangel since last year “when the House ethics panel expanded its investigation into his trips, assets and income, use of rent-controlled apartments in New York and his solicitation of contributions for university center to be named after him.” Even Democrats began calling for the 20-term Harlem representative with the Cheshire Cat smile to step down following the ethics committee’s ruling on Friday that “Rangel violated standards of conduct by accepting 2007 and 2008 trips to Caribbean conferences that were financed by corporations.” Although the committee could not prove that Rangel knew of the corporate payments, it was satisfied that his staffers knew about it. And to put it simply: You are responsible for those who work for you.

So now we have our three participants for the Celebrity Boxing event. If we need more than three competitors, there are plenty of others to be found among our news and gossip pages.

I hope I receive some royalty checks if this event ever happens.

I better talk to Charlie.
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Need a PR Specialist? Perhaps my 13 years of PR experience can satisfy those needs. I have publicized world champions such as Lennox Lewis and Evander Holyfield, and mega-events like Lewis-Tyson and De la Hoya-Vargas. Contact Donald Tremblay (The Rain Maker) at 718-664-3405 or at dtremblay@earthlink.net. For more info about me visit my LinkedIn Profile.

Slapping You Back Into Reality

noreply@blogger.com (Rain Maker) — Sat, 27 Feb 2010 21:11:00 +0000

Life has a way of slapping you back into reality.

Less than 24 hours ago I cursed Mother Nature for the second snowstorm in a month she dumped on the NYC area. I sneeringly mocked consumers who flooded supermarkets as if they were preparing for a nuclear fallout. I bitched and moaned about how my waist size would continue to expand as my daily jogging regiment was indefinitely postponed yet again by the weather. I even ranted and raved about the inevitable lack of parking spaces available because of the mountains of snow piled along the street curbs. All these complaints dominated my thoughts . . . that is until this morning when I scanned the news wires.

Early Saturday morning Chile was rocked by an incredible 8.8 earthquake. The quake, which according to the AP was one of the strongest ever recorded, was responsible for “toppling homes, collapsing bridges and plunging trucks into the fractured earth.” At least 147 people are dead and the quake’s one-minute long shake could be felt 1,800 miles away in Sao Paulo, Brazil. As I write this 1/3 of the globe is under a tsunami watch, including Hawaii and even California. 53 nations and territories are facing tsunami warnings (We have all seen enough video footage to know the devastation a tsunami is capable of inflicting)

And here I am complaining about some snow.

Don't I feel like a fool.

The New York Times - Voodoo Apologist

noreply@blogger.com (Rain Maker) — Mon, 22 Feb 2010 03:12:00 +0000

Leave it to the New York Times.

The newspaper that has never encountered a Catholic-bashing story that it did not like is now serving as a voodoo apologist.

"Myths Obscure Voodoo, Source of Comfort in Haiti" attempts to convince readers that voodoo's poor reputation is simply bad PR--bad PR resulting from myth-spreading. Writer Samuel Freedman blames these myths on the Catholic Church's "antisuperstition campaigns in the 1860s" and on films from the 1930s and 1940s, such as "White Zombie". He also includes a quote from a USC professor who suggests that racism may be the source guiding this negative portrayal of voodoo. (No surprise there. The Times seems incapable of printing a column without referencing racism, homophobia, or--to a lesser extent--sexism)

The myth-spreading argument is specious, as evidenced by Freedman's failure to provide concrete examples. He belittles portrayals of voodoo as "cartoonish" and as nothing more than "intolerant cliches", but other than mentioning Pat Robertson's accusation that Haiti signed a pact with the devil, he fails to provide a single example of alleged voodoo beliefs and practices that worshipers argue is a myth.

Not one.

And a review of voodoo's beliefs and practices reveals why.

Voodoo was brought to Haiti by slaves from Africa and is "is believed to have started in Haiti in 1724 as a snake cult that worshiped many spirits pertaining to daily life experiences".
Bondye is the Creator of the universe, but he does not interact with Creation, so voodoo adherents direct their worship to lesser spirits called loa. The most influential of the loa are "Papa Legba (guardian of the crossroads), Erzulie Freda (the spirit of love), Simbi (the spirit of rain and magicians), Kouzin Zaka (the spirit of agriculture), and The Marasa, divine twins considered to be the first children of Bondye."
"Talismans are bought and sold as fetishes. These could be statues representing voodoo gods, dried animal heads, or other body parts. They are sold for medicine and for the spiritual powers that these fetishes are believed to hold. The dark side of voodoo is used by participants to summon evil spirits and cast hexing spells upon adversaries."
"The priesthood of voodoo is held by both men and women. There are stages of initiation into its priestly duties. Their functions are primarily: healing, rituals, religious ceremonies to call or pacify the spirits, holding initiations for new priests or priestesses, telling fortunes, reading dreams, casting spells, invoking protections, and creating potions for various purposes. These potions are for anything from love spells to death spells"
Rituals include "spirit possessed dancing". Anthropologist Alan Tippett says: "Probably there is no better extant example of [demonic] possession phenomena in the whole world than the form known as voodoo, especially the variety in Haiti."

