How Ancient Cultures Explained Eclipses. (Video)

How Ancient Cultures Explained Eclipses. A Shout Out to My Flat Earther Buddies. This video is taken from an article called “How Ancient Cultures Explained  Eclipses”. It is featured in an online publication called “the Conversation” and was written by Roger Culver, Emeritus Professor of Physics, Colorado State University. I recently saw a couple of videos posted by Flat Earthers who say that the coming Eclipse is a lie and proof that we live on a Flat Earth.  They say that astronomers are hard press to prove that the Sun which is 93 million miles away and yay big could possibly be eclipse by a moon that is so much smaller and so much closer to the Earth. Personally, I am not too sure about this argument for the flat earth because that type of shadowing can be done when you position beam of light at a certain distance where it can be obstructed by another object in its path, causing a third object in the line of sight, to have a shadow cast upon it. But let’s take a look at what the Ancient Cultures have said. This video: https://youtu.be/6O9GBmtDJBc

How ancient cultures explained eclipses

by Roger Culver, Colorado State University

On August 21, a total solar eclipse will be visible across parts of the United States.
As the Earth and moon sweep through space in their annual journey around the sun, the three bodies align in such a way that the Earth passes into the shadow of the moon. Observers then witness a sun that is gradually covered and uncovered by the moon’s disk – a spectacular celestial event.

But until astronomers were able to explain this phenomenon, a solar eclipse could be a terrifying event. In many cultures throughout human history, the sun was seen as an entity of supreme importance, crucial to their very existence. It was regularly worshipped as a god – Amun-Ra to the Egyptians and Helios to the Greeks – or as a goddess, such as Amaterasu for the Japanese and Saule for many Baltic cultures.

One reason the sun served as a god or goddess in so many cultures was its awesome power: Looking directly at it would severely damages the eyes, a sign of the sun diety’s wrath.
So the idea that the sun deity could be temporarily extinguished in a total eclipse inspired a number of imaginative explanations. Most involve some sort of evil entity trying to devour the sun. Such myths undoubtedly arose from the fact that during the early stages of a solar eclipse, the sun appears to have a bite taken out of it.

The various creatures include the Vikings’ sky wolves Skoll and Hati, a Chinese dragon, a Vietnamese frog and assorted Roman demons. In many cultures, it was believed that such creatures could be driven off by creating as much loud noise as possible: yelling, ringing bells, and banging pots and pans.
Perhaps the most creative version of this strand of mythologies comes from certain branches of Hindu culture. In that version, the mortal Rahu is said to have attempted to attain immortality. The sun and moon told the god Visnu of Rahu’s transgression. As punishment, Visnu decapitated Rahu.

Ever since, Rahu has sought to exact vengeance on the sun and the moon by pursuing them across the sky to eat them. Once in a while – at the time of an eclipse – Rahu actually catches the sun or the moon. In the case of a solar eclipse, Rahu slowly devours the sun, and it gradually disappears into Rahu’s throat – only to reappear from his severed neck.

Rahu swallowing the moon.
Anandajoti Bhikkhu, CC BYIn other branches of Hindu culture, the “sun eater” took the more traditional form of a dragon. To fight this beast, certain Hindu sects in India immersed themselves up to the neck in water in an act of worship, believing that the adulation would aid the sun in fighting off the dragon.
Other cultures had equally ingenious explanations for – and defenses against – a total solar eclipse. Eskimos thought an eclipse meant that the sun and moon had become temporarily diseased. In response, they’d cover up everything of importance – themselves included – lest they be infected by the “diseased” rays of the eclipsed sun.

For the Ojibwe tribe of the Great Lakes, the onset of total eclipse represented an extinguished sun. To prevent permanent darkness, they proceeded to fire flaming arrows at the darkened sun in an attempt to rekindkle it.
Amidst the plethora of the myths and legends and interpretations of this strange event, there are seeds of understanding about their true nature.

For example, the famed total solar eclipse of May 28, 585 B.C., occurred in the middle of a battle between the Medes and the Lydians in what is now the northeast region of modern-day Turkey. The eclipse actually ended the conflict on the spot, with both sides interpreting the event as a sign of the displeasure from the gods. But based on the writings of the ancient Greek historian Heroditus, it’s thought that the great Greek philosopher-mathematician Thales of Miletus had, coincidentally, predicted its occurrence.

Chinese, Alexandrian and Babylonian astronomers were also said to be sophisticated enough to not only understand the true nature of solar eclipses, but also to roughly predict when the “dragon” would come to devour the sun. (As with much knowledge back then, however, astronomical and astrological findings were relayed only to the ruling elites, while myths and legends continued to percolate among the general population.)

Advances in modern astronomy have given us detailed explanations for solar eclipses, to the extent that their time and location can be predicted centuries into the future and reconstructed from centuries ago.

Of course, mythologies surrounding total solar eclipses still exist today. Some conspiracy theorists say this year’s eclipse will cause the end of the world – perhaps a testament to the endurance of the superstitious side of the human psyche.

Roger Culver, Emeritus Professor of Physics, Colorado State University
This article was originally published on The Conversation. Read the original article.

What's hidden behind the walls of America's prisons? (Video)

What’s hidden behind the walls of America’s prisons?

This video: https://youtu.be/WhIctHl2DTI

Heather Ann Thompson, University of Michigan
Few Americans fully appreciate just how many of their fellow citizens are ensnared in the criminal justice system.
Some may have heard that there are about 2.3 million people behind bars, but that figure tells only part of the story. Yes, in a stunning array of 1,719 state prisons, 102 federal prisons, 901 juvenile correctional facilities, 3,163 local jails and 76 Indian Country jails, as well as in military prisons, immigration detention facilities, civil commitment centers and prisons in the U.S. territories, we physically contain more human beings than any other country in the world. In addition to those actually locked up, there are another 840,000 Americans being supervised on parole and an additional 3.7 million people being monitored on probation.
Consider this: The world’s most populous city, Tokyo, and the U.S.‘s most populous state, California, have fewer residents combined than the up to 100 million U.S. citizens who now have a criminal record.
As important, these historically unprecedented rates of containment, and the deep stigma of a criminal record, aren’t experienced equally in this country. America’s incarceration crisis is suffered staggeringly and dis-proportionally by communities of color.
That so many are blissfully unaware of just how many people are, or have been, subject to containment or control is, perhaps, unsurprising. Prisons are built to be out of sight and are, thus, out of mind. Somehow, even though these institutions contain human beings, including children, and even though we are the ones who cough up the billion of dollars that it costs to run them, we are expected simply to trust that they are operated humanely and that they in fact make our society safer.
As a historian of crime and punishment who has been inside of America’s prisons and has documented severe abuses that have taken place within them, I know this trust is not warranted. It is past time that the public has unfettered access to these public institutions so that we can know exactly what happens behind prison walls.

The fight to see inside

There is, in fact, a long history of the public being kept away from prisons so that corrections officials could run them as they wished. For much of the 19th and into the 20th century, state politicians’ deeply ingrained fear of federal encroachment on their power more generally translated into the so-called “hands-off doctrine” when it came to how they ran their prisons. Prison authorities, it was understood, had the right to do what they wanted to those in their charge.
Of course prisoners routinely tried to bring attention to the abuses that happened to them. But time and again, and most notably in the infamous 1871 case Ruffin v. Commonwealth, their bid to be treated as human beings was formally denied. In fact, according to the court in this case, prisoners were “slaves of the state.”

Chain gang street sweepers in
 Washington, D.C., circa 1909Chain gang street sweepers in Washington, D.C., circa 1909.

In the 1960s and 1970s, though, in response to escalating protests in penal facilities and in cities across the country, prisoners finally gained some rights. In turn, the public began to learn a bit more about what was happening to them behind bars.
It was, for example, deeply significant when the Warren Court opined in a 1974 case, Wolff v. McDonnell, that

“a prisoner is not wholly stripped of constitutional protections when he is imprisoned for crime. There is no iron curtain drawn between the Constitution and the prisons of this country.”

However, at the moment that more light was being shone on prison conditions because of specific judicial rulings, it was also clear that serious limitations on the public’s access to these institutions would remain and, overtime, actually increase.
In 1974, the court ruled in Pell v. Procunier that prisoners’ First Amendment rights were in fact limited. In this case the court held that journalists, the people who might hear prisoner accounts of abuse and share them with the public, “have no constitutional right of access to prisons or their inmates beyond that afforded to the general public.” As Ted Kennedy noted passionately before his colleagues in the Senate, this decision was alarming since, as he pointed out, “the public cannot regularly tour the prisons and interview inmates.”
Another significant blow to the public’s access came in 1987 when a decision was rendered in the case Turner v. Safley. The court ruled that prisoners’ rights to speak to the media existed only to the extent that prison authorities didn’t have a reasonable justification for restricting those rights. And the lid on access lowered even farther in the 2003 case Overton v. Bazzetta. The court ruled, in short, that if prison administrators wished to bar visitors to prison, their desires trumped other constitutional considerations such as the First Amendment rights of prisoners.
The court even found that prison officials could prevent visits between prisoners and their kids if the restrictions on visitation were related to “valid interests in maintaining internal security.”

Access abroad

Notably, other prison systems, most famously those in countries such as Sweden and Norway, are much more transparent. The primary goal of prison, officials in these countries maintain, is to return people to the society improved. And, thus, they insist, prisons must have oversight to ensure that they are run humanely.
Not only are Scandinavian prisoners assigned a special officer “who monitors and helps advance progress toward return to the world outside,” but Norwegian prisons boast an “explicit focus on rehabilitating prisoners through education, job training and therapy … [and the] priority of reintegration.”
Even in countries not known for their human rights, such as Singapore, prison officials explicitly connect the humane treatment of the incarcerated to the broader public good. As their corrections officials put it, “by rehabilitating our inmates, society can continue to be safe even when these offenders leave prison.”
The principle that the public has a responsibility to run prisons humanely was in fact adopted by the United Nations back in 1955.
When the U.N. revised and again adopted its “Standard Minimum Rules for the Treatment of Prisoners” in 2013, thereafter dubbed the “Nelson Mandela Rules,” not only was it endorsing the idea that penal practices must be humane and prisoners treated like people, but it also made clear that humane treatment depended upon outsider access to prisons. According to the U.N., “services and agencies, governmental or otherwise” interested in prisoners’ well being “shall have all necessary access to the institution and to prisoners.”

Why access matters

Even a cursory glance at our nation’s history indicates that such access is not only desirable, but necessary.
The abuses that went on in this country’s 19th-century penal institutions, both in the North and in the South, are well-documented, and it is now obvious that the 20th century did not bring much improvement.
One need only read of the pain and suffering the men locked up at the Angola Penitentiary in Louisiana endured in the 1950s. Here, men willingly cut their own Achilles tendons so that they might avoid the abuses of the guards driving them in the prison’s cotton fields. Or we can look at the horrific torture endured by the men at Attica in the wake of their 1971 protest.

A work crew heads to the fields at the Louisiana State Penitentiary in Angola in 2001. AP Photo/Bill Haber

Throughout American history unspeakable abuse of men and women has been allowed to happen behind prison walls because the public had no access.
And, if we pay close attention to what has been happening much more recently behind bars, it is clear that the closed nature of prisons remains a serious problem in this country.
In September 2016, prisoners at facilities across the country erupted in protests for better conditions. In March and April of 2017, prisons in Delaware and Tennessee similarly exploded.
In each of these rebellions, the public was told little about what had prompted the chaos and even less about what happened to the protesting prisoners once order was restored.
In fact, when we, the public, just dig a little, it is obvious that much trauma takes place behind bars while we aren’t watching.
In a juvenile facility in Florida it is now clear that over the course of many decades in the 20th century, prison officials murdered scores of young boys. In facilities such as Rikers Island, young people today experience physical abuse and some have died in custody. And not just children, but vulnerable adults as well, suffer tremendously, and daily, because they are at the utter mercy of officials who don’t have to answer to the public.
Indeed, it is only when there is a particularly dramatic abuse, or a death that simply can’t be hidden, that the public gets any glimpse of what life on the inside is like for so many Americans.
It wasn’t until concern was raised about babies being born with brain damage that we learned that women are shackled during childbirth in our prisons. It wasn’t until brave health care professionals came forward that we learned about the many broken bones and internal injuries prisoners were suffering at the hands of their captors. It wasn’t until prisoners ended up dead with marks on their body indicating to outside coroners that they had been tortured that we knew about the traumas that the mentally ill are suffering in prison. And, sadly, it isn’t until we hear of cases being filed on behalf of children that we finally learn how many of them have suffered sexual and physical abuse and about how much emotional distress they suffer from being kept in utter isolation.
More recently, until journalist Nell Bernstein managed to get access to our nation’s juveniles facilities, the public was blissfully unaware of the alarming fact that “More than a third of youth reported that staff used force unnecessarily, and 30 percent said that staff placed them into solitary confinement as discipline,” or that the amount of physical forced used on children in these facilities is “staggering.”
Here is but one account that Bernstein was able to share with the public of a 12-year-old boy who, when his mother was allowed finally to visit him, was found “rail-thin,” with his eyebrows shaved off, a dent in his temple and with a “huge black eye, a busted lip, and a bruise on his rib cage in the shape of a boot.” When she asked him, appalled, how he had gotten so injured he explained flatly, “Mom, this is what happens…A guard did this. They want you to know who’s boss.”

