Android Gphone

To quote Mark Twain, “The rumors of my death have been greatly exaggerated”

Hillary, the Comeback Chick is back! Bill, aka Slick Willie, is on the attack! Obama\’s Soul Train is toppled off the track! Pundits are \’eating crow\’ while Hillary backers are wiping their respective brow (sighing with relief).

The pundits are saying that Hillary won the sympathy vote (especially by women) because of the media attacks and the ganging of Obama and Edwards on a poor woman during the debates. They claimed she found her own voice and displayed feminine traits such as crying, hugging MSNBC Chris Matthews and showing her vulnerabilities - I\’m human…I\’m not a machine; I\’m all woman…not a super woman within a 24 hour period.

On the other hand, MSNBC pundits are saying Obama might have suffered the effect that visited L.A. Mayor Tom Bradley\’s California Gubernatorial Race; Virginia Governor L. Douglas Wilder; Congressman Harold Ford\’s Tennessee Senatorial Race; Harvey Gantt\’s North Carolina Senatorial Race against the notorious Jesse Helms.

What is the effect?

The effect that race is a steep hill that still needs to be traversed in American politics. Howbeit, Hillary has to battle sexism and the infamous glass ceiling, too. She has to battle a mountain range of sexism, not only by the Good Old Boys Club, but also sexism perpetrated by right wing women who thinks while a woman\’s place is in the house - barefooted…it should not be in the Whitehouse - well-heeled/ high heeled.

My case against Obama…. On foreign policy, I\’m not sure of his positions. On the domestic front, Obama\’s healthcare proposals are worse than Hillary\’s and Romney\’s proposal. Mind you, Hillary\’s and Romney\’s proposal are not different from Nixon\’s and Kaiser\’s proposal to have Big Healthcare Insurance and the Pharmaceutical Industry have a run of the healthcare industry to their profitable content at the expense of the American people (including doctors and their patients). Edwards\’ and Kucinich\’s healthcare proposals are best. Unfortunately, they will not be nominated unless they inspire an October Revolution because they will not be elected by an October Surprise. In addition, Obama received the most money from the healthcare industry, in both parties, outside of Hillary Clinton. Hillary correctly pointed to the fact that Obama\’s co-chair for his New Hampshire Primary is a lobbyist in the Healthcare Industry.

My case against Hillary…. In comparison to Hillary, Obama is the lesser of two evils. On foreign policy, she is \’bought and sold\’ by the Neocons. On the domestic front, I loved the Hillary of 1993 who pushed for a universal healthcare mandate. Unfortunately, she was attacked by war criminals such as former Dan Quayle\’s Chief of Staff, former Harvard roommate of the hapless but eloquent Republican Presidential Candidate Alan Keyes, New York Times (former home to \’Pulitzeresque\’ reporters Judy Miller and Jayson Blair) Columnist and Weekly Standard\’s editor William Kristol. William Kristol who \’flipped the bird\’ to the American people - the true red, white and blue; the U.S. Constitution - of the people, for the people and by the people in the interest of his narrow, alien, selfish, criminal and immoral ideology. Also, she was attacked by the healthcare industry that stabilized their prices for eight years until George W. Bush stole the 2000 elections. Afterwards, healthcare prices jumped through the roof when Hillary\’s threat was removed. Hillary could argue that she\’s the number one beneficiary (in campaign contributions) of the healthcare industry because of her 1993 track record on the universal healthcare issue - they fear her.

Last night, Hillary was able to pull a Truman (who defied media and pundits\’ predictions of his inevitable defeat to Thomas Dewey) but I doubt she\’ll be able to pull a Justice William J. Brennan (who turned out to be a liberal lion on the Supreme Court after he was nominated by President Eisenhower who thought he was sending a moderate/conservative to the Bench as an appeasement to his conservative Catholic base). In other words, I don\’t think Hillary is going to flip the switch to the old Hillary of 1993 after her purchase by the healthcare industry. To the contrary, Hillary is more likely to pull a New York Governor Alfred E. Smith - a progressive and liberal champion, in the early years, who morphed into a tool of Big Business, in the later years, who tried to torpedo FDR\’s New Deal and fanatically attacked FDR\’s progressive policies as being anti-business and anti-rich.

The case for Obama…. Bill Clinton attacked Obama on his lack of experience. Obama had ten years of senatorial experience on the State and Federal level before his official Presidential Campaign which is equivalent to Clinton\’s ten years of gubernatorial experience in a small and rural state before his official Presidential Campaign. If Bill Clinton is the measuring stick, Obama is qualified (plus he\’s as talented as Bill Clinton).

To Hillary, Obama will be back!