University of Wisconsin Professor Patrick Bellegarde-Smith, a voodoo expert and voodoo priest, suggests that just as the Japanese often adhere to both Shinto and Buddhism, many Haitians practice both Catholicism and voodoo. The New York Times column failed to cite a Catholic expert on the issue, probably recognizing that even a nominal Catholic would know that syncretizing voodoo beliefs and practices with Catholic worship is a blasphemous perversion of Catholicism.

Demonic possession. Worshiping spirits. Talisman.

No, it is not myth-spreading that is responsible for voodoo's poor reputation; it is voodoo's occultic beliefs and practices which can take credit for that.

Sorry, Folks

noreply@blogger.com (Rain Maker) — Tue, 16 Feb 2010 18:37:00 +0000

My computer's hard-drive has gone to the Great Server in the sky. I am in the process of purchasing a new computer and plan to have my next blog entry posted on Mon, Feb 22.

Sorry for the delay. I look forward to writing again.

Donald "The Rain Maker" Tremblay

It's Only Make Believe

noreply@blogger.com (Rain Maker) — Wed, 10 Feb 2010 20:04:00 +0000

“It’s only make believe. Nobody really believes it”

Those of us concerned about the growing influence of the occult on American society have heard this refrain regurgitated ad nauseum. But so overt is that influence becoming, especially among our children, that it will soon be difficult for anyone to deny.

The amount of occult fiction polluting our cultural landscape is truly staggering:

Harry Potter series: Extraordinarily popular series of novels about a teen wizard who uses white magic to defeat evil. The series of seven books has sold over 400 million copies. The movies have generated approximately $7 billion dollars worldwide.
Twilight Saga: A series of “vampire-based fantasy romance novels” (Wikipedia.com) catering to adolescent girls. It has sold approximately 50 million copies. Twilight, the first book in the series, was made into a film and earned $385 million domestically in gross revenues.
True Blood: An HBO vampire series based on The Southern Vampire Mysteries. Among the concepts featured in the series is the American Vampire League, which seeks to earn equal rights for vampires.
The Vampire Diaries: CW Television program that the IMDb (Internet Movie Database) defines as a series about a “high school girl torn between two vampire brothers.” The program is also based on a book series.
The Wizards of Waverly Place: One of Disney’s most-popular children’s programs. In a recent set of episodes the eldest son dated a vampire. He was also bitten by a werewolf . . . In one Halloween episode spirits were conjured to create a scary haunted house.
The Wolfman: The film debuts in theaters on Friday.

Even television programs that have nothing to do with the occult have employed the genre in their story lines, such as the Disney Channel's show “The Suite Life on Deck”. In this week’s episode Cody’s girlfriend, Bailey, becomes possessed by a spirit.

Occult fans will argue that the supernatural has been a cultural presence for centuries . . . and they are correct. However, the difference between our generation and past generations is in how the supernatural is portrayed.

In Shelley’s Frankenstein, Stoker’s Dracula, and Stevenson’s The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, the creatures are portrayed as perversions of Creation. Readers are to view them with horror. Even the creatures themselves are consumed with self-loathing:

“I abhorred myself. . . . When I run over the frightful catalogue of my sins, I cannot believe that I am not the same creature whose thoughts were once filled with sublime and transcendent visions of the beauty and the majesty of goodness. But it is even so; the fallen angel becomes a malignant devil. Yet even that enemy of God and man had friends and associates in his desolation; I am alone.” (Frankenstein, p 194-195)

“It was no longer the fear of the gallows, it was the horror of being Hyde that racked me.”(The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, p 92)

Today’s representations are different. Vampires, for ex., are heroic, sensitive, and superhuman . . . and they can even serve as lovers. They are creatures to be admired. “Defining Deviancy Down” was the title of a 1993 essay former Senator Daniel Patrick Moynihan wrote for the American Spectator. The essay’s subtitle read, “How We’ve Become Accustomed to Alarming Levels of Crime and Destructive Behavior.” We’ll we Americans have now embraced the ultimate deviancy—Evil—through our continued fascination with the occult. But it should not come as a surprise to anyone since the fastest growing “religion” in the United States, and the biggest proponent of the occult, is the New Age Movement.

A major element of New Age belief is that Satan (Lucifer) is the hero of Genesis, not the seducer as portrayed in Christianity. By convincing Man to eat the forbidden fruit Satan releases Man from the shackles of God. Man is freed to become the god he is meant to be.

Think I am exaggerating the link between the occult and Evil, between the occult and Luciferian worship? A group called “Living His Life Abundantly International, Inc” has listed some of the video games available in the market today for teens. 30 or 40 years ago, had video games existed, it would have been unthinkable that these would exist.

Tecmo’s Deception: Invitation To Darkness (Playstation) – Players “make an unholy pact and sell their soul to Satan in exchange for power”
Nocturne (Playstation 2) - A game in which the hero (a demon) destroys the three archangels St. Michael, Gabriel and Raphael, then goes on to destroy God.
Devil Summoner (Playstation 2) – Involves communicating with and recruiting demons. One demon tells the player, “That Catholic Church is such an eyesore” and in the end of the game, blows up the Church.
Shadow Hearts (Playstation 2) - The hero uses his power to intercept and destroy God and “save the world.” Some games in this series are rated “T”.

And let us not forget Dante’s Inferno, which advertised on CBS during the Super Bowl. The game’s official site says that “the hero of the game (Dante) is a soldier who defies death and fights for love against impossible odds.” It adds that the goal of the game is to retrieve the soul of Dante’s love from Hell. Sounds pretty good, right? What the ad fails to mention is that the game contains a level where the hero kills “knife-wielding unbaptized babies”.