Volatile and dangerous workplaces

It isn’t just those who have been sentenced to serve time in prisons who suffer from the public’s lack of access to those institutions. The men and women who work inside of them also pay a high price.
Every American prison is, of course, severely overcrowded and, therefore, they are not just hellholes for the incarcerated, they are also volatile and dangerous workplaces.
Like prisoners, correction officers also end up injured and killed behind bars and, also like prisoners, they too experience high rates of suicide as a result of the terrible conditions. And, also as with prisoners, the only way we hear just how terrible things really are for guards is when something particularly awful happens to one of them and protests erupt, as they did in states such as Alabama in 2016.

Barriers to access

When ordinary citizens learn of atrocities committed behind bars, most are appalled, but the sad reality is that the public actually has few legal tools at its disposal to insist on the access it needs to protect guards or prisoners.
Yes, the American public does have some “right to know” what the officials we pay are doing via the 1966 Freedom of Information Act (FOIA). This piece of legislation was intended to facilitate “the watchdog function of the public over the government” and it was meant to give citizens “the knowledge necessary to evaluate the conduct of government officials.” All who supported the passage of FOIA understood that “access to the government information necessary to ensure that government officials act in the public interest.”
When one group tried to get documents from the Bureau of Prisons, for example, it was denied access to files for 14 years and, even then, it took a law suit to settle the matter. As journalist Jessica Pupovac points out, “Restrictive prison policies continue to be an issue – and a problem – for journalists.” Of course, for those without press credentials, finding out what is happening behind bars – having any idea what behaviors and actions their tax dollars are making possible in America’s vast carceral network – remains virtually impossible.
How then might Americans ever know what actually goes on in the criminal justice system that they fund, the penal institutions that their loved ones populate in ever greater numbers and in the many other apparatuses of containment they are told will keep them safer?
The answer to that question is not at all clear, but the imperative of continuing to loudly demand public access to our public penal institutions is. Access is a responsibility even if it has yet to be a guaranteed right.
As history and present-day headlines make clear, the public must know what happens in prisons. Not knowing is what makes it possible for unimaginable suffering to take place in the name of safety and security. There is no reason for us to make this Faustian bargain, and countless, human, reasons why we must not.
Editor’s note: This story has been modified to add a sentence about racial disparity in the criminal justice system.
Heather Ann Thompson, Professor of History and Afroamerican and African Studies, University of Michigan
This article was originally published on The Conversation. Read the original article.

Links:
2.3 million people behind bars,
up to 100 million,
staggeringly and dis-proportionally,
billion of dollars/,
historian,
“hands-off doctrine,
Ruffin v. Commonwealth,
Wolff v. McDonnell, Pell v. Procunier,Ted Kennedy, Turner v. Safley.Overton v. Bazzetta,valid interests in maintaining internal security,
Scandinavian, Norwegian, Singapore, United Nations,19th-century penal institutions,
Angola Penitentiary, Attica,erupted, Delaware,Tennessee, told little,
facility in Florida,physical abuse,died in custody.
shackled during childbirth, broken bones and internal injuries, tortured,mentally ill, utter isolation,Nell Bernstein,
account,
severely overcrowded,
injured and killed,suicide, protests,
Freedom of Information Act,
denied access,
Jessica Pupovac,

Mozilla Joins George Soros’s Efforts In Launching A Strike Against “Fake News” (Video)

Mozilla Joins George Soros’s Efforts In Launching A Strike Against “Fake News”

AUGUST 11, 2017

By Aaron KeselMozilla, the non-profit organization which runs the Firefox Internet browser, said Wednesday it was launching an effort against “fake news,” as fact-checking software backed by eBay founder Pierre Omidyar and George Soros got its first run-out in public to shape our Orwellian nightmare of future truth arbiters.

Mozilla said it was “investing in people, programs and projects” in a new initiative to “disrupt misinformation online” calling for a “Mozilla Information Trust Initiative,” or MITI for short, Business Insider reported.

They further stated the “Internet’s ability to power democratic society suffers greatly” because of fabricated stories, such as the “Pope endorsing Donald Trump for the U.S. presidency” or a “dead FBI agent killed in a mysterious fire with information on former presidential candidate Hillary Clinton” – just two examples of stories that turned out to be bogus.

Mozilla’s innovations director, Katharina Borchert, told AFP that the organization was working on tools for Firefox and better online education with media groups, universities, and tech activists.

The “Mozilla Information Trust Initiative” comes just as an automated real-time fact-checking engine dubbed the “bullshit detector” was demonstrated in London.

The group that created the fact-checking engine, Full Fact foundation, is backed by Omidyar and our favorite billionaire tycoon Soros.

The organization stated its software is “capable” of spotting lies in real-time and

was used to fact-check a live debate at the House of Commons. How that objective was achieved isn’t clear since it’s likely automated A.I., but algorithms are not 100% accurate.

“As the proponents of propaganda and misinformation become more sophisticated in their use of technology, it is important that fact checkers do not fall behind in our fight against it,” Full Fact said.

“This is an important investment in the future of fact-checking,” Stephen King, of the Omidyar Network, told The Guardian.

“You only have to look at the number of initiatives that have risen up to address this challenge, either by tech companies or other organizations to see how worrying this phenomenon is to so many,” Borchert added.

I worry more about those who want to act as fact checkers, blatantly ignoring propaganda and fake news by the MSM while targeting alternative media and dictating what is and isn’t important for public consumption.

“Whether it’s become a big enough priority is perhaps a better question,” Borchert said, arguing that it was time for rival news organizations to “rally around” each other to confront the spread of fake news.

Then you have Wikipedia founder, Jimmy Wales, planning to launch a crowd-funded news service called Wikitribune to help combat fake news.

So you have all these people, some of whom have even once advocated for a free and open Internet, now advocating for controlling the flow of information under the moniker of “fake news.”

How about all the fake news spread by the CIA and intelligence services called planted propaganda usually for pushing war? Especially as a new report questions the veracity of claims made by a shady firm Cloudstrike that “Russia hacked the election” – how about that fake news?

Putting the future of what we believe in anyone’s hands, let alone artificial intelligence, seems reckless; but a system backed by Soros and Omidyar seems like a dangerously stupid idea that can only lead to a path paved toward Orwellian censorship the likes of which even George Orwell couldn’t have imagined.

Aaron Kesel writes for Activist Post and is Director of Content for Coinivore. Follow Aaron at Twitter and Steemit. This article is Creative Commons and can be republished in full with attribution.

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http://www.activistpost.com/2017/08/mozilla-joins-george-soross-efforts-launching-strike-fake-news.html?utm_source=Activist+Post+Subscribers&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=d567fc0a53-RSS_EMAIL_CAMPAIGN&utm_term=0_b0c7fb76bd-d567fc0a53-384456641

Links of Interest:
Office for National Statistics: About ushttps://www.ons.gov.uk/aboutus
Kenya election: Fake CNN and BBC news reports circulatehttp://www.bbc.com/news/world-africa-40762796
The new site will be free to use, but also accept donations from monthly “supporters” who will then be able to suggest topics to be covered – while the site also says it will publish full transcripts of interviews where possible as part of transparency plans.https://www.independent.co.uk/life-style/gadgets-and-tech/wikipedia-jimmy-wales-launching-site-combating-fake-news-wikitribune-fact-checking-a7700501.html
U.S. Repeals Propaganda Ban, Spreads Government-Made News to Americanshttp://foreignpolicy.com/2013/07/14/u-s-repeals-propaganda-ban-spreads-government-made-news-to-americans/
Business Insider http://uk.businessinsider.com/mozilla-new-initiative-counter-fake-news-2017-8?r=US&IR=T
Katharina Borchert, told AFPhttp://www.rawstory.com/2017/08/mozilla-and-fact-checker-engine-join-fight-on-fake-news/
The Guardianhttps://www.theguardian.com/technology/2017/aug/08/fake-news-full-fact-software-immune-system-journalism-soros-omidyar
Jimmy Wales, planning https://www.independent.co.uk/life-style/gadgets-and-tech/wikipedia-jimmy-wales-launching-site-combating-fake-news-wikitribune-fact-checking-a7700501.html
fake newshttp://www.independent.co.uk/topic/fake-news
report https://www.thenation.com/article/a-new-report-raises-big-questions-about-last-years-dnc-hack/
Activist Post http://www.activistpost.com/
Mozilla Joins George Soros’s Efforts In Launching A Strike Against “Fake News”http://www.activistpost.com/2017/08/mozilla-joins-george-soross-efforts-launching-strike-fake-news.html?utm_source=Activist+Post+Subscribers&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=d567fc0a53-RSS_EMAIL_CAMPAIGN&utm_term=0_b0c7fb76bd-d567fc0a53-384456641

Untying the YouTube Knot (Videos)

The Title of this video is “Untying the YouTube Knot”You know, over the past few months, YouTube has been giving its content creators the blues. Some righteously and others not so much.  I was surprised that they came at me, but I am beginning to think that it was because of my video series debunking the rumor that Michelle Obama was a man, that got me so many views and subs, that my channel was no longer under the radar.

I really couldn’t understand why YouTube is acting so crazy, demonetizing my vids and now suppressing my views. It really doesn’t make any sense to me because I have a really small channel compared to some. But at this point, I am convinced it’s the message and not the size of your channel.

I even saw someone complaining about their views being suppressed back in 2015 before the big hooplah about the advertisers.  So, the Passive aggressive way of getting at you and staying on you is basically getting fine tuned as they blame it on the Algorithms, etc.

So, I just wanted to let my subscribers and visitors know what I am going to do. I believe that when one door closes another opens and many times the other door has more opportunities. I strongly believe that YouTube is gonna see what a bad move it was for them to squeeze out their content creators.

Of course, they are big enough that they feel they can do so, and suffer minor scraps and bruises. But the fact that they would do that to the folks who made YouTube what it is today, shows the level of loyalty they have and therefore they cannot be trusted with their new partners, the big Dogs!!! 

Everybody is in it for the money, and if the Big Dogs see YouTube is not loyal, they won’t trust them either. Instead of squeezing us out they should have created another Platform where we could flourish, but instead, they are using passive aggressive means to get us out. Suppressing views and demonetizing most channels, and then actually shutting others down. And they are doing it left and right.

When you look at the trending pages, even if your interests are extremely different, you don’t see what you used to see, now you see weirdness.  Then you gotta go search for your channels, when they used to be right there prominent on the Home Page.

Some channels are completely GONE, gone, others have moved to their back up and some have created 2 and 3 other channels only to have them shut down.

So, for me, I always say, if it don’t fit, don’t force it. Content creators are creative folks, and YouTube is just causing other folks to draw them in on other platforms. These platforms may not be as fancy as YouTube, but they are options and in a little bit, they will pan out to be a much better option than YouTube, because the content creators will not only leave, but take their subscribers with them. I don’t know whose idea it was to put the squeeze on us, but I don’t think it was well thought out.

When you are married for several years, you just don’t get up and leave, unless you really don’t need what you are leaving behind. Quiet as it’s kept, YouTube needs us, so kicking us out in the cold, will only make them wish they hadn’t. The funny thing will be if they try to bring us back. How many of us jilted lovers will crawl back to YouTube, no questions asked. I am sure some will, but we should not come back, because YouTube kicked us to the curb for no real reason except their cash register, and that’s not a good foundation for any relationship.

So, I want to let you all know what I have done and what I will be doing in the future.

Obviously, I cannot totally depend on my channel like folks with hundreds of thousands of views can, for revenues. However, the idea that they are suppressing my views is a bit infuriating. They went from demonetizing to the back way of doing so, by saying, ain’t nobody watching my videos and I know much better than that. In fact, I am wondering why the analytics say 1,620 view in the passed 48 hours but the actual view count on the vids, ain’t changing, sounds a bit fishy to me.

I am at Patreon, but I really have no patrons, even though I did the whole patreon push.

I am on Vidme and that’s pretty cool, got a couple of subs there.  Vidme, is straight no chaser, just upload your vids within the parameters of your membership, or upload by adding a URL of a video from somewhere else, which is really, really a cool feature and wallah, there’s your vid, with the description, thumbnail and all! Pretty niffty I might add.  So come over there an check me out.

I am on blaqspot.com, which is an alternative to Facebook and a decent place for African Americans, who primarily want to support a black owned business and get other opportunities like showcasing your business, uploading vids, and pics, networking, blogging, and announcing events, it’s pretty cool. When Blaqspot.com first started off it was free to join, but now they are asking for $5/month membership fee. It makes sense to me cause it takes money to do much of anything in this country! I like it because I know that my posts will be appreciated by a small group of folks who will holler back at me and let me know they saw it!

I am still on Facebook, but my days there are numbered. I really don’t care for it anymore, and since I don’t get much traction over there, I am slowly weaning myself off it.  They offer the opportunity to post ads, but if you don’t have a large following, your ads won’t do much as far as getting them duckets into the bank!!