Karl A. Mitchell

To Vote or not to Vote for Hillary

I wonder if Hillary is going to ride the wave of Bhutto\’s martyrdom to victory? Recently, just to name a few countries: Germany, Finland, Jamaica, Chile elected for the first time female heads of government/state. The U.S. is long overdue! Heck, if traditional patriarchal countries like Israel, Pakistan and India can do it why can\’t the great U.S. of A? Unfortunately, my enthusiasm is dampened at the preceding possibility because I would be celebrating the first female U.S. president in the form of Hillary. Eleanor Roosevelt where art thou?

Not Voting for Hillary…so Who to Vote for?

In his latest article, Salon Magazine\’s Glenn Greenwald outed Michael Bloomberg as a closeted neoconservative like his comrade, Senator Lieberman. Like Senator Lieberman, Mayor Bloomberg is a competent elected leader and a person of good character (with an asterisk). Unfortunately to quote Ecclesiastes 10:1 (King James Version): “Dead flies cause the ointment of the apothecary to send forth a stinking savour: so doth a little folly in him that is in reputation for wisdom and honour.” In other words, the Iraqi War is the central issue for me and the progressive blogosphere. Politicians who embraced the neoconservative ideology (war crimes and all) and fanatically support the Iraqi War (damned international and moral laws) cannot earn my vote.

On the other hand, I admire Congressman Ron Paul on the Republican side and Senator John Edwards on the Democratic side. Respectively, I don\’t agree with their platform in its entirety. However, I am bowled over by their position on the Iraqi War. In my mind, Senator Obama is still intriguing but the jury is still out on him.

It\’s a pity, I am a fan of Bloomberg\’s governance and contemplated to vote for his independent run for the Whitehouse; but to vote for a neoconservative today is to vote for a war criminal tomorrow.

Dining with His Royal Majesty

Last Friday, I was invited to a \’networking\’ dinner at Tao Restaurant (off Madison Avenue, NYC). The organizer was a Swedish national (a former Linguistics classmate at Q.C.) who works in Beijing and is in NYC to organize for the 2008 Olympics. We were in a group of seven. Our dinner discussion was dominated by the Iraqi War; Iraqi War; Iraqi War; business; politics; Ph.D. programs (I\’m considering…); my 1996 Olympics experience (via a German company I was working with in ATL); fitness; new technology; the Kobe steak on the menu, and Thai royalty.

Did he say Thai royalty?

Yep, I was taken aback at the fanaticism of two of our dinner guests during our discussion about Thai royalty. The two dinner guests were Thai women - highly intelligent; progressive; accomplished, and cosmopolitan - one is a Las Vegas restaurateur (a Culinary Institute of America graduate) and the other is a KPMG International manager/accountant (Harvard University graduate). I was intrigued by their reaction and body language to the topic of discussion. It is similar to a reaction someone would receive…debating evolutionary theory while dining with scientists (paternal line is Evangelical/Pentecostal), or debating the Holocaust while dining with Zionists (maternal line is Sephardic Orthodox Jew), or debating the Bell Curve with eminent Black scholars (I\’m black and I\’m proud J).

Here is an excerpt:

Thai accountant: “the king has done a lot for our country. He modernized a poor and a wretched country.”

Thai restaurateur: “In my Las Vegas restaurant, I placed a picture of our King in a prominent and conspicuous place.”

Dinner guest: “Do Thais pray to the king and think he\’s a deified ruler like some ancient cultures?”
Thai accountant: “Yes, a long pause no…we pray for him. We are Buddhists after all.”
Karl: After discussing the recent coup d\’état by the military; elections in which the deposed billionaire prime minister\’s party was successful, and the king\’s involvement” Isn\’t there a Muslim/Malay resurgence in the south?”

Thai restaurateur: “Not really, the king has presided over a stable government. Historically, Thailand is very peaceful. It is the only country, in Southeast Asia, not to be colonized by a European power. It was an ally of Japan pre-1946 and an ally of the U.S. since 1946. As a matter fact, the king was born in Cambridge, Massachusetts where his father was studying medicine at Harvard University.”

Karl: “Speaking of Japan, the reverence for your king reminds me of the Japanese reverence for the Emperor of Japan before their defeat in World War II where his deification was stripped by the U.S. sponsored post-war constitution.”

Dinner guest: “Don\’t you have strict lese majeste laws laws against criticizing a king or a queen?”
Thai accountant: “Yes, foreigners/tourists are prosecuted under the law, too. Don\’t forget, Holland has lese majeste laws although they are not zealously enforced….”
Dinner guest: “Despite the law, Thais genuinely love the king and thinks he cannot do any wrong.”

Thais hold their royal family in great reverence. Few visitors from the West can comprehend the relationship between the Thai people and their revered and beloved King.