Oh, and for girls who are less interested in video games, there is the pink Ouija Board sold by Hasbro and Toys R’ US. Milton Bradley’s advertising for its Ouija Board says the following: ““Evil spirits! Wake the dead! Consult the board of omens!”

These are dark times. And they are growing darker because of society’s rejection of the Light.

I am reminded of Christ’s words in Luke 18:8: “But when the Son of Man comes, will he find faith on earth?"
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Need a PR Specialist? Perhaps my 13 years of PR experience can satisfy those needs. I have publicized world champions such as Lennox Lewis and Evander Holyfield, and mega-events like Lewis-Tyson and De la Hoya-Vargas. Contact Donald Tremblay (The Rain Maker) at 718-664-3405 or at dtremblay@earthlink.net. For more info about me visit my LinkedIn Profile.

Fudging

noreply@blogger.com (Rain Maker) — Sat, 06 Feb 2010 15:57:00 +0000

Numbers don’t lie, but they don’t always tell the truth either. Statistics can be fudged, twisted, manipulated . . . choose whatever verb you like. Our economic depression exposed how widespread this practice is among the banking community. But as effective as bankers are at this sleight of hand, there is one group whose skill at this surpasses all: the government. The latest example of this can be found in the Labor Department’s January Unemployment Report, which alleges that the country’s jobless rate fell from 10.0% to 9.7%.

On Thursday, Feb 4 the Associated Press reported, "The number of newly laid-off workers filing initial claims for jobless benefits rose unexpectedly last week, evidence that layoffs are continuing and jobs remain scarce." The AP also pointed out that it was the fourth rise in the pas t five weeks. Yet, miraculously, just one day later (Feb 5) the Labor Department announced that the national unemployment rate in January dipped 3/10 of a percentage point from 10% to 9.7%.

Huh?

Don’t believe the Labor Board’s figures? You are not alone. Investors didn’t buy it either, which is part of the reason why even after yesterday’s positive labor news the Dow Jones still needed to scratch and claw its way at day’s end to return to the 10,000 mark.

The moral of the story?

1 + 1 always equals 2, except when the person doing the adding is a government bean counter . . . or a banker.

Distorted Priorities

noreply@blogger.com (Rain Maker) — Tue, 02 Feb 2010 04:18:00 +0000

I don’t like NYC Mayor Michael Bloomberg. Period. I object to the way he manipulated his City Council stooges to circumvent the term limits law. And I also object to many of the issues he has wasted his energies on the past eight years, such as eliminating trans-fats from restaurants, posting calories in fast-food restaurants, and creating a pedestrian walkway in Times Square. He should instead be focusing on issues like the one addressed in yesterday’s New York Daily News.

Tanesha Jones is a single mother of two daughters—a nine-year-old and a one-year-old. Jones was recently relocated into a Bushwick apartment as part of “Work Advantage”—a NYC Department of Homeless Services program that moves families out of homeless shelters. The Bushwick apartment contained a broken kitchen window, a missing front door knob, and a disconnected kitchen sink. It also contained lead paint and provided no heat. Just several days after Jones and her two daughters moved in, a rat ran out of the bathroom. One month later the building’s owner was arrested for allegedly sexually abusing Jones’ nine-year-old daughter. (The city did pay for the lead removal and for a new bathroom window. They also pay all of Ms. Jones’ monthly rent).

Explanations by bureaucrats that Ms. Jones’ problems are the exception and not the rule have been proven wrong by a New York Daily News investigation, which exposed the following:

“The city has paid for families to live in foreclosed homes, illegally converted apartments and dangerous flats. In some cases, landlords have shaken down tenants for extra rent.”

It is a disgrace that there are families who fear putting their children to bed at night because of rats. It is unacceptable that people must beg and plead to receive heat during sub-freezing temperatures. Why isn’t Mayor Bloomberg attacking this problem with the vehemence that he went after public smoking?

Where are you, Mike?

A Pact With Satan

noreply@blogger.com (Rain Maker) — Mon, 25 Jan 2010 04:19:00 +0000

For the past few generations we Christians have, metaphorically speaking, made a “pact with Satan”. In order to indulge in the pleasures of the secular world, we have agreed to compartmentalize our religious beliefs and responsibilities, restricting the time and manner of their expression so as not to conflict with the world-at-large. Expressions such as the following are used to illustrate our appeasement:

“Don’t talk about religion in the workplace.”

“Sure I’m a Christian, but business is business.”

“I don’t want to force my views onto others.”

Some of these self-restrictions are useful. For example, standing on a street corner dressed like Robinson Crusoe and screaming that people should repent is a turnoff and should be frowned upon. However, in our efforts to “get along” and to avoid forcing our beliefs on others—or is it really to avoid forcing our beliefs on ourselves—we have virtually compartmentalized Christ out of our lives, making him welcome only in our homes and our churches. Little did we realize that by voluntarily restricting Christ’s presence in our own lives that we have provided anti-Christian forces with the ammunition needed to purge Christianity from our society. An example of how well these forces have succeeded can be found in the recent Supreme Court decision to reject hearing a case involving “a school district's censorship of a kindergartener's choice of literature for a class reading.”

