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It never fails to amaze me. HM Customs and Excise are at it again, stopping everyone in this country from getting the bargains that we are entitled to. The cost of running the country might in fact be out with the Governments budget, but do we have to pay the deficit?

The fact that we as a Country are part of the European Union and are entitled to free trade across Europe doesn’t seem to matter to HM Customs & Excise. This “law unto itself” outfit are beginning to annoy the hell out of everyone who’re trying to buy goods at “proper” prices from retailers across Europe by taxing the items that arrive in this country, even though all of these items are “Tax paid” under European law.

It’s nothing less than extortion.

Consumable products such as cigarettes, tobacco, food and drink are the targets. It doesn’t matter that we pay massive taxes in this country; our Government wants everything we have. That may on the face of it seem a little extreme, but is it?

I am a smoker and I buy my cigarettes online. It has been a turbulent time finding a good supplier. Every time I get a good on line tobacconist HM Customs & Excise come along and try to close the site. This causes all sorts of problems for the legitimate online business trying to sell their products as well as myself (the consumer). It’s nothing short of bullying.

I recently found a website out there in cyber space that seems to have the situation in hand and sell their tobacco products online effortlessly. www.discountcigarettesuk.com a Spanish based company who clearly state the European laws in their FAQ section. The fact that our Government act illegally every time they force us to pay them tax for things we’ve already paid the tax makes me wonder!

People have been sent to prison for less. Maybe it’s time to think about that.

Declan Keane is an unhappy member of the UK community. He is not an author or affiliated to any web site. He can be contacted by email: declan01@hotmail.com

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Please view all footnotes/links @ The Tribulation Network