Karl A. Mitchell

Today, I had a \’networking\’ lunch with four doctors at Ethos Restaurant located on 33rd & Third Avenue close to the NYU Medical Center. The doctors are females: a Jewish-American cardiologist residing in the Upper East Side; a Singapore-born oncologist residing in Forest Hills; a Philippines-born Ph.D. in Nursing (professor at Hunter College) residing in Jamaica Estates, and a Puerto Rican gynecologist residing in Bayside, specifically, Oakland Gardens.

The topic of our discussion was centered on the elections. They lauded me on a political article I wrote over a month ago. In turn, I decided to take an unscientific survey of their choice in the elections, even further, to take an informal survey of the choice of their family and friends.

The Gynecologist

Gynecologist: “I\’m not sure but I\’m leaning toward Obama most of my colleagues are Obamaistas!”
(aughing)

The Professor

Professor: “First, who\’s your choice?”
Karl: “I like the foreign policy proposed by Ron Paul and John Edwards.”
Professor: “I like Hillary although my colleagues like Obama.”
Karl: “Why Hillary? Is it because of Bill Clinton?”
Professor: “No! We need someone to stand up to the Muslims. Isn\’t he a Muslim or doesn\’t he favor the Muslims?”
Karl: “Actually, he\’s a Christian. George Bush and Dick Cheney have a cozy relationship with Saudi Arabia due to oil and geopolitical reasons. What is more Muslim than Saudi
Arabia? Would you say Bush and Cheney favor Muslims?”
Professor: “Interesting point….”

The Oncologist

Oncologist: (After some reluctance, she gave into my perseverance) “I am voting for Hillary despite all of the hoopla for Obama. I think Hillary is more conservative and is more experienced.”

The Cardiologist

Cardiologist: “First, I don\’t have any interest on the Republican side…not even for Giuliani. As for Obama, I wasn\’t impressed with his first debate. I think he was awful but I started to
be drawn to him over time. To be honest, he doesn\’t say anything of substance in his debates or speeches. I\’m not even sure of his positions unless I\’m a dense person.”
Karl: (I interrupted) “For the sake of your patients, I would hope not!” (Everyone laughed)
Cardiologist: She continued, “However, Obama has charisma. I love his charisma as
well as my colleagues. I will be voting for Obama unless Bloomberg runs on the Independent line. I\’m a Manhattan resident; I have to support Bloomberg because he\’s a great mayor.”
Karl: “Suppose Bloomberg\’s foreign policy is driven by a neoconservative agenda, in particular, a support of endless wars for ideological reasons?”

Cardiologist: “Karl, as usual, you asked good questions but I\’m not sure of Bloomberg\’s foreign policy”
Karl: “If Obama should gain the nomination; who do you think should be his running mate - Edwards or Hillary?”
Cardiologist: “Actually, I would want Oprah to be his running mate.”
Karl: “Are you serious?”
Cardiologist: “I\’m very serious!” (She smiled while everyone gave her a quizzical look)

Back by Popular Demand: Overheard in New Hampshire, Part II

• Obama is the Muhammad Ali of politics because he\’s a Muslim by his name but an American superstar by his game.

• Obama is the lady killer of politics because Hillary\’s campaign will be dead after New Hampshire. (We still love you, Hillary J).

• Obama is bringing back Reagan Democrats to the fold as Obama Republicans.

Karl A. Mitchell

An exchange between an interviewer and Warren Beatty, years ago, when he was contemplating to run against Arnold Schwarzenegger in the Gubernatorial race in California

Interviewer: “Mr. Beatty, would you seek the Presidency after you win the gubernatorial race? Would you run as a Democrat or an Independent? Speaking of running as an Independent, do you think the United States would be better off with a third party?”

Warren Beatty: “Nah, the United States doesn\’t need a third party. Instead, it needs a second party.”

Warren Beatty, of course, is echoing Gore Vidal\’s line that the two political parties (the leadership, at least) of the U.S. represents the two wings of the same bird (not the bald eagle but the other \’bald\’ bird - the vulture). Alas, we cannot have faith in our government (for obvious reasons), anymore. Howbeit, I recommend we should still have faith in the American people. Mark Twain put it best,

Should we love our country? - all the time
Should we love our government? -sometimes

Republican Ron Paul, and Democrats Dennis Kucinich and John Edwards (finally) are breaking the mold. They are profiles of courage - willing to preside over a government of the people, by the people, for the people (as instructed by the U.S. Constitution) - in contrast to the present lot (of both parties) who preside over a government against the people (as instructed by the Neocons and their allies). (The examples are self-evident). Unfortunately, the preceding three candidates will not be able to win their respective party nominations much less the Presidency. For example, are they able to defeat Giuliani, or Romney, or Hillary, or Obama (I have mixed feelings about this candidate - \’the verdict is still out\’)?

Heck, I would vote for N.Y.C. Mayor Michael Bloomberg on the Independent line if he should run for the Presidency. He did a better job in governing N.Y.C than Giuliani…. Grudgingly, I cannot begrudge Giuliani\’s mayoral record on safety and security. With the greatest reluctance, I have to admit he did a better job than Mayor Dinkins. Hey, we have to give unto Caesar what\’s due unto Caesar and unto God what\’s due unto God.