I am still on Google+ as well, I like the interactions there much better, I also like the groups they have and the networking. People respond to what I post, I share theirs, and of course, Google offers so much other junk to rope you in, it ain’t funny. But no revenue. That is only through YouTube.

I am also onMinds.com, it’s seems to be a budding platform similar to FaceBook but not quite as overloaded with the newsfeed. There you get points for being on there, and they can be cashed in or used to purchase whatever they got going over there, but I get a kick out of watching my points increase.  Minds.com is working on sharing revenues with their content creators, but I gotta read the fine print about a hundred more times before I can make any sense of that.

I want to give a special shout out for the folks over there at BitChute though! I joined the platform about 6 months ago, and had no idea I was even accepted until someone posted a comment under one of my vids. I was like, really???? Then when I went there, I saw my channel and all my YouTube videos from the past 6 months. I was like, wait-a-second, when did that happen???? I ain’t complaining or anything, but I was not prepared for that! And that was soo cool.

Now they are using some sort of bit torrent thingamajig, and don’t get me lying, I ain’t got a single clue how that works or what the heck that is… but they were able to suck all my vids off YouTube via my YouTube ID and there were my vids, looking just as pretty and nice and wonderful and right there! I also have the option of uploading which is a new feature as they were mainly dependent on the torrent option, whatever the heck that is. If you know what that means, feel free to clue me in, in the comment section cause I am like “duuuuh” when it comes to that technology.

But what was super special was when I sent them a thank you message and got a response right away from the Big Guy over there who said he had been watching my vids for a long time on YouTube, and that I was one of the first folks to sign up, probably after I heard about it on the Corbett Report. Ditto, ditto, but I had no idea I was one of the first ones to sign up.

You know how you get that tingly feeling when you think nobody notices you and then all of a sudden someone does and you are like wow, and you didn’t even know it?? But even more than that, that you are appreciated!! That’s what I am talking about. Heck, I went to a small college and live in a small town and it’s the smallness that’s the greatness if you ask me. So BitChute might be small now, but they care and so I just wanna say thanks for that, and ask you all to come over and check me out there.

I am gonna move my I Ching videos over there. I was thinking of filling up another channel with just those types of videos, but some of them are still political, and YouTube has already demonetized a few of them. I mean, they are psychic reading videos, but because I am talking about Donald Trump, War, Syria, 911, and all they demonetized them, I couldn’t believe, especially since I thought, they wouldn’t dare demonetize those vids. They even demonetized my video on Michelle Obama that got the most vids on my whole channel!! And after it have been there for 2-3 months.  And, along with demonetizing they are suppressing views.

It’s frustrating, infuriating and depressing. You do all this work, not only for the money but because you have something you want to share with your subs and you can’t even tell if they even saw it, but you know they did, by the comments, cause pretty much, out of the hundred who watch it maybe one or 2 will leave a comments, so if you have 35 views and 10 comments, well that’s pretty fishy, don’t you think?? Well, I do anyways.

So, I am still juggling, this one woman show, trying to determine what the what, but I may just make my vids and upload them to the other platforms… cause you know what, it don’t make no sense that YouTube is giving us such a hard time!

I just wanted to let you all know where I was, and what I am thinking about doing. And what I will probably be doing from now on. Since I can upload to those platforms, I ain’t making no money over here on YouTube anyways, might as well stretch out there and get more exposure on these other platforms and build up an audience there. At 65, going on 66, ain’t nobody got time for that!!

Minds: https://www.minds.com/nanabaakanBlaqspot: https://www.blaqspot.com/profile-8403/Vidme: https://vid.me/nanabaakanBitChute: https://www.bitchute.com/channel/nanabaakan/https://www.bitchute.com/channel/nana-the-metaphysician/
Support My Work, it would be greatly appreciated. YouTube is doing its level best to make it hard for content creators.Send a donation: www.paypal.me/nanabaakanBecome a Patron: www.patreon.com/nanabaakan
Available for Psychic Readings, Dream Interpretation and Workshops.
Contact: metaphysical.nana@gmail.com

New York judge's death ruled suicide, medical examiner says (Video)

New York judge’s death ruled suicide, medical examiner says

By Lauren del Valle

https://youtu.be/Mbd_a-TDNHc

Excerpt: “The death of Judge Sheila Abdus-Salaam, the first African-American woman to serve on New York state’s highest court, has been ruled a suicide, the office of New York city’s medical examiner said in a statement Wednesday.

Abdus-Salaam died from drowning in the Hudson River, the statement said.

Friends and colleagues described the judge as a trailblazer and pioneer.

Her life had also been marked by personal tragedy. Her brother committed suicide three years ago, two law enforcement sources told CNN.

Abdus-Salaam, 65, had also been stressed recently at work, the sources said. Her body was found April 13. Detectives did not find a suicide note.”

CONTINUE READING

Nana’s Rants On Things From A-Z

http://nanas-rants.blogspot.com

This video: https://youtu.be/Mbd_a-TDNHc

Minds: https://www.minds.com/nanabaakan

Blaqspot: https://www.blaqspot.com/profile-8403/

Vidme: https://vid.me/nanabaakan

BitChute: https://www.bitchute.com/channel/nanabaakan/

Support My Work, it would be greatly appreciated. YouTube is doing its level best to make it hard for content creators.

Send a donation: www.paypal.me/nanabaakan

Become a Patron: www.patreon.com/nanabaakan

Available for Psychic Readings, Dream Interpretation and Workshops.

Contact: metaphysical-nana@gmail.com

Latest R. Kelly Accusations: Holding Young Women Captive (Videos)

Latest R. Kelly Accusations: Holding Young Women Captive

I really don’t have two beans to put in the pot for this guy. I was completely done with his previous record of inappropriate behavior with young girls. But it seems that it gets to be glossed over under some guise of mentorship? And since he was not convicted of a crime, or whatever the case may be, he continues to get away, time and time again.

I am only posting this video as a test, just to see how much traction it gets, while seriously, it does point to some of the most sickening ills in our world today, I am wondering if YouTube will find it within their illustrious power to allow this video to get some views.

https://youtu.be/IjszllfhRFc

The commentary in this article is very, very well spoken and needs to be heard. I am wondering if that may make this video go to the back of the YouTube bus just because it is well spoken.

Houston, we have a problem, and these unidentified predators along with the ones who are identified, need to have some serious work done on them for the sake of our children.

Our young children and youth are under attack, and for some reason it goes on unabated. Just saw a video of two big cops, handcuffing a 6 year old boy… was that really necessary? Handcuffs??? Because he is using profane language and five finger discounting.. He needs to be arrested and put in handcuffs??  Back in the day, a swift beating would be all that was needed. But in today’s world, the police can beat, handcuff, and in some cases, shoot our children right on the street, and with no remorse or accountability.

They keep saying we gotta go to the home front, but even there, we are being monitored and told just how much and in what way we can discipline our children, and then there’s the world that surrounds them, the media, the devices, movies, etc. that encourage disrespectful and lewd behavior.

From there we play the blame game and blame the children. In my video “Why Do We Blame the Children”

I discuss this very fact, we are the adults, it’s our responsibility to protect, nurture, care and secure our children. I ask the question, who is making these video games, the movies, the apps, the TV shows, the styles of dress that they wear, the food that they eat? And so forth?

Is there a child CEO who is overseeing all of this? No? Who is lying to and terrifying our children?

So, anyways, let’s look at this article and see what Tarana Burke to say about this so-called famous Black celebrity doing what he does as it relates to barely legal young ladies.

Excerpt from Atlanta Black Star:

This is Not a Think Piece — I Don’t Need to Think About How I Feel About R. Kelly by Tarana Burke

http://atlantablackstar.com/2017/07/23/this-is-not-a-think-piece-i-dont-need-to-think-about-how-i-feel-about-r-kelly/

This is not a think piece.

I don’t need to think about how I feel about R. Kelly.

I’m not trying to land on a position, I’m not weighing the information, and I’m not taking a little time to process.

He’s trash. Full stop.

This is not a think piece.

There have been enough of them written, as well as exposés and articles and timelines about the horrendous sexually predatory behavior of Robert Sylvester Kelly. I don’t want to talk about him. I want to talk about them. The girls. The Black girls who he has stalked, preyed on, manipulated, terrorized, abused and discarded for the better part of two and a half decades.

The saddest fact I’ve learned is nobody matters less to our society than young black women. Nobody. They have any complaint about the way they are treated and they are “bitches, ho’s, and gold-diggers,” plain and simple. Kelly never misbehaved with a single white girl who sued him or that we know of. Mark Anthony Neal, the African-American scholar, makes this point: “One white girl in Winnetka and the story would have been different. No, it was young black girls, and all of them settled. They settled because they felt they could get no justice whatsoever. They didn’t have a chance.”

This quote is from Jim DeRogatis, the Chicago reporter who has spent the better part of a decade writing about and exposing the sexually deviant behavior of the R&B singer known as R. Kelly. This week DeRogatis published another exposé on the Buzzfeed platform alleging that Kelly is operating a “cult”-like commune where he is holding barely legal Black girls at homes in Atlanta and Chicago under the guise of mentorship and preparation for becoming recording artists. The details are horrid but not surprising. Ever since the first story surfaced about 28-year old Kelly marrying then-15-year old singer Aaliyah the allegations against him have grown more and more grotesque and depraved.

Full Article Here: 

This is Not a Think Piece — I Don’t Need to Think About How I Feel About R. Kelly

http://atlantablackstar.com/2017/07/23/this-is-not-a-think-piece-i-dont-need-to-think-about-how-i-feel-about-r-kelly/

Further Reading

This is Not a Think Piece — I Don’t Need to Think About How I Feel About R. Kelly

http://atlantablackstar.com/2017/07/23/this-is-not-a-think-piece-i-dont-need-to-think-about-how-i-feel-about-r-kelly/

Read the “Stomach-Churning” Sexual Assault Accusations Against R. Kelly in Full

https://www.villagevoice.com/2013/12/16/read-the-stomach-churning-sexual-assault-accusations-against-r-kelly-in-full/

Seriously, Why Are Some of Us Still Defending R. Kelly?

http://www.colorlines.com/articles/seriously-why-are-some-us-still-defending-r-kelly

R. Kelly Responds to Past Sexual Assault Accusations

http://atlantablackstar.com/2013/12/18/r-kelly-gives-heartless-response-past-sexual-assault-accusations/

Former Jersey Journal reporter breaks story on R. Kelly ‘cult’ allegations

http://www.nj.com/hudson/index.ssf/2017/07/former_jersey_journal_reporter_breaks_latest_story.html

 “Inside the Pied Piper of RnB’s ‘Cult'”–

https://www.buzzfeed.com/jimderogatis/parents-told-police-r-kelly-is-keeping-women-in-a-cult

Sun-Times archive: R. Kelly accused of sex with teenage girls

http://chicago.suntimes.com/news/sun-times-archive-r-kelly-accused-of-sex-with-teenage-girls/

Sex Trafficking’s True Victims: Why Are Our Black Girls/Women So Vulnerable?

http://atlantablackstar.com/2017/06/15/sex-traffickings-true-victims-why-are-our-black-girlswomen-so-vulnerable/

Ntozake Shange > Quotes > Quotable Quote

http://www.goodreads.com/quotes/393087-somebody-anybody-sing-a-black-girl-s-song-bring-her-out

Girls Are Not For Sale

https://www.facebook.com/plugins/likebox.php?href=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.facebook.com%2Fgirlsarenotforsale&width=440&colorscheme=light&show_faces=false&stream=true&header=false&height=395

Sign this petition

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1YdeSzl0yQr0I2JWSyddNwGic8MSJVQs7bXiStbcLj1g/edit

International Cloud Atlas Gives Us 12 New Clouds (Videos)

The International Cloud Atlas released its first update in 30 years, adding 12 new cloud types to their list. NBC meteorologist Indra Petersons reports from the Orange Room (and geeks out a little bit).

http://www.aircrap.org/2017/06/16/12-new-clouds-added-to-cloud-atlas/

The Hidden Hand Behind the MegaChurches-Research Links

The Hidden Hand Behind the MegaChurches

RESARCH LINKS

Excerpt: “There is a plethora of YouTube videos demonstrating the audacious antics of these Televangelists. Benny Hinn is a prime example along with Creflo Dollar and TD Jakes, but for what its worth, their influence is amazing in its magnetic ability to draw tens of thousands to their assemblies.  Additionally, the music in these assemblies changed dramatically to resemble more of a rock concert than that of the more somber predecessors. It’s ironic to see them decry the debauchery of the fallen angels and their sinful ways, while they haughtily display the love of monetary abundance, success and notoriety.”  For the full narrative, links and videos please check out my blog

Nana’s Rants On Things From A-Z

http://nanas-rants.blogspot.com/2017/07/the-hidden-hand-behind-mega-churches.html
CIA Involvement in Fundamentalist Churches

http://forum.prisonplanet.com/index.php?topic=61693.0

Pastor, You Might Have CIA Agents In Your Church!

https://matthewzcapps.com/2015/11/10/pastor-you-might-have-cia-agents-in-

your-church/

Can Megachurches Deal With Mega Money in a Christian Way?