In 2004, during an “All About Me” activity at Culbertson Elementary School in Pennsylvania, parents were allowed to read a passage from their child’s favorite book. Parent Donna Busch wanted to read Psalm 118 because her son, Wesley, chose the Bible as his favorite book. According to Busch’s legal representative, the Rutherford Institute, the principal said “she could not read from the Bible in the classroom because it was against the law and that the reading would violate the separation of church and state." The institute also reported that not only did the teacher offer Ms. Busch a book about witchcraft, witches, and Halloween to read instead, but she also allowed another parent to read a book about Judaism and to teach the children a dreidel game.

The school district supported the decision made Culbertson’s principal, as did a U.S. District Court and a Third Court of Appeals.

Expect this discriminatory judicial ruling to be only the beginning. There are those who seek to bury Christianity alongside Greek and Roman Mythology as relics of ancient history. This legal decision will empower them to push our society further down the slippery slope leading to the outright banning of Christian practices. Think I am being ridiculous or paranoid? A generation ago it would have been unthinkable that a Christian could be prohibited from displaying a nativity on public property. Try doing that today. Do not underestimate the danger of this slippery slope.

Funny thing about pacts with the Devil: they seldom resemble what was agreed to.

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Fat Chance

noreply@blogger.com (Rain Maker) — Tue, 19 Jan 2010 20:30:00 +0000

Fat chance. That is effectively what a Weight Watchers lawsuit asserts about Jenny Craig’s recent advertising claims. In its latest commercials Jenny Craig makes reference to “a study comparing Weight Watchers current weight-loss program and Jenny Craig's pre-packaged meals system.” Weight Watchers argues that no study exists.

What’s that? A company is stretching the truth in its advertising? I am shocked, shocked to find that corporations deceive consumers in their marketing campaigns.

"’It is outrageous that Jenny Craig is trying to trick and fool consumers through this blatantly misleading advertising campaign, which makes clearly false and unsupported claims,” said David Kirchhoff, President and CEO of Weight Watchers.

If Jenny Craig’s commercials are fictitious you cannot blame Weight Watchers for objecting to them; yet, I don’t think it is wise to waste much time and energy on the issue. After all, do any consumers still believe the information peddled by advertisers? I assume there is a tacit “Buyer Beware” agreement between merchants and consumers, so I believe virtually nothing I see on commercials. However, I guess there are others who are more gullible.

Perhaps the two weight-loss system heavyweights can settle this out of court. Otherwise, a judge will decide who is the “Biggest Loser”.

Yeah, that was awful. I know.

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Need a PR Specialist? Perhaps my 13 years of PR experience can satisfy those needs. I have publicized world champions such as Lennox Lewis and Evander Holyfield, and mega-events like Lewis-Tyson and De la Hoya-Vargas. Contact Donald Tremblay (The Rain Maker) at 718-664-3405 or at dtremblay@earthlink.net. For more info about me visit my LinkedIn Profile.

Moderation Does Not Come Naturally

noreply@blogger.com (Rain Maker) — Wed, 13 Jan 2010 01:21:00 +0000

Moderation does not come naturally to humans. We over-eat. We over-drink. We even over-work and sometimes, believe it or not, over-exercise. So it is not uncommon for us to become obsessive-compulsive when defending a concept or goal that society finds worthy, such as treating people as individuals and not stereotyping them as a group. Unfortunately, this passionate devotion to an ideal can often blind us to reality.

Yesterday’s Los Angeles Times discussed how alleged Ft. Hood murderer, Army Maj. Nidal Malik Hasan, “repeatedly earned favorable performance ratings in spite of mounting concerns about his views and behavior.” The article points to problems with the evaluation system itself, such as a “culture that encourages mainly positive reviews”. Several anonymous officers said the culture “has undercut the usefulness of the system for evaluating officers' strengths and weaknesses”. But let’s not kid ourselves. We all know why Hasan was treated with kid gloves.

In our efforts to avoid labeling people, we purposely ignore evidence staring us in the face. It is safer to hold hands and sing Kumbaya than to risk being called intolerant. The truth is that in Hasan’s case, none of his superiors wanted to risk their own careers by exposing him. In today’s world accusations of discrimination are occupational murder. Many people would rather ignore what they see than be labeled racist, sexist or any other “ist”. So despite being accused of shirking his professional responsibilities as a psychiatrist, proselytizing to patients, and repeatedly expressing his extremist Islamic views, Hasan continually earned a free pass from his superiors. Many would characterize it as a game of “pass the buck”, but it is more accurately a case of “hot potato”.

I have a friend who is a black Roman Catholic priest. He chuckles when he recalls his seminary days. As a seminarian his orthodox views often conflicted with the views of the more liberal clergy who taught his classes. Often their teachings were in opposition to Church doctrine and dogma. My friend would think nothing of berating the teachers for their contrary views, because he knew that as a black seminarian he was, in his own words, “untouchable”. The liberal clergy would make the lives of white seminarians miserable when they expressed similar views and aggressively defended them. My friend knew that a racist label against any of these clergy would ruin their cushy academic lives. So rather than single out my friend, they bit their tongues and moved him along. Whether or not you agree with my friend (as I do) for challenging the liberal clergy, he should not have been treated any differently than the white seminarians. But that is not today’s reality.