Let\’s not forget Benito Mussolini caused the trains to run on time and brought law and order to Italy. In turn, he sold his people, his country and his soul to a foreign state - Hitler\’s Germany. Mussolini\’s people, country and soul suffered the consequences for not putting his people\’s interest before the foreign state\’s interest. Mussolini\’s country was destroyed for linking his people\’s destiny to the Axis of Evil and his soul\’s fate to foreign demagogues.

Returning to Michael Bloomberg, again, I would cast my vote for him. However, what is Mr. Bloomberg\’s foreign policy position? Is he with the War Party (the Neocons)? Is he a chicken hawk (war advocate who dodged military service in his youth)? Is he like Senators Schumer, Feinstein and Leiberman (whom the blogospheres wish to do a recall against…because of their respective betrayals of the Democratic base)? Or is he like Wisconsin Senator Feingold or like Michigan Senator Levin - staunch Democrats and loved by the Democratic base?

Karl A. Mitchell

African-Americans\’ early mistrust of Obama as a genuine \’Black man\’ or the Great Black Hope to lead them to the Promised Land of MLK\’s Dream: culminating in the first Black man (if you ignore claims of Thomas Jefferson\’s Black heritage although his contemporary and political opponent Alexander Hamilton was confirmed to be an octoroon from the British West Indies) to preside over the great U.S. of A. from the White House is based on the following circumstances….

First, Obama is not a descendant of slavery - American nor otherwise. For example, his mother\’s forebears owned slaves. Heck, Obama is a distant cousin of Jefferson Davis, President of the Confederate States of America. On his father\’s side, Obama\’s father attended Harvard to pursue a Ph.D. after abandoning his family (Obama at age 2) although he could\’ve accepted a scholarship at the New School for Social Research in New York City that would have paid for his family to come with him. Before earning a Ph.D. with Harvard University, he accepted a job offer with the Kenyan government as a senior economist. In tow, Ruth Obama (Obama Sr.\’s third wife - Caucasian American and a Harvard classmate - bearing him two children) accompanied him to Kenya. Bear in mind, Obama Sr. had a Kenyan wife (the first wife) at his family\’s compound in his ancestral village.

Getting back on Obama\’s father\’s heritage, Obama Sr. was born a Muslim but he was an atheist (flirting with Marxism). Actually, the Marxist Kenyatta government wanted him to have attended Moscow University in the Soviet Union. Instead, he chose an American university. (If not, America would\’ve lost a favorite son and Russia would\’ve gained another PushkinJ). Now as far as slavery is concern, Obama Sr.\’s forebears, as Muslims, would\’ve assisted in the Slave Trade (African Muslims played a role in the Black Holocaust, too) instead of being slaves themselves. (For the sake of transparency, my mother\’s mother\’s mother\’s [born and raised as a Sephardic Orthodox Jew of Portuguese descent residing in Jamaica, West Indies] forebears were sea traders/merchants who invested in and profited from the Slave Trade [centuries ago]. Mind you, my maternal forebears were forbidden to own slaves because Colonial Jamaica did not allow religious Jews to be slave owners).

Growing up, Obama was insulated from racism by his doting White single mother and White grandparents. He didn\’t grow up with Black kids. He was one of two Black (albeit, mixed heritage) kids at his prestigious high school.

There you have it, an African-American who cannot claim a personal connection (via his family tree) to Slavery - the Black Holocaust. It would be similar to an Ashkenazi Jew not able to claim a personal connection (via a family tree) to the Nazi Concentration Camps - the Jewish Holocaust.

Let\’s not forget, many African-American family trees like Obama\’s family tree have \’White\’ branches. American icons like President Thomas Jefferson and Senator Strom Thurmond saw to it as \’wild oats\’ gentlemen farmersJ. As a matter of fact, Oprah Winfrey\’s family tree is one of the few African-American family trees that is unblemished (no White/European forebears) as depicted on a PBS program on DNA/Black Heritage.

We could look to the Biblical/Toraic Icon Moses as a symbolism of the potential of the Black messiah (please…no angry feedbacks…I\’m not equating Barack with the Christ nor the Moshiach) called Obama. Moses, a Hebrew, was nurtured in Pharaoh\’s House and raised as an imperial prince. As an Egyptian prince, he received the best education that Egypt - the Superpower of the time - had to offer. Later, he led his fellow Israelites (in nature [by blood only] and not in nurture) to the Promised Land (actually, to its gates). Moses (also marrying an Ethiopian) became the living symbol/hope of a people with a heritage of slavery - the enslaved Hebrews. He became the fulfillment of the dreams of his father; the Dreams of his forebear - Joseph (not direct lineage but as a member of the Tribe).