https://www.theatlantic.com/business/archive/2014/03/can-megachurches-deal-

with-mega-money-in-a-christian-way/284379/

Megachurches

https://www.datalounge.com/thread/5718149-megachurches

The Moscow Station, CIA Spyware, and the Prosperity Gospel Mega-Church 

Connection

https://tomdiaz.wordpress.com/2016/12/27/the-moscow-station-cia-spyware-

and-the-prosperity-gospel-mega-church-connection

EXPOSED Churches Accepting Bribe Money from Government To Deceive Attendees

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KPUem_tquqY

www.indiafacts.org/religious-crusades-cia/

CIA Illuminati Busted!! Television Mind Control Exposed!! 2015

Ties Between Christian Fundamentalists,

Wayne Madsen Report  December 11, 2005

https://www.globalpolicy.org/component/content/article/165-rogues-gallery/29582.html

Mega-churches, New world order Agendas Exposed! 2015 (Church of Tares)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Zn-9qVw2Jck

The False “Church System” Deception

Hidden Scams of Churches

Prophet of Profit? Megachurch Heist Reveals Just How Much Joel Osteen’s Congregation Pays…

http://politicalblindspot.com/prophet-of-profit-megachurch-heist-reveals-just-how-much-joel-osteens-congregation-pays/

Top 10 Richest Pastors in the World – 2017 List Updated

http://gazettereview.com/2016/02/richest-pastors-in-world/

Top 10 Richest Pastors In the World — 2017

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w_jLpR9PaJ8

Web of the Illuminati  By Kevin Tucker

Google Books

CHRISTIAN CHURCHES – THE DARK SIDE

http://aanirfan.blogspot.com/2016/02/christian-churches-dark-side.html

CIA’S ‘CHRISTIAN’ FACTION; AMERICARES, PEDOPHILE RINGS, WOOLWICH, BIN LADEN

http://aangirfan.blogspot.com/2013/05/cias-christian-faction-americares.html

Christian evangelicals and the CIA

http://aangirfan.blogspot.com/2005/03/christian-evangelicals-and-cia.html

Controversial megachurch pastor Eddie Long dies at 63

http://www.cnn.com/2017/01/15/us/bishop-eddie-long-dead/

The Unholy Alliance – Christianity & The NWO Part I

http://www.rense.com/general20/unholy.htm

The Deep Politics of God: The CNP, Dominionism, and the Ted Haggard Scandal (Part 2 of 2)

http://www.conspiracyarchive.com/2014/07/02/the-deep-politics-of-god-2/

The Deep Politics of God: The CNP, Dominionism, and the Ted Haggard Scandal (Part 1 of 2)

http://www.conspiracyarchive.com/2014/07/02/the-deep-politics-of-god-1/

A Conservative’s Lament 

http://www.americaismyname.org/council-for-national-policy.html

The blasphemous alliance – Christianity and the New World Order

http://aurorasito.altervista.org/?p=494

For God’s Sake: The Christian Right and US Foreign Policy

By Lee MarsdenGoogle Books

HILLSONG CHURCH; SEX AND CIA CULTS

http://aanirfan.blogspot.com/2015/07/hillsong-church-sex-and-cia-cults.html

The super-sized growth behind megachurches

http://www.msnbc.com/msnbc/the-super-sized-growth-behind-megachurches

U.S. Pro-Coup Evangelicals Ally With Putin Inner Circle

http://www.twocare.org/pro-revolution-u-s-evangelicals-ally-with-putin-inner-circle/

The inescapable paradox of American Christian fundamentalism

http://www.salon.com/2015/06/10/the_inescapable_paradox_of_american_christian_fundamentalism_partner/

Founder of Scientology L. Ron Hubbard said in 1948 that “You don’t get rich writing science fiction. If you want to get rich, start a religion.” 

http://www.whartonibr.com/blog/pastororceomegachurchesexplored

Some current members of the CFR include David Rockefeller, Dick Cheney, Barack Obama, Hilary Clinton, mega-church pastor Rick Warren and the CEOs of major corporations such as CBS, Nike, Coca-Cola and Visa.

https://vigilantcitizen.com/vigilantreport/mind-control-theories-and-techniques-used-by-mass-media/

Televangelists: Last Week Tonight with John Oliver (HBO)

EXPOSING FALSE PROPHETS AND PASTORS, TEACHERS AND THEIR DEVIL MISSIONS

https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/exposing-false-prophets-pastors-teachers-devil-missions-namanya

EXPOSING E.A. ADEBOYE OF R.C.C.G CHURCHES WORLDWIDE!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UnRt1yerahg&t=0s

Breaking News: Pastor E.A Adeboye Resigns As General Overseer Of RCCG Nigeria, Appoints New GO

http://www.trailblazersng.com/breaking-news-pastor-e-a-adeboye-resigns-as-general-overseer-of-rccg-nigeria-appoints-new-go/

İznik, historically Nicaea, town, northwestern Turkey. It lies on the eastern shore of Lake İznik.

https://www.britannica.com/place/Iznik

https://www.britannica.com/biography/Constantine-I-Roman-emperor

How the Council of Nicea Changed the World

https://www.livescience.com/2410-council-nicea-changed-world.html

THE REFORMATION

http://www.history.com/topics/reformation

What is the Apostolic Church, and what do Apostolics believe?

https://www.gotquestions.org/Apostolic-church.html

Index of Cults and Religions

http://www.watchman.org/index-of-cults-and-religions/

176: I ACCUSE # 10: “CIA BEHIND MISSIONARIES IN LATIN AMERICA!”

https://zingcreed.wordpress.com/2013/10/23/i-accuse-7-cia-behind-missionaries-in-latin-america/

Liberation Theology, the CIA, and the Vatican: A New Direction for Latin America?

http://nacla.org/news/2013/3/14/liberation-theology-cia-and-vatican-new-direction-latin-america

Their Will Be Done

From the Archives Let the pope keep the kingdom and the glory — the CIA wants the power.

MARTIN A. LEEJULY/AUGUST 1983 ISSUE

http://www.motherjones.com/politics/1983/07/their-will-be-done/

The Truth about Liberation Theology

By Kerry Walters

ttp://www.huffingtonpost.com/kerry-walters/the-truth-about-liberatio_b_8927478.html

Ronald Reagan’s Legacy:

Eight Years of CIA Covert Action

by William Blum

Covert Action Quarterly, Winter 1990

http://www.thirdworldtraveler.com/CIA/Reagan_CIA.html

CHILD SEX TRAFFICKING SCANDAL EXPOSES CIA/FBI JUSTICE DEPARTMENT COVER-UP OF CRIME NETWORK

http://www.waronwethepeople.com/child-sex-trafficking-scandal-exposes-ciafbi-justice-department-cover-crime-network/

The Religious Right And World Vision’s “Charitable” Evangelism   by Michael Barker

http://www.swans.com/library/art15/barker39.html

The CIA and Pentagon: Enforcing the Monroe Doctrine in the modern age

In addition, the top hierarchy of the Roman Catholic Church in Honduras, including Cardinal Óscar Andrés Rodríguez, actively encouraged and supported the military coup plotters. In addition, the leadership of a number of Protestant fundamentalist churches in Honduras, many with links to right-wing parent bodies in the United States, also supported the coup leaders. Llorens, himself, has close links to the right-wing elements of the Cuban community in southern Florida who supported the coup against Zelaya and have backed similar operations against Chavez in Venezuela, Correa in Ecuador, President Evo Morales in Bolivia, President Fernando Lugo in Paraguay, President Daniel Ortega in Nicaragua, President Desi Bouterse in Suriname, and President Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner of Argentina.

https://www.strategic-culture.org/pview/2010/12/06/the-cia-and-pentagon-enforcing-the-monroe-doctrine-in-the-modern-age.htm

The U.S. government is the financial and ideological architect of the war against liberation theology. Repression, including the murder of priests, bishops, and catechists, is a predictable outcome of U.S. policy. Support for rightwing fundamentalist churches is another weapon in the LIC arsenal.” Whether or not agents of the U.S. government ordered the massacre of the Jesuits the U.S. is morally and practically responsible for their deaths and those of numerous religious workers. America’s Watch describes how the murder of the Jesuits and religious persecution generally fits into a pattern of psychological war consistent with LIC:

The government’s hostility towards church and relief organizations was particularly pronounced: In the period November 13 — December 14, there were 54 searches of 40 different church facilities and homes of church workers by Salvadoran military and security forces. Dozens of church workers received death threats and fled the country under government order or death threat, dozens more . . . were jailed and abused in detention, and numerous church facilities were ransacked. . . . The symbolic significance of the Army’s murder of the country’s leading academic and religious figures cannot be overstated: the deaths signal that, once again, no one is safe from Army and death squad violence. . . The Bush Administration has taken the position that the Jesuit murders were a dramatic departure from Salvadoran army policy, and represent an opportunity for President Cristiani to demonstrate that the army is not above the law. In our view, the murders were entirely in keeping with Salvador’s ten-year civil war. . . .Those responsible for almost every other instance of egregious abuse against Salvadoran citizens still enjoy absolute immunity.”5

http://www.religion-online.org/showchapter.asp?title=2288&C=2192

CIA, UK Israeli Jewish Zionists Use Christian Fundamentalism For Mind Control ?

http://wolfblitzzer0.blogspot.kr/2015/06/ciauk-israeli-jewish-zionists-use.html

The Gladiators Altar, the new controversial initiative of the Universal Church in Brazil

http://buenosairesenglish.blogspot.com/2015/04/the-gladiators-altar-new-controversial.html

Edir Macedo, Brazil’s Billionaire Bishop

https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2013-04-25/edir-macedo-brazils-billionaire-bishop

Edir Macedo, Brazil’s Billionaire Bishop A pastor gathers followers and dollars, and criminal investigations

https://donaldelley.wordpress.com/tag/brazils-billionaire-bishop-a-pastor-gathers-followers-and-dollars/

Murder of Victoria Climbié

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Murder_of_Victoria_Climbi%C3%A9

Temple in Brazil Appeals to a Surge in Evangelicals

By SIMON ROMERO JULY 24, 2014

https://www.nytimes.com/2014/07/25/world/americas/temple-in-brazil-appeals-to-a-surge-in-evangelicals.html

Secret Connections: LDS Church and the American Intelligence Community

http://www.abovetopsecret.com/forum/thread996855/pg1

The Global Impact of Canadian Evangelical Christianity

Many writers see the growth of Evangelical Christianity as an American plot fostered by groups like the CIA (Cf. Gifford, 1988).� Reality is, however, far more complex.� American evangelists influence Africans but African religion also influences North Americans (Poewe, 1988 & 1989).� Similarly, Canadian Evangelicals have a considerable impact on other Christians world-wide. Internationally known evangelists like Aimee Semple McPherson (1890-1944), Leighton Ford, devotional writer Oswald J. Smith (1889-1986) all made significant contributions to the international evangelical movement.�

Similarly, Canadian theologians W. H. Griffith-Thomas (1861-1924) A.B. Winchester (1858-1943), John McNicol (1869-1956) Dyson Hague (1857-1935) William Cavan (1830-1904) and T.T. Shields (1873-1955) made significant contributions to the formation and growth of the Fundamentalist Movement in its initial, more intellectual, stage. (Marsden, 1980; Rawlyk, 1990a:158-171). Institutionally Canadians founded the fast growing Christian and Missionary Alliance (A.B. Simpson, 1843-1919), and the Sudan Interior Mission (R.V. Bingham, 1872-1942), while the Charismatic/Pentecostal Movement received a major boost by the Latter Rain Movement that originated in North Battleford, Saskatchewan, in 1948 (Riss, 1987).