The U.S.-Israel Strategic Alliance–no matter what setbacks–is alive, well and proceeding to its logical conclusion: The U.S.-Israel Defense Pact [1]. Iran’s determination to resuscitate its nuclear program and trade its oil for anything but dollars; the Sharon “X-Factor”–i.e., Israel after Sharon; and the incessant insurgency in Iraq [2], along with increasing agitation from Hamas (Note Hamas’ domination of Palestinian politics.), Islamic Jihad, Hezbollah and other belligerents, have all converged to create the perfect geopolitical storm. We await the unprecedented admission that Israel and the USA will no longer regard as politically embarrassing nor strategically ill-advised vis–vis the Arab world to openly declare a comprehensive “peace accord” guaranteeing Israel’s security–once and for all! [3]
The debate–or wishful thinking on the part of “fair-minded” (not to say they are not) American Middle East policy wonks like Michael Lind, The Nation et al–over linking Israeli behavior to U.S. support for Israel juxtaposed to the minuscule issue of those in America who want Israel to survive and those (a tiny minority) who do not: Simply ain’t ‘gonna happen! The pro-Israel lobby is overwhelming in driving the alliance between the USA and Israel–AIPAC (America-Israel Public Affairs Committee), along with other American Jewish Organizations; the powerful, though at times mercurial Evangelical-Zionists (witness Brother Pat’s absurdities); and the ever influential Neo-Con Establishment–all demand it, and, furthermore, the punditocracy incessantly clamors for it! [4]
Money talks–anyone who thinks otherwise should wake up and smell the coffee, roses or the skunks out there; and, if you can’t, it’s the first sign of political Alzheimer’s setting in! To think America’s political system, where favors are bought and sold–through “campaign finance reform” (witness the Abramoff fiasco)–will ever correct itself . . . then, fella, you’ve already bought the bridge and it’s time for some swamp land down in Florida.
The Strategic vs. the Eschatological Imperative
Now, it’s time we delve into the theological intricacies of the eschatological imperative driving the current “strategic dialogue” between the USA and Israel–primarily centering upon the Prince of the Covenant; a title committed to Israel’s high priest but practically usurped by the prototype of Antichrist in antiquity, Antiochus Epiphanes IV, as we shall see later [5] But first, and let me forewarn you, this is not designed as a casual read for Christian Triumphalists [6], the faint of heart or, for that matter, those who recoil when believers zealously affirm the end of the world as we know it–especially, given the superabundance of poignant footnotes–however, let us recap.
In the previous three segments of this series on the U.S.-Israel Strategic Alliance, we’ve stressed the strategic aspects of the alliance. We highlighted the following tenets of the “special relationship” between the United States and Israel:
(1) Part I - “Your Covenant with Death, Your Agreement with Hell” . . . toward a U.S.-Israel Defense Pact; guaranteeing Israel’s security by the USA. (2) Part II - “He will confirm a covenant with the many . . .” emphasis upon the “He” in establishing the special relationship between the USA and Israel–the growing ascendancy of Presidential interference (encouraged or unwelcome) juxtaposed to Congressional and/or State Department influence over the U.S.-Israel “special relationship.” (3) Part III - “He will also invade the beautiful land” - The West’s gradual buildup in the Middle East; especially, the USA’s recent incursions into Iraq, Afghanistan, etc., and the ultimate strategic presence of the U.S. military throughout Israel proper.
The Defining Issue
The sine qua non–the indispensable essential–in Premillenarian eschatology (i.e., the direct rule and reign of the “Messianic Era” is yet future upon this earth [7]) which demarcates the end of the age of human history as we have known it, and the supernatural intrusion of Daniel’s infamous Seventieth Week, is the deceptive, as well as insolent orchestration of a Defense Pact or Treaty wrought between Israel and earth’s uncontested Gentile World Power through the subterfuge of none other than the one known as: The Antichrist! [8]
This mutual accord, to be sure, does not countenance earth’s scene unannounced or by happenstance–as if a regathered Israel would submit her security to a mysterious nation or power “out there” who has not, prior to this exquisite subtlety, garnered immense credibility with Jacob’s heritage. The Jews of Israel–the modern Israeli state–after centuries of persecution, expulsions, inquisitions, pogroms, holocaust and incessant wars since their rebirth, will not abide a “security alliance” with a neophyte upstart with dubious credentials; especially, if he were to claim Jewish heritage. [9]
Certainly, for such a despicable figure to appear from Eurasia is not only a sheer fabrication of historic revisionism (as if Europe or some other Middle Eastern nation could illicit Israel’s signature [10])–it bespeaks a bald-faced rejection of the very Image who arose upon the Plains of Shinar in King Nebuchadnezzar’s dream, as interpreted by Daniel the Prophet.
Neo-Babylonia [11], Medo-Persia, Greece, and Rome–the lion, bear, leopard and the ten-horned beast–the head of gold, chest and arms of silver, belly and sides of bronze and legs of iron–these derivatives of the Image connote the development of Gentile World Power; the evolution–the extension–of the Kingdom of this World juxtaposed to Israel, the Jews. (Please see Daniel 2:31-34; 7:3-7.)
Not of Islam, nor of India, the East nor Orthodoxy, and assuredly not of African nor Indigenous Civilizations [12] were envisioned in the prophecies of Daniel and dream of Nebuchadnezzar. There was but one civilization destined to interact with ancient and modern Israel: The West. The overt progression westward from the Crescent of Civilization, Mesopotamia, did this colossus strut and strive upon this earthly clod–demanding unmitigated adoration and worship, homage and subservience. Alas! Did not the West tread upon the face of the whole earth to colonize, subjugate and enrich herself–thus, did the Image begin to walk with feet mixed with iron and clay; some strong, some weak (Daniel 2:33, 41-43)? [13]
Its greatness was and is unquestioned; its military supremacy is altogether awesome . . . to resist is futile, for ultimately, this beast will revert to its most egregious manner: “Dreadful and terrible, exceedingly strong . . . devouring, breaking in pieces, and trampling the residue with its feet” (Daniel 7:7). Yes, what is left after the devouring and breaking to pieces is trampled asunder? There is nothing left! [14]
To deny the West’s ultimate manifestation, climax, apex–her crown jewel–is to renounce all sense of historic perspective, and to embrace a colonial template whose zenith in the sun has long been obscured by the reflection of the ten-horned beast: The Eleventh Horn. [15] Alas! That outcropping who, when he bursts forth, uproots three of his familiars. [16] As Nebuchadnezzar was “that head of gold”–a King with a Kingdom–even so, this finality of evil, the embodiment of pomposity, will speak great words; far greater than his fellows (Daniel 7:8, 20), for this recent authority perceives with evil eye and speaks with a mouth words of grandeur to deceive even the very elect . . . such are the powers of persuasion resourced in this latter-day potentate whose empire bears a frightful semblance to its Romish progenitor. [17]
A Beast Rising Up Out of the Sea
Even so, it is precisely this creature from the abyss–the Eleventh Horn– whose quest for hidden treasures drives him to “rule over many, and (to) divide the land for profit” (Daniel 11:39). There is nothing novel derived from nobility or pauper throughout history [18], given the opportunity, wherein certain of their species will advance to proclaim their hegemony over men of lesser means. But this one’s resume sums up perhaps fallen man’s greatest efforts–replete with all manner of claims and fancy to advance his sinister agenda.
His use of “slipperiness and flattery” (Daniel 11:34) knows no end in his efforts to coalesce allies [19] . . . .
“Then the king shall do according to his own will: he shall exalt and magnify himself above every god, shall speak blasphemies against the God of gods, and shall prosper till the wrath has been accomplished . . . he shall regard neither the God of his fathers nor the desire of women, nor regard any god; for he shall exalt himself above them all” (Daniel 11:36).And, why should he take regard, when “in their place” - substitutes for the Almighty and all natural relationships is the modus operandi of this Willful King - “he shall honor a god of fortresses” and abject materialism (”he shall honor with gold and silver, with precious stones and pleasant things”–Daniel 11:38)? And with these he is prepared to act “against the strongest fortresses with a foreign god, which he shall acknowledge, and advance his glory” (Daniel 11:39).
How convenient to substitute all that is God for his own achievements–honoring a “foreign god” - the “god of fortresses” who will enable this Willful King to surmount even the strongest of fortresses. Is this not the one who offered Jesus in his temptation all the kingdoms of this world if the Son of Man would simply bow down and worship this provocateur and avaricious imposter? [20]
Let’s not equivocate by downplaying his audacious pedigree of evil intent. All of this MADMAN’s modus operandi (Antiochus Epimanes IV’s title given to him by his enemies) is foundational to his ultimate transfiguration into the latter-day Willful King. For one, the taking of the ultimate presumptuous title: Epiphanes . . . “God is Manifest!” This outrageous accolade underlies the human tragedy of humanity exclusively given over to unbridled deviltry.
Antiquity bears out his primordial pontifications:

“I will ascend into heaven, I will exalt my throne above the stars of God; I will also sit on the mount of the congregation on the farthest sides of the north; I will ascend above the heights of the clouds, I will be like the Most High” (Spoken by Lucifer, Isaiah 14:13-14)
Indeed, it was said of Antiochus Epiphanes IV that he was a vile person–to whom they will not give the honor of royalty (Daniel 11:21a). Immediately, this “man of the people” declares his “democratic” intentions: “He shall come in peaceably, and seize the kingdom by intrigue” (Daniel 11:21b).
Could it be that embedded in this delineation is a clue to his populism? Would a popularly elected leader be able to ascend in the latter days to the next disclosure: The Prince of the Covenant (Daniel 11:22)? Is not this the same identification found in Daniel 8?
“And out of one of them came a little horn which grew exceedingly great toward the south, toward the east, and toward the Glorious Land. And it grew up to the host of heaven; and it cast down some of the host and some of the stars to the ground, and trampled them. He even exalted himself as high as the Prince of the host; and by him the daily sacrifices were taken away, and the place of His sanctuary was cast down . . . an army was given over to the horn to oppose the daily sacrifices; and he cast truth down to the ground. He did all this and prospered” (Daniel 8:9-12) (My emphasis).The prophetic writings of Daniel–as well as other Hebrew prophets (e.g., Ezekiel 26-29, the King and Prince of Tyrus; Isaiah 14, the King of Babylon) skillfully deploy this metaphorical instrument to convey both a prototype past, as well as an archetype future, of the Almighty’s antithesis.
Even so, the metamorphosis of the figure, Antiochus Epiphanes IV, into the one who will with insolence “confirm a covenant with the many” (Daniel 9:27) - also known as the “the Coming Prince” (i.e., “the prince who is to come” - Daniel 9:26) - will do so as the “prince of the covenant” - for “after the league is made with him (i.e., “the prince of the covenant”), he shall act deceitfully, for he shall come up and become strong with a small number of people” (Daniel 11:22-23). The usurpation of Israel’s high priest by Antiochus Epiphanes IV–in an effort to Hellenize the Jews–eventually brought the “God Manifest-Madman” directly to the temple where the “abomination of desolation” in the erection of the altar to Zeus and the offering of swine occurred.
“The reference to the “prince of the covenant” prophesies the murder of the (Jewish) high priest Onias, which was ordered by Antiochus in 172 B.C., and indicates the troublesome times of his reign. The high priest bore the title “prince of the covenant” because he was de facto the head of the theocracy at that time. In 11:28 and 11:32 (Daniel) the “covenant” is used for the Jewish state.” (John Walvoord, Daniel the Key to Prophetic Revelation, Moody, p. 265; see Note 5 below)
Mixing Politics and Religion