Does the dream end there? Did the fulfillment of the Hebraic Dream stop at Moses? Is the fulfillment of the MLK Dream (in the form of Obama) stop with African - Americans?

To the contrary, Moses (not by direct lineage but as a member of the Tribe) is one of the forebears of Jesus Christ - the Jews\’ Greatest Gift to the world. He is the Ultimate Fulfillment of the Hebraic Dream - extending God\’s Covenant with the Israelites to the Gentiles - in the form of a New Covenant/The Gospels (Good News) taught by His Jewish Lieutenants such as: Paul and Peter. The Dream\’s fulfillment preaches hope to both Jews and Gentiles, and Black and White (including non-Blacks). The Dream\’s fulfillment hopes to convert all of humanity (hearing His Voice and following Him) into Spiritual Jews. The Dream\’s fulfillment mercifully saves humankind from itself via Grace instead of the Law. The fulfillment of a Dream using the Hebrews, as the light of the world, to enlighten the Gentiles; culminating in the world\’s introduction to a Fair and a Just God - The Christ - The Prince of Peace. The Dream\’s fulfillment portrays the Love and the non-violence of the Prince of Peace. The fulfillment of a Dream that teaches that “the meek shall inherit the earth;” “if you live by the sword, you die by the sword,” and “love conquers all.” The fulfillment of a Dream that prophesized “they shall beat their swords into plowshares, and their spears into pruning hooks; nation shall not lift up sword against nation, neither shall they learn war any more.”

The above, folks, is the potential of MLK\’s Dream just like it was for the Hebraic Dream (in its proper perspective, of course…no angry feedbacksJ) - in the form of Obama; bringing the fulfillment of MLK\’s Dream and the dreams of our fathers (Black or White; Jew or Gentile). Hence, African-Americans\’ early mistrust of Obama (in the spirit of MLK Day) is dissipating just in time as he meets Hillary in the South Carolina PrimaryJ.

Happy MLK Day………………..Karl!

“The great general is one who finds a way to win without fighting a single battle….” (Sun Tzu in the Art of War)

Karl A. Mitchell

When you receive the Seal you will see global warming as the approaching end-times. Some scientists claim this current era is the “Anthropocene” era but you will understand it is really the eschatozoic era.

Carbon dioxide is polluting the air in ever-increasing amounts, growing by around 3 percent each year. It is blamed for being a “greenhouse gas” and trapping in the heat of the sun like a greenhouse while not letting it escape.

There is a consensus among scientists all over the world–an agreement that climate change is happening already and the world is growing warmer. The scientists have made many dire predictions.

One such prediction is that humans are entering into what is considered the “Anthropocene” age. That is the age when human impact is affecting the earth in drastic ways. And it is happening very quickly.

The biodiversity of life on earth is threatened with global warming. And without the biodiversity all the other species are predicted to eventually become extinct too. But that is not all that is happening.

“Global soil change” is a characteristic of this new human-made age. The soils all around the world already show less capacity to support biodiversity and agricultural uses.

Scientists want this era to be officially recognized, since this era is leaving records in fossils and geologic footprint that will be recognized for millions of years. But it is likely nobody will survive to study this era, at least not from on earth.

Jesus Christ taught a prophecy of His own about the end-times and it is frighteningly accurate considering what is seen happening to the earth today. Jesus taught the simple parable of the fig tree.

When the fig tree starts to blossom, Jesus said, you know that summer is near. That “summer” Jesus mentioned was the end-times. And how do scientists all over the world agree the world is ending?

As a summer with global warming. Spring, fall, and winter will become more like summer. And it has already started happening. The earth has been warming steadily for 20 years now.

With it comes the extinction of many species, ultimately including man. Many new conditions threaten the viability of man including rising amounts of natural disasters and increasingly harsh conditions growing food.

Natural disasters have been on the rise for 20 years and more are happening now than ever before recorded. These include floods and droughts, wildfires and more severe windstorms like hurricanes.

The depletion of the soil is just another condition caused by the impact of people on the environment. It will be one more condition making it nearly impossible to grow enough food to feed the world.

And this will happen soon enough. You do not have any time to spare. You need to take action now. And taking action does not mean just reducing your carbon footprint. You need to get right with God.

When you are sealed you will get right with God. You will see the end-times approaching as a summer in global warming and you will seek God for an eternal home in Heaven when you receive the Seal.

And now Jason would like to invite you to get your FREE report Are You Making These Mistakes as a Christian? and “Get God\’s \’Seal of Approval\’ and Get the Victory Over Evil”
Jason Witt

When you receive the Seal you will see global warming approaching as the end-times. You will be interested to see the presidential contenders for 2008 are taking up the issue of global warming.