Today two uniquely Canadian educational institutions Regent College, Vancouver, and the Institute for Christian Studies, Toronto, draw a sizable proportion of their students from around the world.� Even more significant is that fact that in Australia, Austria, Britain, New Zealand, South Africa, Singapore, the United States and several other countries there are now similar institutions explicitly modeled on the Canadian originals.

http://people.ucalgary.ca/~nurelweb/papers/irving/TEDHEW.html

Was Jonestown a CIA medical experiment?

https://deeppoliticsforum.com/forums/showthread.php?2195-Was-Jonestown-a-CIA-medical-experiment/page3#.WVdYfdZtlyw

“CIA Collection of Covert Action Information Bulletin Issues“

https://archive.org/stream/Issue27CovertActionInformationBulletinIssue27ReligiousRight/Issue%2027%20CovertAction%20Information%20Bulletin%20Issue%2027%20Religious%20Right_djvu.txt

Haggard said that he believes wholeheartedly in the Bible, but that Christianity has “abandoned the application of the gospel” and that, as a result, too much time is spent on image management and damage control

http://www.theblaze.com/news/2013/12/16/ex-megapastor-ted-haggard-says-something-is-very-wrong-in-christian-culture-following-pastor-isaac-hunters-suicide/

In particularly disturbing info, Rios Montt was explicitly backed by the CIA–partly because dominionist churches explicitly described themselves as anti-Communist–and the present district church director for Ted Haggard’s New Life Church was the former director of the Bible Institute at El Shaddai (Serrano Elías church).

https://www.dailykos.com/story/2006/10/5/253942/–

Satanism and the Born Agains

https://groups.yahoo.com/neo/groups/cia-drugs_archives/conversations/topics/49836

Are American evangelical organizations Illuminati fronts?

https://fitzinfo.wordpress.com/2013/01/09/are-american-evangelical-organizations-illuminati-fronts/

Included in this category are occult organizations, political groups which maintain secret membership, and also those whose interests span both areas. A prime example of the latter would be the Masonic Lodge P2, which served as the major operational hub for Operation Gladio, one of the longest-running and widest-ranging black ops in history. Ordo Temply Orientis, the Church of Scientology, the Temple of Set, the Roundtable Foundation, and other occult groups were likewise set up by people with strong ties to military and intelligence organizations. Some of this crossover can perhaps simply be ascribed to the personality of intelligence agents and occultists alike who enjoy the feeling of access to secret knowledge and power unknown to the masses. What attracts a certain type to one group might attract them to the other. Clearly though, the secretive nature of many occult organizations does make them useful sites to organize illegal activities out of the public’s view. A more cynical motive on the part of intelligence agencies might be to prey on the number of social outcasts and misfits who are often drawn to occult groups, whether to use them as MKULTRA-style test subjects (see Jonestown) or useful idiots/brainwashed patsies (see Sirhan Sirhan). Last but not least, intelligence agencies have shown a genuine interest over the decades in studying psychic phenomenon for espionage purposes, so keeping tabs on those who dabble in such areas might seem a sensible precaution.

http://www.deephistory.us/secret-societies.php

WHY THE DEVIL ARE EVANGELICALS BACKING TRUMP?

BY GARY SCOTT SMITH ON 1/13/16 AT 3:57 PM

http://www.newsweek.com/why-devil-are-evangelicals-backing-trump-415379

Churches, Angered by Disclosures, Seek to Bar Further C.I.A. Use of Missionaries in Intelligence Work  By KENNETH A. BRIGGSJAN. 29, 1976

http://www.nytimes.com/1976/01/29/archives/churches-angered-by-disclosures-seek-to-bar-further-cia-use-of.html

Operation Mockingbird: CIA Media Manipulation

http://www.apfn.org/apfn/cia-media.htm

CIA Cults and the Global Brainwashing Experiment: The Untold Story of the Jonestown Massacre

John Judge  ratical.org  Sat, 28 Apr 1990 13:38 UTC

https://www.sott.net/article/244751-CIA-Cults-and-the-Global-Brainwashing-Experiment-The-Untold-Story-of-the-Jonestown-Massacre

Conversion—CIA Target?

Written by Anonymous from Net | January 26, 2015

http://patriotsforum.org/conversion-cia-target/

Megachurch

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Megachurch

Globally, these large congregations are a significant development in Protestant Christianity.[7] In the United States, the phenomenon has more than quadrupled in the past two decades.[8] It has since spread worldwide. In 2007, five of the ten largest Protestant churches were in South Korea.[9] The largest megachurch in the United States is Lakewood Church in Houston, Texas with more than 40,000 members every weekend and the current largest megachurch in the world is South Korea’s Yoido Full Gospel Church, an Assemblies of God church, with more than 830,000 members as of 2007.[9][10]

If Evangelicals hate tyranny, they should be very wary of becoming tyrants. Nevertheless, Evangelicals will never see themselves as tyrants, because their faith commands them to be “missionaries for Christ”. This mandate engages them in a zero-sum game to convert the country, indeed the whole world, to their faith. Moreover, over the decades they’ve increasingly reached for more and more political power to achieve this goal. This is exactly what ISIS proposes, by trying to establish a global Muslim caliphate. The goal of religious extremists, regardless of faith, is always the same… Dominion.

https://02varvara.wordpress.com/tag/american-evangelicals/

Houston megachurch slapped with sexual abuse lawsuit over youth pastor’s behavior asks for prayer

http://houston.culturemap.com/news/city-life/10-06-14-houston-megachurch-slapped-with-sexual-abuse-lawsuit-over-youth-pastors-behavior-asks-for-prayer/

 A Harris County family is suing Second Baptist Church for its alleged role in the sexual assault of a then 12-year-old girl. The lawsuit, filed last week, claims that Second Baptist youth pastor Chad Foster targeted victims under the guise of spiritual leadership.

The researchers found that Asia is home to the largest mega-church in the world, and currently there is no one that rivals in size. With a staggering 480,000 in weekly attendance, Korean Full Igreja do Evangelho got its start in the living room of one of its founding pastors. Headquartered in the capital of Seoul, it has grown into a multi-site megachurch with a branch in the US The organization was founded in 1958 and is affiliated with the Assemblies of God. He was directed by the new senior pastor Hoon Lee since 2008.

http://www.ligadonogospel.com/2016/04/conheca-as-maiores-igrejas-do-mundo.html

These are they who have gone to build outward temples, imprisoning, persecuting and asking people to give, manipulating the gospel to burden people to give money to beautify their stone temples.

You will hear a person say, ‘let’s go to the house of the Lord’ referring to a house of cement sand and stones. A dead house of stones is not a house of the Lord neither a temple. You are the house of the Lord. You are God’s temple.

http://www.christiantruthcenter.com/god-does-not-dwell-in-temples-made-with-human-hands/

Joyce Meyer’s ministry is autonomous. It’s not connected to the body of Christ, which is a unified body whose ministers all teach the same doctrines. The leaders of these self-contained mega-churches are competitors of God and of one another.

https://www.quora.com/Does-the-Bible-endorse-ministries-such-as-Joyce-Meyers

GRANDVILLE, MI – Resurrection Life Church has set up an account for donations to help victims of Ponzi schemer David McQueen.

McQueen donated $300,000 to the Grandville church from 2005 to 2009. He is serving 30 years in federal prison for running a $46 million Ponzi scheme.

http://www.mlive.com/news/grand-rapids/index.ssf/2015/04/megachurch_sets_up_fund_to_rep.html

http://www.onlinechristiancolleges.com/megachurches/

Hero Worship and the Mega-church

https://sacrosanctgospel.org/2015/12/22/hero-worship-and-the-mega-church/

 Everyone is looking for the next political, super-hero leader to move America back to greatness. In the American church, it is much the same. I don’t know that I have ever known a time when the church has been so enamored with mega-churches and super-hero pastors.  These tech savvy, mega-leaders make themselves larger than life and secure their enormous following through television, social media, and multi-site satellite congregations where people gather to listen to their message on huge theater sized screens

A Defense of Megachurches

http://www.internetmonk.com/archive/a-defense-of-megachurches

‘Megachurches’: A Hidden Pillar Of Nigeria’s Economy

https://www.africanglobe.net/business/megachurches-hidden-pillar-nigerias-economy/

Pastors On Forbes List

Nonetheless, the surging popularity of the megachurches among the Christians who make up half of Nigeria’s 170 million population has propelled their preachers into the ranks of the richest people in Africa.

In 2011, Forbes magazine estimated the fortunes of Nigeria’s five richest pastors. Oyedepo topped the list, with an estimated net worth of $150 million.

The influence of the ‘Charismatic’ churches of Ghana and Nigeria cannot be underestimated or ignored. Religion’s impact, in the Ghanaian and Nigerian context, weighs in as a heavyweight force that arguably transcends that of political parties or ethnic affiliation. As these churches seem to understand the potential of ICTs to ‘create and unleash the developmental force of human socio-economic and political networks,’ governments in emerging economies could take note from the ‘Charismatic’ churches as they attempt to overcome the key challenge, as Rao (2005) describes, ‘to align the interests and strengths of various constituents of society and find their appropriate niches in the global information society.’ (ibid., pp. 274-5).

http://wpmu.mah.se/nmict132group4/tag/virtual/

Biggest Church in East and Central Africa opened

http://233times.com/2013/04/biggest-church-in-east-and-central-africa-opened/

Database of Megachurches in the U.S.

http://hirr.hartsem.edu/megachurch/database.html

Mega Church Production – Running a Service for Thousands

http://rockingodshouse.com/mega-church-production-running-a-service-for-thousands/

Beyond the high-tech check-in lies a church that is as wired as any business in the country. Inside the 7,095-seat auditorium, the image of Pastor Bill Hybels is projected on large video screens, making him visible to everyone in the crowd. Miss a sermon, and you can catch it later via streaming video on the Web, and then surf over to a church blog to learn more about Gulf Coast relief efforts. They still pass the collection plate at Willow Creek, but they also accept automatic bank drafts. “We can tithe out of a bank account as soon as a check is deposited, so God gets the first fruit,” says Brian McAuliffe, CFO and director of operations.

These tech-savvy institutions are the fastest growing element in religious life in the U.S. “We’re finding about one a week,” says Dave Travis, who tracks megachurches in his role as executive vice president of church innovations at the Leadership Network, a Dallas-based research and consulting group that works with large churches. There have always been large congregations, says Mark Chaves, head of the sociology department at the University of Arizona, where he studies religion, organizations and social movements. But, he adds, the biggest got bigger throughout the 20th century, and the rate of growth has accelerated over the last generation. Historically, Chaves says, the biggest churches haven’t stayed the biggest for very long: “They get overtaken by the next cultural wave of innovation.” Increasingly, innovation is driven by technology, which is a large part of what has allowed megachurches to thrive. Says Travis: “One reason you’ve seen an explosion in megachurches is because of the technological progress that’s been made.”

Lakewood Church has $4 million worth of high-end video equipment in its state-of-the-art production facilities, and a pastor, Joel Osteen, who is a familiar presence on religious television. But it also puts considerable effort into reaching out to individuals and small groups. The touch screens that check in frequent attendees also print out name tags, and the huge e-mail list pushes out targeted information twice a week. “We tell people about speakers and topics and include links to our Web site, information and directions and maps, our new Bible-study program,” says Dodds, the executive director. “We attach photos and links to video of things you might have missed, and also ask people to tell a friend about us, to be marketers for us, because word of mouth is the best tool.”

http://www.cioinsight.com/c/a/Trends/Megachurch-Megatech

Senior pastor Kong Hee heads City Harvest Church, one of a growing number of Singapore’s megachurches preaching “prosperity gospel” that blends spiritual and material aspirations.

The churches have ambitions to turn Singapore into a center for evangelical Christianity and to export their faith to the world. Kong was arrested and charged in 2012 with criminal breach of trust and falsifying accounts.

The six church officials were convicted of diverting nearly $37 million in funds to advance the career of Kong’s wife, Ho Yeow Sun.

http://www.nbcnews.com/news/world/singapore-megachurch-leaders-diverted-37m-boost-pop-career-n448321

Clutch Discussions: Does the Black Church Teach the ‘Gospel of Greed’?

http://www.clutchmagonline.com/2014/07/black-church-teach-gospel-greed/

(RNS) A new study suggests that megachurch services produce a spiritual and biological “high” that keeps congregants coming back for more. By Chris Lisee.

http://religionnews.com/2012/08/20/does-megachurch-high-explain-their-success/

Pastor Stan Mitchell Megachurch Embraces Practicing Gays Into Fellowship

http://www.everydaydevotional.com/2015/03/pastor-stan-mitchell-megachurch.html

Unintended Consequences of the Mega Church Movement

https://revkev43.wordpress.com/2012/10/08/unintended-consequences-of-the-mega-church-movement/

Megachurches = Mega Business

Serving as the CEOs of their industry, today’s megachurch pastors are not only spiritual leaders, but are business leaders in their communities as they move their churches forward in an increasingly competitive landscape.

https://upstatebusinessjournal.com/news/megachurches-mega-business/

Like A Drug: “Many participants used the word “contagious” to describe the feeling of a megachurch service where members arrive hungry for emotional experiences and leave energized. One church member said, “(T)he Holy Spirit goes through the crowd like a football team doing the wave. …Never seen it in any other church.””

Ryle’s Warnings: “There is a quantity of half-truth taught by the modern false teachers: they are incessantly using Scriptural terms and phrases in an unscriptural sense. There is a morbid craving in the public mind for a more sensuous, ceremonial, sensational, showy worship: men are impatient of inward, invisible heart-work.”

http://revfrankhughesjr.org/themegachurchmess.html

Top Ten Mega Churches in Accra

https://ena360.wordpress.com/2016/06/13/top-ten-mega-churches-in-accra/

Religion on the go: has PrayerBox found a real sweet spot in Nigeria?

http://ventureburn.com/2015/03/social-media-religion-startup-prayerbox-connects-nigerians-churches-online/

5. Leaders of organizations often become micro-celebrities

Celebrity culture is another inevitable problem of large churches. This is nothing new, even Paul and Apollos had to deal with it.

The problem is that celebrity culture can quickly deteriorate into factions, cronyism and narcissism. Even if the top leader is humble and thoughtful, that doesn’t mean his supporting leaders will be. Instead, they are often mediocre executives willing to tow the line.