. See full article/footnotes/links @ The Tribulation Network

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Few understand the Franchising Format and even fewer have correlated that to our modern government structure. The United States Government is set up much like a franchising system. You are well aware of modern day franchise systems like McDonalds although you probably had never thought of our government as a franchise. Of course if it is a franchise it is a humongous one indeed. Since government runs inefficiently; why do we need so much? Since it most resembles a franchise system, why is not run efficiently like one? And exactly how could one consider that its structure is similar to that of a modern day franchising company?

Government runs like a franchise system, where the Federal government is the franchisor run by committee (board of directors). States are the master franchisees. Counties are the franchisees and have managers of each store (cities). Where does this leave You and I? Well we are the customers (voters). You may find yourself a ways done the totem pole, but remember being the customer has its advantages in that we are always right. Even if some of us are so stupid we cannot push a CHAD or follow simple voting instructions as we move in our senile old age to South Florida.

Franchisors are outsourcing more, hiring consultants, and buying back their master franchises. Franchisees who cannot run efficiently are being bought up by corporate franchisees who have many franchises. So if the government is using the franchise model and the strongest franchise systems are streamlining then should that not tell government to do a little streamlining of her own? Think about it.

“Lance Winslow” - Online Think Tank forum board. If you have innovative thoughts and unique perspectives, come think with Lance; www.WorldThinkTank.net/wttbbs/

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Many of the problems that the members of the European Union are expressing with their constitution are in matter of fact problems with they perceive to be the ‘one size fits all’ idea of policies. The French are loudest in expressing their objections and looking at the history of the evolution of the nation state, perhaps they have a point. It took millennia for the idea of the Nation State to evolve into any recognizable shape. So to expect a huge bloc of countries to continue to integrate without noticeable hiccups would be naive.

The idea of the modern state as it can still be seen in Europe and the US was in matter of fact invented by a Frenchman. Political philosopher Jean Bodin in his 1576 book Six Livres de la Republique describes a republic as “a just government of several households and of what they hold in common, with the power of sovereignty”. His description and further treatment of the subject confirms the great importance the concept ‘authority’ and ’sovereign rule’ has had in our formative ideas of statehood. Bodin is a very contradicting scholar. He is said to have been both the proponent of an overly powerful ruling class -absolute monarchy- as well as an advocate for limiting the power of this sovereign to the doorstep of every household.

He was the first to hit home the notion of sovereignty as a limited entity when he at the time of writing referred to mostly feudal and monarchic systems elsewhere in the world as simply horrific. Slave master relations in countries like Russia, Turkey and Iran at the time abhorred the Europeans. These countries had a sovereign who was more or less full master of the “bodies and goods” of his subjects. The people of Europe would have not put up with such a regime that took for granted certain limits to the state’s authority, according to Bodin. On the other hand, Bodin was accused of being a proponent of unlimited rule. True enough, Bodin extolled in extravagant terms the prerogatives of sovereignty; but these did not include the power to impose new taxes. ‘Natural law’ forbade this, he said.

Bodin cites Seneca to the effect that `to Kings appertains the power over all, but property belongs to individuals’” Bodin is said to have been very impressed with Europe’s eldest form of democracy, embodied in the ancient democratic ceremony of the Carantanians (currently in Austria), which he said “had no parallel throughout the world.” And perhaps he was right; The Slovene community in Carantania was one of the few at the time to not have slaves. Stretching from the river Elbe to the Adriatic Sea, its centre was at Gosposvetsko Polje near Krnski Grad which is in present-day Austrian Carinthia.