McCain has pulled ahead as the front-runner in the Republican race after Super Tuesday when he captured most of the delegates. Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton are nearly tied in their race for the democratic nomination.

Illinois senator Barack Obama has taken up the issue of global warming, claiming his plan is better than the plan of McCain. He has met with Al Gore and was encouraged to take action before the election.

All three of these candidates–Obama, Clinton, and McCain–have plans to fight global warming based on the “cap and trade” system where permits are sold to polluters. The more they pollute, the more permits they have to buy.

Obama claims his plan is superior because his plan would require “auctioning” where all the permits have to be bought up front. That is what the European Union is moving toward doing more of.

It may seem like good news this issue has come out in the open like this for the candidates. People are becoming more and more concerned about global warming and making changes will require sweeping legislation.

From around 1990 to 2005 Germany was able to cut its emissions by ten percent. And the United Kingdom cut emissions during that time by 3 percent. So it is possible to cut emissions with the cap and trade system.

But those cuts are not nearly enough and can not possibly happen soon enough. 2005 was another record year for emissions. Nearly 7.9 billion tons of carbon emissions polluted the air that year alone.

And the pollution has been growing at a rate of nearly 3 percent per year since 1900. Even with the United States making cuts in emissions, The US is currently the leader in pollution, and those cuts can not possibly be enough.

Eventually industry will switch to clean energy. Most of the carbon emissions are caused by burning fossil fuels to create electricity. The second-highest polluter is transportation which can be changed too.

But those changes will not happen for years to come. Meanwhile pollution is growing and developing countries are predicted to be the fastest-growing polluters in the coming decades.

Carbon dioxide is blamed for being a “greenhouse gas” and trapping in the heat of the sun but not letting it escape, much like a greenhouse stays warm inside. It is upsetting the delicate balance of the ecosystem of the earth.

There is a consensus among scientists all around the world on global warming. And they agree with the prophecy of Jesus about the end-times. Jesus taught the simple parable of the fig tree.

When the fig tree blossoms, Jesus said, you know that summer is near. Jesus likened the end of the world to a “summer.” And today that is what scientists agree the end of the world is coming like.

Now it does not matter much who you vote for. All the candidates have plans to fight global warming. But none of them can possibly do enough to change the world. And time is running out.

When you receive the Seal you will see global warming as the sign of the end-times as Jesus predicted. You will prepare yourself by reconciling with God when you receive the Seal.

And now Jason would like to invite you to get your FREE report Are You Making These Mistakes as a Christian? and “Get God\’s \’Seal of Approval\’ and Get the Victory Over Evil”
Jason Witt

On the face of it the question asked, is to a Christian, ridiculous, foolishness. How could anyone even question the value of preaching the gospel online via audio sermons? If it makes you feel any better the author of this article has a Squidoo lens on the value of using the internet for this very purpose.

That said there is a dark side often not dealt with or even considered. Is there such a thing as truth? As the internet is open to the truth it is also open to just the opposite. Error can be spread under the guise of truth and promoted worldwide due to this medium.

We live in a time when in the realm of religion the only acceptable idea, the only politically correct socially acceptable idea, is that all men everywhere, save for perhaps the most morally bankrupt, the Hitler\’s of the world, are going to be saved. Worship a rat, no big deal, you are fine, heaven is to be your home. Worship an idol, no big deal, salvation is yours. Worship the devil, nothing to fear. If the latter is an exaggeration is but a little one.

There is not a religion on the face of the earth that is not considered to be on an equal footing with every other religion of the world. Even Radical Islam is to be accepted provided they keep their roadside bombs in Iraq not realizing that radical Islam would not be radical minus the roadside bomb. It is said that Radical Islam is being preached in the mosques of England openly and freely. What else can be done when every religion is of equal value?

When people accept every religion as being of equal value there is no standard, anything and everything goes. Reason is tossed out the door. You say it is black and I say it is white and the consensus today is that we are both right. Neither of us is wrong and even if one of us was it would make no difference.

Any one who is wise enough to cast aside political correctness and use common sense and reason, a little logical reasoning, understands down deep within himself that opposites cannot be reconciled in a way that make truth out of both. If one religion is true then its opposite must be false. We today down deep within know this else we deny all logic and cease to be rational human beings. But, we just cannot bring ourselves to say it. To say it in our politically correct climate is to be labeled as intolerant and unloving. It is to be figuratively crucified.

So, how does all of this relate to audio sermons? It is just this; error will be greatly propagated and also believed by many by means of that which is good in and of itself. That is inevitable. Thus online audio sermons are a mixed blessing. They can do much good, they can do much harm. Let the hearer be forewarned.