In the worst scenario, micro-celebrity pastors start to take on the characteristics of cult leaders. The people who leave the churches often have harrowing stories of being belittled, pushed around or ignored because they didn’t tow the line.

http://www.chrismorton.info/2014/06/12/dear-megachurches-please-be-nice-to-the-future-members-of-our-church/

GQ gets to know Carl Lentz, the man who brought Australian mega-church Hillsong to New York City. Watching Pastor Carl tromp around onstage before 4,000 hipsters in Chelsea boots—saving souls with the gusto of a televangelist but the effortless cool of the guy at the record store—it’s easy to see how one might be sucked in by Pastor Carl’s charisma.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_Oq21iaHkt0

Megachurches, giant congregations that can include up to 50,000 worshippers, have spread across the United States, wooing the faithful with a mixture of prayer and spectacle. The number of these churches has doubled in a decade — and their numbers are set to grow thanks to tough economic times.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cLtczT70adU

Hidden Scams of Churches

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O2px6YXQCTM

HYPNOSIS IN CHRISTIANITY EXPOSED

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hr8SHQejUyM

Pimping Through Hypnosis and Mind Control

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I9FntGfpS2M

Exposing the Hypnotic techniques used in the ‘church’ today. Benny Hinn, TLR and others

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-OK95r1bIe0

One of the First Witches to infiltrate the Churches via Hollywood & Freemasonry

The $1-Billion-a-Year Right-Wing Conspiracy You Haven’t Heard Of

http://www.thedailybeast.com/the-dollar1-billion-a-year-right-wing-conspiracy-you-havent-heard-of

You mentioned the National Christian Foundation. I bet most of our readers haven’t heard of that, either. Can you tell us a bit about it?

The NCF was created, back in 1982 or so, to maximize hard right-wing evangelical Christian philanthropic giving. It was so novel and complex, the architects got a special ruling from the IRS, to make sure it was legal. The NCF has multiple overlapping legal entities and holding companies, but at the core is a huge donor-advised fund. The NCF is now the 12th biggest charitable foundation in America that raises money from private sources.

Since its founding, the NCF has given away over $4.3 billion, $2.5 billion of it in the last three years. The NCF gave away $601,841,675 in 2012—and is estimated to have given out $670 million in 2013.

Tucked next to two large hospital complexes on the northern perimeter of Atlanta, NCF operates so far under the public radar that even Parker’s hometown newspaper, the Atlanta Journal-Constitution, has never featured it in an article. But, with more than $450 million in assets, NCF is the sixth-largest donor-advised fund in the nation. As such, NCF serves as a conduit through which benefactors can funnel cash, real estate, stocks, and other valuables to the charities of their choice—and earn a bigger tax break than by giving directly to a private foundation. As a bonus, these funds virtually guarantee anonymity for the benefactor. It usually takes a minimum of $10,000 to open a donor-advised fund with NCF. Although the contributor does suggest where the money should go, the final decision rests with NCF.

http://www.motherjones.com/politics/2005/12/rendering-unto-god/

1982 National Christian Foundation

In 2014, the National Christian Foundation was the fifteenth largest charity in America. It handed out $859 million during the year, and received more charitable contributions than groups like the American Cancer Society, Harvard University, and Habitat for Humanity. The foundation continues to grow dramatically, as it has since its 1982 creation.

The brainchild of three evangelical financial professionals, NCF was established to “simplify the process of giving, multiply the results, and glorify the Lord.” The founders created one of the first donor-advised funds designed specifically for Christian givers. They also focused on making it easier to donate non-monetary gifts—like an operating business—which most philanthropic organizations find too complex to handle. They are now national leaders in this work.

By streamlining the philanthropic process, connecting Christian donors with the wisdom and charitable choices of other givers, providing up-to-the-minute advice on Christian nonprofits, and offering definitive handling of complicated donations, the National Christian Foundation has become not only one of the most important religious philanthropies in the U.S. but one of the most innovative philanthropic organizations of any sort. Its grants to religious charities now exceed a billion dollars a year, and in 2015 reached a total of $6 billion since the organization’s founding.

• National Christian Foundation, nationalchristian.com/home

• Philanthropy magazine reporting, philanthropyroundtable.org/topic/excellence_in_philanthropy/alms_alchemy

Printable or e-mailable pag http://www.philanthropyroundtable.org/almanac/religion/

1984 Leadership Network Helps Build Megachurches

When Angelus Temple opened in Los Angeles in 1923 with seating for 5,300, the
 megachurch was born. An evangelical Christian congregation led by a charismatic
pastor, committed to welcoming new believers, Bible-based but lacking conventional denominational boundaries, the new church drew huge crowds. Lakewood Church, founded in Houston in 1959, was another early example of the type. It was theologically conservative, racially inclusive, and popular from the start. By 1979 Lakewood was attracting more than 5,000 people to its services; today it is America’s largest church, with average weekly attendance of 43,000. (Megachurches are among the most integrated institutions in the U.S., averaging a 20-percent-minority mix of congregants, while Lakewood is 40 percent white, 30 percent black, 30 percent Hispanic.)

Megachurches are conventionally defined as those attended by at least 2,000 congregants per week. There are now 1,300 such churches in the U.S. (up from just 50 in 1970), housing about a tenth of all U.S. churchgoers, and they are continuing to expand in both size and influence. They include prominent institutions like the Willow Creek Church led by Bill Hybels, the Saddleback Church under Rick Warren, the McLean Bible Church founded by Lon Solomon, and the Potter’s House pastored by T. D. Jakes.

This vast expansion was driven not just by congregational donors but also by broader philanthropy. Bob Buford built a large network of cable television stations, but he was also a devoted Christian and in his mid-50s felt strongly drawn into the world of nonprofits and church-building. Buford had become close friends with famed management theorist Peter Drucker, who viewed America’s vigorous civil society of churches, charities, and helping organizations like the Salvation Army as secrets to the country’s success, and vital buffers between private interests and the state. Together they discussed what became the Leadership Network—a group devoted to helping the pastors of fast-growing churches thrive even more. Leaders of new churches with a thousand members or above would be brought together with similar peers so they could learn from each other, and be taught essentials of excellent management and oversight.

Bill Hybels and Rick Warren were just two of many church founders who benefited from Leadership Network training and resources as they grew their congregations to over 20,000 members. Bob Buford also joined with philanthropist Phil Anschutz to finance the Burning Bush Fund, which concentrated on planting new churches and cultivating new leaders to open churches. Pastors like Tim Keller, Larry Osborne, and Greg Surratt were aided by the fund as they built thriving, multi-campus evangelical churches. In a 1998 Forbes interview, Peter Drucker characterized megachurches as “surely the most important social phenomenon in American society in the last 30 years.”

• Forbes reporting on Buford, Drucker, and Warren, forbes.com/sites/richkarlgaard/2014/03/26/peter-drucker-and-me

• Christianity Today background, christianitytoday.com/edstetzer/2014/april/catalyst-that-fostered-movement.html   Pasted from <http://www.philanthropyroundtable.org/almanac/religion/>

A Catalyst that Fostered a Movement: Thoughts on Bob Buford and Leadership Network  Meet one of the most influential men in the church growth movement: Bob Buford. | ED STETZER

What you might not know is how that took place behind the scenes. You might not know how these teaching churches and their pastors became the new locus of learning for churches around the world—and how much of it happened because of Bob Buford, a quiet philanthropist in Texas, and his mentor, Peter Drucker.

Buford became wealthy in the cable television business and then decided to make a difference with his money. It was his influence that led to the rise of significant teaching churches, which has essentially replaced the Church Growth Movement and remapped evangelicalism and beyond.

As the Church Growth Movement was declining, new ideas, like those of Calvary Chapel and Vineyard, were on the rise. They changed the ways that churches worshipped and approached culture. Soon other churches took the new approach to worship and culture, and started to add a new approach to leadership.

About that time, Bob Buford decided to find what he called “islands of strength” in the church and invest in them. The hope was that it would lead to an exponential return. The investment paid off.

Buford helped take a new approach to ministry, a reinvention of American Protestantism, and fused it with leadership savvy, the principles he learned from Peter Drucker. Of course, Drucker was interested in the megachurch himself. He once told Forbes magazine, “pastoral megachurches are surely the most important social phenomenon in American society in the last thirty years.”

Together, Buford and Drucker made a huge impact on the direction of the church. Simply put, your church probably sings like a Calvary Chapel, but is led like a Saddleback. Those two men are part of the reason why.

http://www.christianitytoday.com/edstetzer/2014/april/catalyst-that-fostered-movement.html

Rick Warren Mentor Peter Drucker: “I’m Not A Born Again Christian”  
http://www.submergingchurch.com/2012/06/13/rick-warren-mentor-peter-
drucker-im-not-a-born-again-christian/

Published on Nov 15, 2009(2789 days ago)

An academy personally authorized and named by Peter F. Drucker in Asia.
A non-profit social enterprise with the mission of keeping alive Drucker’s
management legacy. China’s most authoritative organization spreading Drucker’s 
management philosophy.

1999, with the guidance and involvement of Peter F. Drucker himself, Minglo Shao,
Board Chairman of Bright China Group, founded the Bright China Management
Institute (BCMI). It was a social enterprise established soley for the research and
 promotion of the management insights of Dr. Drucker.

In 2005, Dr. Drucker personally authorized Bright China to use the name Peter F.
Drucker Academy in China. On April 18, 2006, the Drucker family officially granted
 Bright China the right to use Drucker brand exclusively in all training programs and
 certifications in China.

In 2006, the name of BCMI was officially changed to Peter F. Drucker Academy (DA).
DA continues its mission to impart the Drucker legacy to Chinese knowledge workers
and facilitate their study and practice of Drucker’s management principles. In the 
same year, DA was registered in Hong Kong as a non-profit organization: an 
extension of Beijing’s DA with the identical mission.   
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UnFlD4vKdBc

Yoido Full Gospel Church
http://english.fgtv.com/a2/a2_032.asp

Joel Osteen, Prophet of Profits: Fleecing The Faithful In America’s Largest 
Mega Church (Video)

http://americannewsx.com/hot-off-the-press/joel-osteen-prophet-
of-profits-fleecing-the-faithful-in-americas-largest-mega-church/

The Story of the e-meter Part 5: Is It Fit for *Any* Purpose?  
https://scicrit.wordpress.com/2014/07/10/the-story-of-the-e-meter-part-5-is-it-fit-for-purpose/

Scientology: What exactly is it? 

http://www.cnn.com/2017/03/22/us/believer-what-is-scientology/index.html

The Hidden Hand Behind Mega Churches (VIDEOS)

The Hidden Hand Behind Mega Churches

Greetings,

The title of this video/blog is “The Hidden Hand Behind Mega Churches.”

Mega churches for the most part are a huge money enterprise/ business.  Founder of Scientology L. Ron Hubbard said in 1948 that “You don’t get rich writing science fiction. If you want to get rich, start a religion.”

It certainly is a phenomenon and much more common today than in the past. Up until now, the Catholic Church with its many diocese and archdiocese around the globe seemed to have had captured the most fervent and committed followers. The “Church” as it is called was ruled by a Holy Papacy, a cardinal who would ascend to the throne of the Church in succession of the one preceding it. This succession of “rulers” over the Church was solidified in 325AD at the Council of Nicea,  the first ecumenical council of the Christian church, where many policies were established including the term “Catholic”.  Religious writings heretofore considered inspired by God were gathered together under the cloak of a seeming conspiracy that determined which were to be included in the Holy Bible and which ones were to be discarded. Pagan rituals and festivals were incorporated as well in order to induce and entice the so-called pagans into the fold.

Emperor Constantine I, an unbaptized catechumen or neophyte presided over the opening session.  İznik, historically Nicaea, town, northwestern Turkey. It lies on the eastern shore of Lake İznik.

https://youtu.be/_O3C3O5NwUs

From Britanica Encyclopedia we read

“Above all, Constantine’s achievement was perhaps greatest in social and cultural Roman Empire. Emerging from it in the course of the 4th century were two developments that contributed fundamentally to the nature of Byzantine and Western medieval culture: the growth of a specifically Christian, biblical culture that took its place beside the traditional Classical culture of the upper classes; and the extension of new forms of religious patronage between the secular governing classes and bishops, Christian intellectuals and holy men. Constantine left much for his successors to do, but it was his personal choice made in 312 that determined the emergence of the Roman Empire as a Christian state. It is not hard to see why Eusebius regarded Constantine’s reign as the fulfillment of divine providence—nor to concede the force of Constantine’s assessment of his own role as that of the 13th Apostle.”

history. It was the development, after his example, of a Christianized imperial governing class that, together with his dynastic success, most firmly entrenched the privileged position of Christianity; and it was this movement of fashion, rather than the enforcement of any program of legislation, that was the basis of the Christianization of the

We need only to see the status, rank and appeal of the Catholic Church today to grasp its impact on the global stage since 325 AD.
Of course there were many schisms, wars and persecutions. Conflict between the Roman Christians and the European Christians came to a head during the Protestant Reformation of the 1500’s, with several reformers like Martin Luther, John Calvin and Henry VIII rising out of the midst including King James, Calvin, Luther and others. People began to question the Papacy and its proclaimed infallible power over all aspects of life that had been wielded for at least 10 centuries. Corruption and ineptitude of the Papacy, the priests and clergy even among the believers became so rampant it was time for a change in fact time for a revolution. The wealth of the Church was unspeakable and came by thru some unscrupulous practices, however, to this day it still remains the wealthy religious entity in the world. Headquartered in Rome, it has consolidated the masses to the point where dignitaries and heads of state come from around the globe to pay their respects to the Pope and his mighty guard of soldiers, priests, cardinals and clergymen.
But somewhere along the way, the schism between the Catholics and the Protestants took an even more interesting turn.  “The Protestant Reformationwas the 16th-century religious, political, intellectual and cultural upheaval that splintered Catholic Europe, setting in place the structures and beliefs that would define the continent in the modern era. In northern and central Europe, reformers like Martin Luther, John Calvin and Henry VIII challenged papal authority and questioned the Catholic Church’s ability to define Christian practice. They argued for a religious and political redistribution of power into the hands of Bible- and pamphlet-reading pastors and princes. The disruption triggered wars, persecutions and the so-called Counter-Reformation, the Catholic Church’s delayed but forceful response to the Protestants.”