40 or 50 years ago the pendulum swung in the extreme direction of allowing racism and sexism. Now it is swinging just as extremely in the opposite direction, classifying anyone who does not subscribe to political correctness as an “ist” to be removed like a cancerous tumor. Perhaps sometime in the near future the pendulum will settle somewhere in the middle . . . although, given our track record for overdoing things that does not seem very likely.

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One Big, Happy Family?

noreply@blogger.com (Rain Maker) — Mon, 11 Jan 2010 05:14:00 +0000

Because of all the money and power we see in Washington, it is easy to forget that politicians are just people, individuals subject to the same petty jealousies, neuroses, and insecurities that affect the rest of us peons. One big, happy family they are not in D.C., even when they are members of the same political party. That is why what I find most interesting in politics is not the machinations themselves, but the personal dynamics behind those responsible for the machinations.

Mark Halperin and John Heilemann’s recently released book Game Change reveals the behind-the-scenes back-biting inside the Obama-Biden / McCain-Palin Presidential Campaigns. Although the disagreements during the 2008 presidential race were probably no different than those found in past campaigns such as Bush-Quayle and Clinton-Gore, some of the anecdotes in Game Change are nonetheless amusing.

My favorite is the alleged conversation, or confrontation, between former President Bill Clinton and Senator Edward Kennedy regarding Kennedy’s support of Barack Obama—someone who Clinton felt was unqualified. Authors Halperin and Heilemann paraphrase Clinton as sarcastically lecturing Kennedy about how “a few years ago, this guy would have been getting us coffee.”

LOL

Perhaps the former president should think twice before flippantly mocking coffee delivers considering the number of Americans who rely on their morning cup of coffee for survival. Who knows how many world wars have been averted and how many important legislative proposals have been passed because of a good cup of java.

Another of the book’s interesting anecdotes reveals Senator Obama’s frustration with his running-mate Senator Joe Biden, following Biden’s prediction that Obama would likely be tested early by the international community if he won the presidential election. Obama allegedly angrily asked his inner circle, “How many times is Biden gonna say something stupid?” This question has been asked many times by Americans. My favorite Biden gaffe is when he pontificated about FDR’s television chat with Americans following the 1929 Stock Market Crash. (Psst! Senator! There was no television in 1929 and FDR was not yet president). What interests me, however, about this anecdote is why this particular gaffe so upset candidate Obama. Who was Obama concerned that Biden would tip-off with the warning, the international community . . . or the American people? Did Obama truly believe that the possibility of an “international test” would never have occurred to anyone had Biden kept quiet? I guess our president never read the fairy tale The Emperor’s New Clothes.

Finally, this last anecdote caught my attention because I think it proves that things always happen for the best—even if it is not apparent immediately. According to Game Change Sarah Palin regretted accepting the Republican vice presidential nomination after her interview with Katie Couric: “If I’d known everything I know now, I would not have done this.” Even more disturbing is that McCain’s top aides allegedly questioned whether Palin was mentally stable. Geesh! One thing is certain: if Palin was already having misgivings that early in the campaign, how was she going to handle the attention she would have drawn as vice president? Or even worse, how would she have responded if something happened to McCain and she was forced into the Oval Office? I am sure Palin would not have been the first potentially unstable president, but that probability does not provide me with any comfort.

Game Change has some other interesting tidbits, such as Democratic Senator Harry Reid referring to Pres Obama as a black candidate who does not speak with a “Negro dialect unless he want[s] to have one”, and Elizabeth Edwards basically referring to her husband on numerous occasions as an intellectual midget.

This stuff is better than a prime-time soap.
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Need a PR Specialist? Perhaps my 13 years of PR experience can satisfy those needs. I have publicized world champions such as Lennox Lewis and Evander Holyfield, and mega-events like Lewis-Tyson and De la Hoya-Vargas. Contact Donald Tremblay (The Rain Maker) at 718-664-3405 or at dtremblay@earthlink.net. For more info about me visit my LinkedIn Profile.

Sinking Ship?

noreply@blogger.com (Rain Maker) — Wed, 06 Jan 2010 23:42:00 +0000

You have to wonder whether the adage about rats leaving a sinking ship applies to Connecticut Senator Christopher Dodd and North Dakota Senator Byron Dorgan. Both have announced that they will not seek re-election. Have these men just had enough of Washington or do they see the writing on the wall with respect to the damage President Obama is doing to the Democratic Party?

Many Americans have expressed their displeasure with the universal healthcare bill and with the secretive process with which it was drafted. According to The Washington Times, “in at least seven states -- Connecticut, Nevada, Ohio, Arkansas, Pennsylvania, North Dakota and Colorado -- the Democratic candidate for Senate trails the Republican in the most recent polls. In those states, Mr. Obama's popularity has dropped below the percentage of votes he drew in 2008, and opposition to the health-care-reform bill is deep and wide.”

The President has earned a reputation as someone who cannot be trusted, someone who speaks with a forked tongue. House Majority Leader Nancy Pelosi said as much Tuesday when grilled by reporters about the healthcare reform bill’s closed-door negotiations. When reminded by the media that candidate Obama said all negotiations should be open to C-Span, Pelosi replied, ““There are a number of things he was for on the campaign trail.” Ouch. In other words, even our President’s own party doesn’t know which way he is blowing daily.