Online Christian audio sermons your author has put online can be found at
http://studiesinthelordssupper.com/Waymon_Swain_s_Audio_Sermons.htm

For additional articles on the subject of Christianity written by the author see
http://studiesinthelordssupper.com/Unrelated_Subjects.htm

Every spring and early summer garage sales burst forth in full bloom, loaded with the junk other people want to purge their homes and garages of. Why not have a completely unique garage sale of recycled and reused items that you have personally transformed from unwanted clutter in your house. By recreating these items into practical, distinctive and reusable possessions that people will benefit from owning and will pay you for the privilege of purchasing them, you have helped them acquire unusual objects, helped yourself get rid of scraps and saved the environment. To help you get ready for this years\’ successful garage sale, here are a few new twists on items you may have lurking in your house and garage at this very moment.

How can you get people to purchase your used aquarium water at a profit to you and a benefit to them? Well, the next time you clean the fish tank, pour the used water into an attractive bottle and slap on an attractive label with these instructions: \’Contains algae and other organic waste that your garden and houseplants will benefit from.\’ That old belt you no longer wear; cut it to fit securely and comfortably around a dog\’s neck [borrow the neighbors dog if you have to] and punch holes where needed. Sell it as a pet collar. Bag a couple of chopsticks you have been collecting in that junk drawer and label thus: \’Sewing Purposes Only! For stitched collars or other garment areas that need to be turned, use chopstick to push out the corners.\’

This one should be worth a dollar at least. In a baggie, place a folded card that reads \’Suggestion Package for double photo prints.\’ On the inside, write the following: suggestion one - use extra photo prints to assemble a photo collage for birthdays, anniversaries, graduations and retirement gifts. Suggestion two - create gag photos by cutting pictures of famous people from magazines, then cutting faces from extra family snapshots and gluing them over the faces from the magazines. Use the new \’portraits\’ to make greeting cards or put them in old picture frames, wrap and give as presents for special occasions. Add different suggestions of your own.

What can be done with that used engine oil that will make an ardent garage sale seeker purchase it? How about mixing it with turpentine and making a preserving finish for fences and sheds. The mixture can also be painted on garden tools to help keep them clean and free of rust. What to do with that old fishing line to re-sell it for the benefit of someone else? Bag and tag with a few ribbons and with the following instructions: \’Garden Use. Stretch across garden rows six inches above seedlings and tie with ribbons to keep birds away; raise accordingly as plants grow.\’ I use colored cellophane and the birds really do stay away.

Here\’s a major pet peeve for me, what to do with used frozen-juice can lids besides pitching them out! Actually, I had developed the odd habit of collecting them until I found several uses for them. Using only the lids that have finished edges, I cover them with pretty fabric or attractive paper [another of my \'saving\' habits] to make reusable and unique Christmas ornaments reminiscent of Victorian times. Here\’s another suggestion, since they are just the right size for kids to attach their school photos to or anything else they want to show the world, I punch a hole in the top and tie them with ribbon or string. You can make quite the children\’s collage with these. Gluing a piece of colored felt to the underside and painting or decorating the tops, turns frozen-juice can lids into a nice set of coasters that I can sell at my garage sale for the handsome price of a buck, fifty! Any one of these ideas will work for your next garage sale. If you can reuse the lids so many ways, what uses can you put the cans themselves to? Once washed, they are ideal for saving extra cookie dough. Just fill the can with dough, put the lid back on and freeze! When you are ready to bake - open at both ends, push the dough through the can, slice and bake. Bag \’em! Tag \’em and Sell \’em!

We all have them! Old, used flowerpots littering up our homes, garages and backyard. So, to what use can you put them to that will make you some change for your piggybank? Here\’s a natural way to handle garden pests without resorting to the use of harmful chemicals. Chip a clay flowerpot and turn it upside down in your garden to create a cool umbrella for slugs so they have a doorway in out of the sun. When you have a \’collection\’ of them, transport them out of your garden. Surely someone will pay you fifty cents for this bit of humane wisdom using common clutter. Last one. If you are buying new glasses but your prescription has stayed the same, have your old glasses tinted and use them for sunglasses. This one is for personal use and what would this suggestion be worth to someone who is intending to throw out the old pair of glasses?

Look around your home and garage, see it you don\’t find your own mishmash of the following items: zippers, wire hangers, tuna cans, tires and their hoary rims, old spice jars, soap slivers, shoelaces, safety pins and rubber bands, popsicle sticks, plastic milk jugs and their rings, plastic loops, ties and lids. How can you turn this chaos of rubbish into helpful, necessary assets that people will pay you for at your next garage sale this Spring. All it takes is a label on a bag with some rather inventive instructions and an original, offbeat use.

You can look forward to unloading your trash as innovative and indispensable new items, to the benefit of those brave souls who visit countless garage sales every year, in search of that one useful and special item that will make their visit to your particular garage sale worth their road trip? Make a label now.