Around the world we see huge edifices of worship, some even having been subdued by the advance of Islam changing Cathedrals into mosques or leveling cathedrals and erecting mosques in their place. But slowly but surely, the Protestant arm of Christian believers has grown exponentially and has expressed itself through many forms. Today, their churches rival the Cathedrals and mosques and their congregations are expanding rapidly.

Some world churches have sprung up from the ashes such as the Council of World Churches.  The World Council of Churches is a Christian organization dedicated to the search for Christian unity. It is a voluntary fellowship (association) of churches which confess the Lord Jesus Christ as God and Saviour.

Unitarianism is historically a Christian theological movement named for its belief that God is one entity, as opposed to the Trinity which defines God as three persons in one being; the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.[1] Unitarians believe that Jesus was inspired by God in his moral teachings and is a savior[2][3] but a human being rather than a deity. Unitarianism is also known for the rejection of several other Western Christian doctrines,[4] including the doctrines of original sin, predestination,[5][6] and the infallibility of the Bible.[7] Unitarians in previous centuries accepted the doctrine of punishment in an eternal hell, but few do today.[citation needed] Unitarianism might be considered a part of Protestantism depending on one’s stance or viewpoint; perhaps it being described a part of Nontrinitarianism, or both, is more accurate.

Apostolic Church “There are several groups which call themselves “Apostolic.” Generally speaking, these churches all seek to uphold or return to the teachings and practices of the first church. Some of these churches hold to Pentecostal doctrine, while some do not. The largest groups are probably the Apostolic Church (or Apostolic Faith Church), which was born out of the Welsh revival of 1904-1905; and the New Apostolic Church International, which is traced back to the British revivals of the 1830s.

The Seventh-day Adventist Churcha[›] 
is  a Protestant Christian denomination[3] distinguished by its observance of Saturday,[4] the seventh day of the week in Christian and Jewish calendars, as Sabbath, and by its emphasis on the imminent Second Coming (advent) of Jesus Christ. The denomination grew out of the Millerite movement in the United States during the mid-19th century and was formally established in 1863.[5] Among its founders was Ellen G. White, whose extensive writings are still held in high regard by the church.[6]

Much of the theology of the Seventh-day Adventist Church corresponds to common Protestant Christian teachings, such as the Trinity and the infallibility of Scripture. Distinctive teachings include the unconscious state of the dead and the doctrine of an investigative judgment. The church is known for its emphasis on diet and health, its “holistic” understanding of the person,[7] promotion of religious liberty, and its conservative principles and lifestyle.[8]

The world church is governed by a General Conference, with smaller regions administered by divisions, union conferences, and local conferences. It currently has a worldwide baptized membership of over 20 million people, and 25 million adherents.[9][10] As of May 2007, it was the twelfth-largest religious body in the world,[11] and the sixth-largest highly international religious body.[12] It is ethnically and culturally diverse, and maintains a missionary presence in over 200 countries and territories.[2][13] 

Jehovah’s Witnesses is a millenarian restorationist Christian denomination with nontrinitarianbeliefs distinct from mainstream Christianity.[4] The group reports a worldwide membership of more than 8.3 million adherents involved in evangelism. 

Jehovah’s Witnesses are directed by the Governing Body of Jehovah’s Witnesses, a group of elders in Warwick, New York, which establishes all doctrines[5] based on its interpretations of the Bible. The group emerged from the Bible Student movement, founded in the late 1870s by Charles Taze Russell with the formation of Zion’s Watch Tower Tract Society,[2][10] with significant organizational and doctrinal changes under the leadership of Joseph Franklin Rutherford.

Lest we forget the Worldwide Evangelist Movement namely:

The organizations represented by the websites below proclaim the good news of Jesus Christ, and encourage and facilitate evangelism in all walks of life, through events, media and publications.

BILLY GRAHAM EVANGELISTIC ASSOCIATION

http://www.billygraham.org/

HARVEST: GREG LAURIE

https://www.harvest.org/

You were created to know God in a personal way—to have a relationship with Him, through His Son, Jesus Christ.

LUIS PALAU ASSOCIATION

http://palau.org/

MY HOPE AMERICA

http://myhopewithbillygraham.org/

NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF EVANGELICALS

http://nae.net/

NORM GEISLER INTERNATIONAL MINISTRIES

http://ngim.org/

PROCLAIMING THE GOSPEL

http://proclaimingthegospel.org/

THE GOSPEL COALITION

http://thegospelcoalition.org/

THE NAVIGATORS

http://www.navigators.org/

TRUE LIFE

https://www.truelife.org

http://www.godshub.com/faith-hub/evangelism-organizations/

Scientology is a body of religious beliefs and practices developed in 1954 byL. Ron Hubbard (1911–86). Hubbard initially developed a program of ideas called Dianetics, which was distributed through the Dianetics Foundation.

American author 

The foundation soon entered bankruptcy and Hubbard lost the rights to his seminal publication Dianetics: The Modern Science of Mental Healthin 1952. He then recharacterized the subject as a religion and renamed it Scientology,[4] retaining the terminology, doctrines, the E-meter, and the practice of auditing.[5][6] Within a year, he regained the rights to Dianetics and retained both subjects under the umbrella of the Church of Scientology

All in All, the Catholic Church still out rivals all the others with is 1.2 billion people worldwide according to Vatican figures. More than 40% of the world’s Catholics live in Latin America – but Africa has seen the biggest growth in Catholic congregations in recent years.

There are too many to list here. We will skip the “New Age” movement which also has tentacles stretching around the world and has its own way of soliciting funds from its believers, initiates, associates and cohorts. Otherwise we will never get to the hidden hand behind them all.

So, let’s go back a bit and focus on the topic of this video, the phenomenon called the Mega Church.

It is quite an interesting phenomenon especially when you look at the amount of money that streams into them yearly. Since in the US in particular, churches are tax exempt, there is little oversight as to what a church can do, what a church is and what the congregation is responsible for. In the beginning the concept of Church was a small gathering of folks who came together to share a worship service, with others of like mind. Over time, these small gatherings would expand to larger ones and require a large “meeting hall”. Meeting halls evolved to large buildings, then cathedrals and now massive stadium size buildings where worshippers visit, hearts in their hands and of course, money in their pockets.

They gather around a charismatic “preacher”, “reverend”, “pastor” etc. and seek his auspices and sometimes intercession between them and “Glory”. They willfully give up their earnings and savings for the promise. The advent of the Televangelists has taken this operation to a whole new level.

To quote a commenter by the name of Barbara Bush:

“What I find ironic is how much the megachurches and their preachers borrowed from rock stars. The stadiums, the laser light shows, the big screen onstage, the audience participation (The ultra loud “Are you ready to rock and roll?” shouted from the stage has become “Are you ready to accept Jesus as your savior?” and the flicking of cigarette lighters has become the waving of arms). And the preachers get plenty of ass, just like the rock stars of the 60s and 70s. Fundamentalist preachers denounced rock and roll as the devil’s music but rock really worked out quite well for them, didn’t it?”

Continuing my research in determining what exactly is the hidden hand behind this movement I found this declassified document entitled “LIBERATION THEOLOGY: RELIGION, REFORM, AND REVOLUTION”

In brief, this document outlines the impact of Liberation Theology particularly as it relates to countries in South America that are ruled by so-called dictators. It appears to be an extension or offshoot of the Catholic Church or in a sense a reformation of the commonly available Church system inculcating the need for liberation from poverty, dictatorial rule, inequality across the social structure of the communities. Some even incorporate a violent take over of the government. While the CIA was apprehensive of its radical implications that stated that the US and other western capitalists countries were a major threat to these 3rd world nations, it also can see the advantage of these take overs and the establishment of a more democratic society. Here it can be seen that the CIA can infiltrate and manipulate according to the interests of the US. Funding certain revolutions and regime change, funneling weapons and money into these radicalized New Church goers, and on the other hand subduing and or infiltrating to align these grassroots movements to be more in accord with core principals of western democracy in particular, capitalism. When the move towards liberation includes the nationalization of resources within the countries, then a full scale divestment, sanctions or even all out war is called for.

Guerillas are created in these Churches that foster liberation theology, so again, the need for influencing both sides become even more apparent. Here we can reference the “Church Committee” and Oliver North and the impact that Oliver North had on the Sandinistas and the more successful Contras.  While it may appear that this was all about religious liberation from the oppressive Catholic established church, it actually devolved into the destabilization of many countries in south America and the total ostracizing of Cuba as Castro was a strong proponent of the liberation theology. In addition it has become evident that the Papacy also participated in CIA operations especially in South America by receiving direct contributions/funding, ignoring the many atrocities perpetrated by the “liberation theology” militias or encouraging these militias. Consequently we see the CIA funding both sides of the conflict.

So where does the CIA fit in the Christian Right Fundamentalist Prosperity Doctrine that has taken the world by storm?

Further research reveals that the fundamentalist/evangelical movements in South America were a precursor to its advent and perpetuation in North America. The experiment included but is not all exclusive of mind control cointel psyops, drug trafficking, pedophilia and child molestations, homosexuality and ramped materialism particularly as these preachers amass huge sums of money for houses, cars, private jets, luxury vacations, etc.  It is curious to note that the average member of these congregations did not/do not have access to the same wealth and is some instances have lost prized possessions in their effort to gain access to the “Holy Crown” of golden glory promised to them by these preachers.

Behind the scenes these preachers/evangelists/prosperity doctrine teachers are shrouded under various laws suits, tax evasion and other criminal activities mirroring in some instances the Mafia.  They purport Zionist dispensationalism and often appear facist in their explosive sermons about who actually deserves the kingdom of heaven and who does not.

Deep inside the coven of these doctrines is an exceptionalism that may be tempting and appealing to any of those who may be outside of the fold and in order to enter the fold you must pay your fair share of tythes and then some.

These churches are hosted in huge stadium like facilties, with dancing, bands, loud music and lots of cheering while the preacher booms through his expensive sound equipment messages of prosperity and abundance that every one is supposedly entitled to. Though many of them if not most of them, seldom see the wealth that their preachers boast of having themselves. In fact, they are told if they don’t have it, they must be doing something wrong.

It is a well known fact that CIA operations are supposed to be done abroad, while the FBI, DHS and various other intelligence agencies work in the United States. However, the link between what started in South and Central America through Billy Graham, Falwell, AmeriCares, and a host of other evangelical/fundamentalist operations have stretched its tentacles into the United States as can be seen with the connection between these organizations on mainland USA and South and Central America.  Some of these even harken back to Rev. Moon and even futher back to Billy Graham who has been purported to be not only a CIA asset but a freemason.

This research open up a rabbit hole that I had never expected to go down. Through declassified CIA documents, to the destabilization of Central and South America with the “liberation theology” and full circle to  the movement of Mega Churches here in the US.

One of the most interesting discoveries was finding out who the riches pastors/preachers were in 2017, and on that list were 4 preachers from Nigeria. It seems that the concept of the Mega church has spread from the south to the north to the West and now Africans in Nigeria are rivaling the movement.

One outstanding example of this phenomenon of the material wealth that these preachers acquire is that of Edir Macedo, who establish the Universal Church of the Kingdom of God,  in Rio de Janeiro who is a billionaire from Brazil who has several businesses that include radios stations where he is broadcast as far as Australia. With all of that he has a militia of some 3 thousand men who are dedicated to the battle for the Lord. Several abuses have been related to his establishment that include, murder, child abuse and fraud, but he has been able to avoid an serious prosecution. It is believed to be CIA front with connections to the  Mossad.

The current Mega Church leaders use a mix of New Age philosophy while claiming to be strong proponents of the Original bible text. They have become active in politics particularly the Republican party and were strong backers of the Donald Trump campaign.  Springing out of the Bible belt with Billy Graham and stretching to South America it ricochet back and pulled those seeking Liberation from poverty, changed the slogans to Prosperity and fostered their evangelism through elaborate displays on television. Establishing the TBN these evangelists catered to physical as well as viewing audiences from around the country and around the globe.  Seeking to have what they were manipulated to believe that Jesus did not want them to be poor, therefore, the Kingdom should be enjoyed here on Earth as well as in the Hereafter, although the hereafter became more and more an obscure goal as the riches promised in the present were displayed audaciously by these Televangelists.