Congressional Democrats fear that the President views them as nothing more than vassals, subject to his whims and fancies. And they recognize that come November it will be they who must face the voters’ wrath. Don’t be surprised if there are others in the Democratic Party who choose to follow Dodd and Dorgan and ride off into the sunset when their terms expire.
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Need a PR Specialist? Perhaps my 13 years of PR experience can satisfy those needs. Contact Donald Tremblay (The Rain Maker) at 718-664-3405 or at dtremblay@earthlink.net. For more info about me visit my LinkedIn Profile.

Doesn't That Cause Cancer?

noreply@blogger.com (Rain Maker) — Mon, 04 Jan 2010 12:32:00 +0000

The National Institute of Health just released a frightening report declaring that living causes cancer. Dr. Al Armist announced yesterday that a five-year study has proven that those who age increase their risk of cancer exponentially.

Pretty silly, huh?

Admit it. I had you believing it for a moment.

Is there anything over the past 30 years that has not been linked to cancer? Besides those warnings that appear legitimate, such as the dangers of smoking and exposure to pesticides, we have also been given specious, and often contradictory, warnings. Remember when drinking milk was said to increase your cancer risk? Eggs were also listed as taboo. And nothing is more confusing than estrogen. Menopausal women are told that taking estrogen decreases their risk of uterine, ovarian, and possibly even colon cancer, but that it increases their chances of breast cancer. How’s that for a trade? And let us not forget that brain cancer awaits us all because of our cell phone usage.

Well, according to a study by the University of California in San Francisco, CT scans can also be added to the list of possible cancer-causing demons. The study asserts that large doses of radiation from CT scans “may cause 29,000 new cancers a year--and 14,500 deaths.” Although these diagnostic tests can find cancers, repeated exposure to them increases the risk of cancer because of the level of radiation the patient absorbs over time. Radiologists agree that doctors should be better-educated about CT scan dangers, but they also warn that “the risk of getting cancer from CT radiation is still smaller than being in a car accident or getting hit crossing the street”.

How long will it be before those things are declared cancer risks?

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Need a PR Specialist? Perhaps my 13 years of PR experience can satisfy those needs. Contact Donald Tremblay (The Rain Maker) at 718-664-3405 or at dtremblay@earthlink.net. For more info about me visit my LinkedIn Profile.

Merry Christmas

noreply@blogger.com (Rain Maker) — Wed, 23 Dec 2009 02:23:00 +0000

1
In those days a decree went out from Caesar Augustus 2 that the whole world should be enrolled.
2
This was the first enrollment, when Quirinius was governor of Syria.
3
So all went to be enrolled, each to his own town.
4
And Joseph too went up from Galilee from the town of Nazareth to Judea, to the city of David that is called Bethlehem, because he was of the house and family of David,
5
to be enrolled with Mary, his betrothed, who was with child.
6
While they were there, the time came for her to have her child,
7
and she gave birth to her firstborn son. 3 She wrapped him in swaddling clothes and laid him in a manger, because there was no room for them in the inn.
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4 Now there were shepherds in that region living in the fields and keeping the night watch over their flock.
9
The angel of the Lord appeared to them and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were struck with great fear.
10
The angel said to them, "Do not be afraid; for behold, I proclaim to you good news of great joy that will be for all the people.
11
5 For today in the city of David a savior has been born for you who is Messiah and Lord.
12
And this will be a sign for you: you will find an infant wrapped in swaddling clothes and lying in a manger."
13
And suddenly there was a multitude of the heavenly host with the angel, praising God and saying:
14
6 "Glory to God in the highest and on earth peace to those on whom his favor rests."
15
When the angels went away from them to heaven, the shepherds said to one another, "Let us go, then, to Bethlehem to see this thing that has taken place, which the Lord has made known to us."
16
So they went in haste and found Mary and Joseph, and the infant lying in the manger.
17
When they saw this, they made known the message that had been told them about this child.
18
All who heard it were amazed by what had been told them by the shepherds.
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And Mary kept all these things, reflecting on them in her heart.
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Then the shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all they had heard and seen, just as it had been told to them.

(Luke 2: 1-20)

Just What Is In This Bill?

noreply@blogger.com (Rain Maker) — Mon, 21 Dec 2009 17:27:00 +0000

I don’t know whether it is a good thing or not if President Obama’s healthcare bill clears Congress. As a general rule I am against government intervention because the more bureaucratic something becomes, the less efficiently it is run. Yet, it is clear that healthcare costs in our nation are outrageous and have become unaffordable for most people. Something must be done. But what concerns and confuses me most is not receiving straight answers from either party about what is actually in the healthcare bill.

House Republican Leader John Boehner’s website alleges that “Sen. Reid’s Government-Run Health Plan STILL Requires a Monthly Abortion Fee.” Some Dems argue otherwise. Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid would rather toss hyperbole than give specifics about the bill, insisting that “on average, an American dies from lack of health insurance every 10 minutes.” Not to be outdone in the hyperbole department, Republicans insist the healthcare bill contains “death panels” that will decide when people have lived long enough. But clearly the award for most outlandish and least informative piece of hyperbole goes to Rhode Island Senator Sheldon Whitehouse who labeled Republican supporters as “the birthers, the fanatics, the people running around in right-wing militia and Aryan support groups.” He then added that “it is unbearable to them that President Barack Obama should exist.”

Uh, thank you, Senator.