I am a Freelance Writer who writes web content, landing pages and does copywriting for other sites online. I work from home and always have time for writing the articles I post on Ezine. These articles serve as part of my online portfolio. I am currently working on my own website, where I will feature my work. My site will be active by the end of February for you to visit. Everyone is Welcome and I encourage you to drop by with your comments and any work projects you may have available for me to look at. All visits and comments are appreciated.

In other studies we have shown the connection of Revelation 1:7 with Daniel 7:13. See at our website below. This study addresses a key background text to Matthew 24:30.

In Zechariah we have the following:

“And I will pour on the house of David and on the inhabitants of Jerusalem the Spirit of grace and supplication; then they will look on Me whom they pierced. Yes, they will mourn for Him as one mourns for his only son, and grieve for Him as one grieves for a firstborn.
In that day there shall be a great mourning in Jerusalem, like mourning at Hadad Rimmon in the plain of
Megiddo. And the land shall mourn, every family by itself: the family of the house of David by itself, and their wives by themselves; the family of the house of Nathan by itself, and their wives by themselves;

the family of the house of Levi by itself, and their wives by themselves; the family of Shimei by itself, and their wives by themselves;

All the families that remain, every family by itself, and their wives by themselves. Zechariah 12 verses 10-12 provides an interpretive key to unlock the apocalyptic meaning of Revelation 1:7.

Mourning for an Only Son

The language of mourning over the death of an only son, connects the text in Revelation 1:7, particularly, in the phrases, then all of the tribes shall mourn, with Zechariah 12.

The nature of this mourning is not in the tragic but normal grief experienced in the loss of a loved one. Rather, this is pointing to loss on a national scale. It recalls the account of Pharaoh\’s Egypt.

On the night of the Passover, the Lord struck all the firstborn in the land of Egypt, from the firstborn of Pharaoh who sat on his throne to the firstborn of the captive who was in the dungeon, and all the firstborn of livestock. (Exodus 12:29)

The net result of this calamitous destruction affected the entire land of Egypt from the throne to the dungeon and even the livestock.

So Pharaoh rose in the night, he, all his servants, and all the Egyptians; and there was a great cry in Egypt, for there was not a house where there was not one dead.(Exodus 12;30)

The mourning is universal in that it covers the entire land of Egypt, but it is also local in that it does not affect other nations, except in the influence of Israel\’s fame and terror. From this event, we must draw a parallel in the text before us cited by Christ in Matthew 24:30, and John in Revelation 1:7. It is also interesting that a correlation with Egypt, alluded ot in Zechariah 12, is made concerning Jerusalem in Revelation 11:8.

Mourning in the Land of Judah

The second example of mourning focuses on the city of Jerusalem in the eschatological day of the Lord. Thus we read:

In that day there shall be a great mourning in Jerusalem…

The particularly nature of this mourning is like that at Hadad Rimmon in the plain of Megiddo. This was the place where King Josiah of Judah, was killed by Pharaoh Necho of Egypt. (2 Chronicles 35:24) Upon the death of Josiah it is said that, And all Judah and Jerusalem mourned for Josiah.

So again we observe that the focus of the text is mourning in Judah and Jerusalem over their traggic death and loss. The women turned the mourning over Josiah\’s death into a custom in Israel recording it in the book of Lamentations.

In this event and in the death of the firstborn of Egypt, Jerusalem would suffer a similar but greater mourning in their last days.

Mourning Among the Families of Judah

Zechariah 12 continues this theme of mourning but narrows it down very specifically to the southern kingdom of Judah. This is all that remained of Israel after the 10 northern tribes were “cut off” from the nation during the reign of Jeroboam (2 Kings 17).

Now the emphasis focuses on the “land.” By the way, this is the same term (Gk. ge) used in Revelation 1:7, sometimes translated earth. Particularly, it means the land of Palestine. That was holy ground to the Jews whereas all other lands were common.

What is significant here is that the families mentioned all belong to the southern kingdom of Judah. David, Nathan and Shemei are all Judahites. Part of the tribe of Levi was incorporated in Judah while the other half followed the northern kingdom. The word “families” in Zechariah 12 verses 12-14, is properly tribes from the Greek, phulas. That Jesus, in the Olivet discourse is focused on these tribes of the southern kingdom cannot be denied. Jerusalem, the center of their government and worship and its destruction is the cause of their grief.

Therefore, when Jesus, (Matthew 24:30) and John (Revelation 1:7) cite the tribes of the land will mourn, they speak particularly of the Judean invasion by the Romans in A.D. 70.

This is both the Old Testament Covenantal background for the phrase “every eye shall see him.” Such statement is properly interpreted in the context of Israel\’s first century history. It cannot therefore be a 21st century universal event.

William Bell speaks regularly on Fulfilled Prophecy and is the author of The Re-Examination, a study of Christ\’s first century return in glory. Find more articles on the endtime at http://www.lastdays-eschatology.net and http://www.allthingsfulfilled.com