There is a plethora of YouTube videos demonstrating the audacious antics of these Televangelists. Benny Hinn is a prime example along with Creflo Dollar and TD Jakes, but for what its worth, their influence is amazing in its magnetic ability to draw tens of thousands to their assemblies.  Additionally, the music in these assemblies changed dramatically to resemble more of a rock concert than that of the more somber predecessors. It’s ironic to see them decry the debauchery of the fallen angels and their sinful ways, while they haughtily display the love of monetary abundance, success and notoriety.

These folks have pr managers, brands, marketing strategies, billboards and campaigns that all resemble what any modern day corporation would engage in in order to “sell” their product.  The difference being that these folks are able to skirt around many laws and tax levies as they claim to be a “religious” organization. It is quite a curious phenomenon to behold.

It would seem that infiltration, manipulation and even leading some of these enclaves of riches would be the order of the day for any intelligence agency in the US. These institutions are a perfect cover for criminal activities as the leaders of these organizations have become so corrupted they have made themselves likely candidates for blackmail and subversion.

We have seen some of these individuals face the “music” as claims of pedophilia, drug abuse, sexual harassment,  tax evasion, dysfunctional families, HIV-AIDS and even murder in some cases.

How are these individuals allowed to rise to such positions of power and influence over thousands and sometimes millions of people worldwide?  How are they able to fly around in private jets, live in sprawling mansions, take expensive vacations, and even solicit prostitutes and father children out of wed lock and maintain their positions of preachers/pastors/healers, etc?

My research indicates that they are covers or fronts for secretive operations. The secrecy of these operations make it hard to pinpoint succinctly what and how they are conducted, but it does become apparent when from time to time, one of these individuals is “outed” by the media, for whatever reason. One can only surmise that they are outed because at some point they went beyond the pale and stepped on the wrong toes. 

Clearly, there is a hidden hand behind these groups. This hand has many fingers that are manipulating many pies.  From what I can surmise, the biggest and most powerful finger, is that of mind control experiment leading to a NWO type of homogeneous religious expression that crosses continents and connects people of all walks of life into this enormous fold of single minded, easily manipulated masses that will do the bidding of their leaders.  These leaders are given marching orders and all must comply.  Unbeknownst to the average stadium church going person, they are being drawn into a grand experiment that will render them into some type of symbiotic bondage.  They will give up their own intuitive ability to discern and follow their leader to the slaughter as it were, like in the case of Jim Jones.

These charismatic leaders are specifically selected for their ability to hone the masses into a trance like state where they can implant various messages and commands that these stadium going folks will follow without question. This is clearly seen as they offer these demigods there last dime for the advancements they are promised.

So, apart from the crowd control that happens at the rock concerts and sports stadiums, here we have crowd control under the auspices of religion and receiving religious blessings and glory from the Rock Star, Super Hero Evangelist.  In essence, the powers that be have covered all the basis of human experience enmasse and are steadily testing and retesting its impact on the human psyche for their ultimate agenda of total control.  They are able to seed the minds of the masses around the globe through this religious infiltration. They are able to destabilize governments, uproot indigenous practices, forestall communist threat, install socialistic agendas, hide nefarious activities, traffic drugs and humans, set up dictators who are amenable to capitalism, remove those who resist their marching orders, launder money through front churches, and totally divest all participants of any sovereignty, traumatize others and acquire accolades and Peace Prizes in the process.

In a book called “War In Heaven” it states…. By Kyle Griffith

 “Religious mind control is practiced in many different places besides religious services. The Theocrats often practice it on the crowds:

• attending sporting events

• in gambling casinos

• at political rallies

• during musical concerts of many types

• in a number of other places.

Whenever many people enter an intense emotional state at the same time and have their collective attention focused on a common objective, Theocratic spirits can use subconscious telepathic manipulation to put them into a religious trance and reprogram their minds with religious mind control.”

Please understand, that at the risk of writing a doctoral thesis on this topic, there are several things that I just could not include in these videos. But suffice it to say, that I do hope that you were able to get some idea of what is happening and how the hidden hand works behind the scenes of this Mega Church Phenomenon.

CLICK HERE FOR LINKS FOR FURTHER RESEARCH 

Where Is This Flat Earth? A Question for Flat Earthers (VIDEOS)

Where Is This Flat Earth? A Question for Flat Earthers.

After watching this video on aplanetruth.info’s channel called

“Top Vatican Jesuit Astronomer; Earth is Flat, Gravity is Obsolete.”

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hv0Z3ugpfh4

https://youtu.be/pX9bQW4DGWk

It aroused in me a few questions. I want to ask all you Flat Earthers out there and

I hope you can answer my question. Over and over again folks keep saying they can see that the earth is flat. They use all kinds of tests and experiments to prove their point.

It is obvious that NASA (never a straight answer) is making up stuff as they go along. They use creative graphic artists to give us these amazing pictures, do-dads and what-nots to give us what they THINK it must look like out there. Okay, so you got me to this point.

But what I want to know is this, if the earth is flat, then what is the Earth flatly on?

Is it under water?

If so, where is the water coming from? What is the water encased in?

Is it a flat dome covered spaceship, floating out in space?

Is it a stationary flat doom covered spaceship.

Is the earth and all of its inhabitants just a fig-newton of someone’s imagination?

Cause you see, unless you can tell me the actual location of this flat dome covered big ole rock then it stands to my reasoning that it may very well be flat, but it has to be held up by something.

Throw gravity out of the window, what is holding this flat dome covered rock in place?

I think that if flat earthers cannot answer that question and present specific evidence that the Earth is indeed flat, then the debate will go on endlessly because the real questions are not being answered and that is….. Where is this Flat Earth located in the scheme of things and how is it being held up, contained, held stationery, immovable,  and all the other answers that would make this flat earth notion fly..

I really don’t care about what this so-called Vatican Astronomer has said, it’s disengenuous to accept some things they say and ignore other stuff they say and do. Either they are gonna be impeccable points of light when it comes to truth, or they are just liars telling a little truth like the rest of them.

Where is the real answer?

Who has the real answer?

And when will it be revealed?

Many Flat earthers consider themselves Christians, however, they also believe that Christ ascended into heaven. If the earth is covered by a dome, then what heaven did he ascend into. Did he ascend into a hole in the dome? And if so, how come his ascension did not cause a full scale flooding of the planet?

How can you have it both ways?

How can you even believe he is coming back to save the world, and he will be in the flesh, yet you cannot say where he even went, and if we are living under a dome, and he ascended in the flesh, then how did he get through that dome?

So back to my original question.

Where is this Flat Earth located in the scheme of things and what is it anchored upon?

LINKS

Religio-mythology transcription and syncretism

http://www.eoht.info/page/Religio-mythology+transcription+and+syncretism

FLAT EARTH ‘THEORY’: The Ultimate PSYOP Wages War Against The Truth Movement

https://dublinsmickdotcom.wordpress.com/2016/02/04/flat-earth-theory-the-ultimate-psyop-wages-war-against-the-truth-movement/

TOP 10 REASONS Why We Know the Earth is Round

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TAQqSFY-lQc

Uber Killing Our Business, Lagos Taxi Drivers Lament (VIDEO)

Nigeria: Special Report – Uber Killing Our Business, Lagos Taxi Drivers Lament

By Oladeinde OlawoyinJolted back to reality by the presence of this reporter having been dozing off for what appeared the whole day, Lawal Azeez sprang to his feet to make enquiries about this reporter’s intended destination. Mr. Azeez was later joined by his colleagues, a group of old and middle-aged men. With desperation written boldly on their faces, they all scrambled amongst themselves to gain the attention of this reporter, whom they had erroneously identified as a potential passenger..But the reporter’s response, detailing his mission at the park, would later dash their hope, and they all wobbled back to their respective positions, awaiting the arrival of another passenger.Mr. Azeez, 49, and his colleagues are taxi operators. But like others at the taxi park located around the Central Business District, CBD, Ikeja, their business has been disrupted by the activities of Uber operators.
Uber is an internet-enabled, relatively stress-free transportation system that allows passengers order for cabs wherever they are at fairly cheaper cost. The system, which started around 2014, has been widely accepted by internet-savvy Nigerians who prefer it for comfort and safety purposes.
“Ah, Uber people have spoilt business for us; I must confess,” said a disgruntled Mr. Azeez, when probed by PREMIUM TIMES.”To be frank, I didn’t make a kobo yesterday. These days, in a whole week, you may not get N5,000… which wasn’t the situation before now,” he lamented.When asked to give a rough estimate of how much he used to make daily before the alleged ‘disruption’ by Uber drivers, the Ogun State-born taxi driver said he couldn’t give an exact estimate.”But I know we make something in the region of ten-thousand plus daily on the average,” he said.”But as I speak to you, if you make N5,000, you must thank your stars. You, too, must have noticed it from the atmosphere here… imagine how everywhere appears deserted.”Mr. Azeez’s position was corroborated by another Taxi operator at the Ikeja CBD, Hassan Murphy.
Mr. Murphy, 43, explained that the activities of Uber drivers have been a source of sorrow for them as they no longer get patronage like they did in the past.”If you notice, there are many taxis on ground here and their owners aren’t here. They’ve all gone home out of anger,” he said.”Many of them have been here for hours without seeing any passenger; they had to go.”Mr. Murphy, who claimed to have built a house from his taxi transport business, also lamented that the development has taken a toll on his responsibilities among family members and at the home front.”These days, people I used to give N20,000 in the past would count themselves lucky if I give them N3,000.”It has become so bad here in this park that in a whole week, it may not get to your turn to pick up passengers,” he said.”That’s apart from the fact that we pay dues too. They tax us N200 daily and N1,000 weekly, despite the poor patronage.”
“RECKLESS, UNSUSTAINABLE BUSINESS MODEL”According to Messrs. Azeez and Murphy, although the business model adopted by Uber operators affects their business as taxi drivers, it is “reckless and unsustainable” even for the Uber operators.Explaining further, they noted that what Uber drivers charge their passengers as transport fare is “ridiculous”.”From here (CBD, Ikeja) to Maryland, Uber may charge N800,” said Mr. Murphy.”That’s nonsense. How do you maintain your big car and service it and realise what you will use to cater for yourself from that money?”For a trip to the Airport, they charge as low as N600 sometimes, while we charge N2,000 or N1,500.”See, let me tell you, unemployment is the reason people are into Uber. Ordinarily, the business is not sustainable,” he said.Mr. Azeez, on his part, agreed with his colleague, adding that many of the Uber operators are workers who got retrenched from companies due to the state of the economy.
“Joblessness caused Uber, and it won’t last for long” he said.On his part, another taxi operator who identified himself simply as Baba Sanje, noted that Uber would soon fade into extinction, like other similar initiatives that came before it.”Uber met us on ground, they will leave us in the system. We have survived other similar competitors for decades. This ‘Yellow and Black’ (Lagos taxi) has nowhere to go,” he said in Yoruba.
“TAXI, MORE SECURE”Speaking further, the taxi drivers told PREMIUM TIMES that their taxi system is more secure and safer for passengers than Uber.Citing a case of a passenger whose belonging was allegedly stolen by an Uber operator, Mr. Murphy explained that taxi drivers are more “loyal and trustworthy”.”Uber operators are ghost workers and they don’t have any union. Passengers don’t know them and you can’t even spot them from outside unlike us that have our ‘yellow and black’ identity,” he said.
“We are more loyal and trustworthy. When people lose their materials, we give them back; Uber people don’t!”Mr. Azeez on his part added that Uber will soon fade away because, according to him, most of the operators are “running at a loss”.”Before Uber, there were Orange Cab, Easy Cab and Metro Taxi, they all folded up,” he said.”Yes, there also was Afro Cab… LSPC, RED cab, Easy Ride, Oga taxi… they folded up.”POD too came and folded up. But the ‘Yellow and Black’ taxi survived all of them. It will survive Uber too.”
Uber drivers, however, disagree with the assessment by the taxi operators.Charles Daniels, a Uber driver, dismissed the account of the taxi drivers, saying they were pained by the popularity and acceptability of the Uber system.”I won’t say Uber is really profitable, especially now, but it still provides food for some of us,” he said.
Another Uber operator who declined to have his name in print, said in response to PREMIUM TIMES enquiry on how much they make: “You know, we charge very reasonable amount… so we don’t make huge figures like that… but it is something good… say thirty-something thousand naira or even more weekly.”That’s not too bad, I guess… and it still depends on days of the week and how energetic you are,” he added.
PASSENGERS REACTHabeeb Adewale, 27, a regular user of Uber, who spoke with PREMIUM TIMES, explained that he prefers the system because of the ease it affords him to order for a cab wherever he is.”Wherever you are, Uber will locate you without stress,” said Mr. Adewale, a banker who lives and works in Lagos.
Femi Owolabi, another Lagos-based passenger, said the system is cheaper and safer, especially for night crawlers.”Uber, preferably (because of) the comfort, and the timely service,” he told PREMIUM TIMES in an interview when asked about his preference.For James Abiola, an IT expert, the Uber system is preferable because of its cheaper cost and comfort.”Sometimes, Uber allows you comfortably ride an exotic car with less than a thousand naira,” he said, amid laughter.
SOURCE