Hyperbole is the norm when it comes to PR and marketing, and it is found in even greater amounts in our capitol. Yet, it doesn’t explain the Democrats’ covertness about the contents of their bill. If I were completing legislation that would solve our nation’s healthcare problems, I would be imitating British Prime Minister Neville Chamberlain when he waved the Munich Pact and declared it would be “peace for out time”. Perhaps the Dems are not blowing their own horns because there are things in this bill that Americans will find objectionable. After all, why the need for stealth? Why hold a procedural vote in the wee hours of a Monday morning following a record-breaking snow storm in Washington, DC?

Perhaps just as the Munich Pact failed to deliver peace, this healthcare bill will fail to deliver acceptable healthcare reform.

M.T.A. - More Thievery Again

noreply@blogger.com (Rain Maker) — Fri, 18 Dec 2009 05:57:00 +0000

M.T.A. officials should be publicly flogged.

How can a corporation that holds a virtual monopoly over NYC’s transportation system constantly find itself in debt? Every few years the subway and bus fares rise, the bridge and tunnel tolls jump, and yet the M.T.A. cries poverty. These M.T.A. officials are either the most corrupt individuals this side of Tammany Hall, or they are the most incompetent.

And while these executives continue to rake in six-figure salaries, the average NY-er will be inconvenienced by fewer subway and bus lines, and poorer service—all while knowing that a potential fare hike is always lurking in the background. And let’s not forget the royal screwing being inflicted on NY families. Our esteemed Gov Patterson, along with NY state senators and assemblymen, slashed Albany’s payments to the M.T.A. for the "the costs of the reduced fare for school children program." Albany was giving $45 million but now will only give $6 million. The M.T.A. board responded by voting to eliminate the free subway and bus passes for students.

Have we reached the tipping point, the moment when the “Powers-That-Be” understand nothing short of civil disobedience? Do NY-ers in mass numbers have to jump subway turnstiles without paying and drive through toll booths without stopping for our elected officials to take notice?

Perhaps the M.T.A. , our governor, and the usual suspects who inhabit Albany would respond differently if their personal bank accounts were raided to solve the M.T.A.’s perpetual financial deficits?

Ozone Man Returns

noreply@blogger.com (Rain Maker) — Tue, 15 Dec 2009 20:23:00 +0000

Al Gore, infamously referred to as Ozone Man by former President George Bush, Sr., has raised eyebrows in Copenhagen with his latest doomsday prediction that “there is a 75 per cent chance of the entire polar ice cap melting during the summertime by 2014.”

That’s right. Even though 10% of the world’s land mass is covered in glaciers and some places like Greenland have ice that is two miles thick, all of it will be gone in four years. Finit. Kaput.

That’s quite an attention grabber, isn’t it?

Unfortunately for Gore one of the people most surprised by his prediction is the scientist whose data the former vice president is using to defend his ridiculous claim.

LOL. You can’t write fiction this funny.

Dr Maslowski, of the Naval Postgraduate School in Monterey, California, stated, “It’s unclear to me how this figure was arrived at.” He then added, ““I would never try to estimate likelihood at anything as exact as this.” Professor Jim Overland, US National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration oceanographer, remarked: “This is an exaggeration that opens the science up to criticism from sceptics.”

Gore needs some serious PR assistance. Do environmentalists honestly believe that their cause is helped by silly comments like Gore’s? If they truly believe that the ecological changes we are witnessing are the result of humanity’s actions, then they should follow Professor Overland’s suggestion: “You really don’t need to exaggerate the changes in the Arctic.”

Perhaps Gore is panicking because of the amount of money he has riding on his ability to convince the world that the sky is falling. Maybe he is nervous because of the “Climategate” e-mail scandal.

Or Gore might simply be following the advice of Nazi Propaganda Minister Joseph Goebbels: “If you tell a lie big enough and keep repeating it, people will eventually come to believe it.”

One

noreply@blogger.com (Rain Maker) — Mon, 14 Dec 2009 15:16:00 +0000

Over the past few years, but particularly since our global economic depression, we have heard increased warnings about secret plans to create a New World Order—a term often considered code for One World Government. Even international government officials have referenced it during interviews, such as British Prime Minister Gordon Brown declaring on Jan 25, 2009, that the financial recession should be welcomed as the "difficult birth-pangs of a new global order". Two months ago Lord Christopher Monckton, former science advisor to British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher, was quoted criticizing the Copenhagen Treaty: “I read that treaty. And what it says is this: that a world government is going to be created. The word ‘government’ actually appears as the first of three purposes of the new entity.” He then added, “They are about to impose a communist world government on the world. You have a president who has very strong sympathies with that point of view. He’s going to sign it.” Speculation about creating a One-World Currency, the naming of Barack Obama as the first U.S. President to chair the U.N Security Council, and the continued subordination of American troops to United Nations commanders has enflamed Americans’ concerns about a New World Order. But despite all the discussions and arguments, there is one important element of New World Order theory that most people are unaware of: the creation of One World Religion.

The New Age movement has been among the strongest supporters of a New World Order. Constance Cumbey reports the following in her bestseller, The Hidden Dangers of the Rainbow: The New Age Movement and Our Coming Age of Barbarism: “Another thing I noticed was that the New Age books containing this exotic new theology had a vocabulary very similar to the books calling for the New World Order.” (p 28) Central to New Age belief is the idea that Man is God and that we can save ourselves. It is a modern form of Gnosticism. Man has no need to worship gods because we have access to the “Christ consciousness”. This esoteric teaching argues that Christ is not a person, but an office. In other words, Jesus was not the Christ. He was merely someone who had the Christ consciousness descend upon him. And just as Jesus received this office, so can anyone else provided he/she becomes enlightened. Enter Maitreya.

New Agers believe that shortly the world will be introduced to the Maitreya, who according to Cumbey is supposed to be “the fifth reincarnation of Buddha”. (p 19) Maitreya is the ultimate teacher, above all others including Jesus, Moses, Mohamed, etc . . ., and he is to free the divinity within Man and carry us from the Age of Pisces into the Age of Aquarius, which many believe has already begun or will begin in 2012.

What does all this have to do with current events?

Last week a spiral of lights appeared over Norway on the eve of Pres Obama’s arrival in Oslo to accept his Nobel Peace Prize. At first the Russians denied knowing anything about the cause of the lights, but then confessed that it was an intercontinental missile test that went awry.

A missile test?

Regardless of whether the Russians are telling the truth, when I first saw the photos and realized where it happened and when, I was reminded of the following words from Cumbey’s book: “I have learned that the [New Age] Movement has devoted a great deal of research and attention to the use of holographic images.” (p 24) Cumbey even quotes New Age guru David Spangler as saying that “laser beam projectors had been installed for use on top of the Cathedral of St. John the Divine Episcopal, in New York City. “ (p 24) Keep in mind that Cumbey’s book was written in 1983. Consider how technology has advanced in the past 26 years and what science is now capable of.

Why does it matter?

Share International is a group that defines itself as a “worldwide network of individuals and groups whose purpose is to make known the fact that Maitreya ― the World Teacher for the coming age ― and his group, the Masters of Wisdom, are now among us, emerging into the public arena ― gradually, so as not to infringe human free will.” Not long ago they posted the following on their website: “In the very near future a large, bright 'star' will appear in the sky visible to all throughout the world”. Now the spiral of lights has been added to the site as proof of their prophecy.

If there is a connection between the New Age movement and the New World Order, and I believe there is, we will begin to see increased celestial phenomena as part of a heightened PR and marketing effort on the part of those pushing the One World Government/One World Religion agenda. Smoke-and-mirrors will become common. Don’t be fooled.

Tennessee Waltz

noreply@blogger.com (Rain Maker) — Thu, 10 Dec 2009 01:46:00 +0000

What the heck is going on in our schools?!

Today’s New York Daily News features a front-page story about two James Madison High School teachers who were allegedly “caught ‘undressed’ in an empty classroom”. While their students watched a talent show in the auditorium, the two women—that’s right, two women—allegedly performed their own talent show . . . that is until the janitor reportedly walked in on them.

Not to be outdone, the New York Times today reports that “the N.C.A.A. is conducting a wide-ranging investigation into the University of Tennessee’s football recruiting practices.” The investigation apparently focuses on Tennessee’s recruiting hostesses—female students who “encourage” high schools seniors, especially sought-after athletes, to enroll at the Knoxville university. The Times mentions one example in which “hostesses traveled nearly 200 miles to attend a high school game in South Carolina in which at least three Tennessee recruits were playing.” The university has refused to comment on the investigation. Some claim that the hostesses are acting on their own without the sanction of the university. That’s possible. But it seems unlikely that these young women would go to the measures mentioned in the article without receiving encouragement from somewhere. Could someone in the university’s administration be “pimping out” these girls to lure big time sports recruits? Are these hostesses teaching recruits a modern version of the Tennessee Waltz?

With stories like these it’s no wonder more people want to home school their children.

Hypocrisy

noreply@blogger.com (Rain Maker) — Mon, 07 Dec 2009 15:59:00 +0000

You have to love hypocrisy, especially when it is exhibited by politicians. Whether it is a senator preaching family values while having a mistress and a secret family, or a House Rep preaching fiscal restraint to the nation as he floods his constituents with pork projects. The arrogance of these men and women, and their sense of entitlement, is truly staggering. The latest example is the upcoming global climate summit in Copenhagen.

We have been hounded repeatedly over the past few years about the connection between Man’s carbon emissions and global warming. We have been warned that the abuse of natural resources by western civilization is destroying our planet and setting the stage for an ecological disaster of biblical proportions. Frightening stuff, but apparently not frightening enough for the government delegates attending the Copenhagen climate summit.

According to the British daily The Telegraph, there have been over 1,200 limos and over 140 private jets reserved for those attending the “climate” summit. The newspaper predicts that the climate conference “will produce as much carbon dioxide as a town the size of Middlesbrough.”

LOL. Even Jonathan Swift couldn’t create irony this self-incriminatory.

So while you and I will soon be encouraged to eschew home heating oil in favor of cow dung, or asked to return to the horse-drawn buggy for transportation, our moral and intellectual superiors in government will continue jet-setting around the globe on “official” business.

But wait. Let’s give a round of applause to the Copenhagen prostitutes who will perform free sex on anyone who has a “climate conference delegate's pass”. At least some people who claim to support global warming theory are willing to put their money, or in this case their bodies, where their mouths are. Are they misguided? Sure.

But at least they are not hypocrites.