The free Carantania became infamous for resisting all foreign domination for almost one hundred years, which in this area of tribal Europe was also quite impressive. Besides leaving a lasting imprint on the historical memory, their example has inspired European countries to date as well as the US, where Thomas Jefferson took inspiration from the Six Livres in his constitutional work. The Carantanians’ celebratory democratic institution, the installation of a Slovene duke persisted down to the year 1414 was quite a remarkable piece of culture even at the time. It took place during a general assembly of all free Carantanian Slavs, by voting. A duke would be installed with at a place called Knezji Kamen (the Prince’s Stone) with special rites by a peasant, the embodiment of the people, on whose behalf he invested the duke with power and authority. Just imagine the scene.

The prince had to make a solemn pledge in public to be fair and just at all times, to defend Carantania bravely against all enemies, to do everything possible to safeguard peace, and to help the poor. The ceremony at the time was quite unique and attracted the attention of the humanist Aeneas Piccolomini, Pope Pius II, who travelled through Slovene lands, to say that the installation ceremony “was second to none.”

This Robin Hood type democracy is known to have flourished centuries before the adoption of the Magna Carta in 1215, which is widely regarded as the cornerstone of contemporary western democracies.

This is not to say that Bodin advocated the Carantanian ideas, yet he was convinced though that human structures as they had formed did show that they were quite detached from the balance of nature. Primitive tribal democracies of the Carantanian time might not at all have been compatible either with the statehood that Bodin describes. “In order to function as viable members of a medieval polity, states had to possess permanent social structures. First of all, a state had to be identified with a definite geographical space, a stretch of land whose physical features could imprint themselves

on the collective psyche. Such a rooting in a particular territory could not be brought about except by centralized political power which could define the territory’s limits and organize their defense. This demanded, in turn, the development of a social hierarchy in which a ruler and a class of nobles shared the burdens of power and were able to interact with their social counterparts in other states. The definition of spheres of authority and the stabilization of administrative practices called for the adoption of definite legal procedures for whose formulation a supratribal literary language was needed,” describes Alexander M. Schenker, a Yale University scholar in his ‘An introduction to Slavic Philology”

He then goes on to illustrate that the void here was filled up by the literate clergy. Those days, the church pretty much assumed political powers as a natural extension to its religious teachings. Bodin, who lived at the time that Huguenots and Catholics were involved in religious strife, advocated more secular, professionalised political rule that superseded church domination.

“Cadres of learned, or at least literate, people had to be developed in order to use this language in the course of performing the necessary administrative functions. Hence the need for Christianity with its monastic tradition of learning, with its schools where Latin or Church Slavonic were taught, with its ability to replace tribal particularism with its own universalist message. To initiate a social revolution of these dimensions, strong leadership and permanent political institutions had to emerge,” Schenker writes. It took some European countries millennia before the favorable conditions for the establishment of a nation state arose with a central element here often the opposition of pagans toward ruling by a clergy elite.

Bodin’s thinking on political issues was quite similar to that of thinkers of his generation, including Montaigne, Pasquier and Le Roy. These thinkers, like Bodin no longer believed that human laws and society very closely reflected the immutable principles of the divine and natural orders, but instead argued that human affairs were generally detached from these orders and were characterized by a high degree of particularity, variability and mutability. However, Bodin did say that the human political order could not subsist without some divine and natural foundation. His works are attempts to identify a new universal foundation for human laws and society, anchored in the divine and natural orders and are highly regarded in their pioneering the nation state until today.

Bodin’s treatment of the nation state appears to be motivated by his perception that the limitations of power needed to be made clear. In arguing the case for absolute monarchy, he did speak out against abusive taxation policies in outside countries, but underlined the need for a well ordered society which did away with the remaining remnants of feudalism. He saw France’s defense as neccessitating collective payment of soldiers to defend the country against a Spanish army, which was financed by silver from the New World. (This was the first standing army since the Romans’ more than a thousand years earlier.)

Incidentally, this was also the occasion on which France established a mercenary economy; it started to create revenues by keeping imports low while pushing exports and subsidizing them. Few political thinkers have been regarded to be at once as innovative and as self- contradictory as Jean Bodin, a statement that would not be totally out of line describing Europe of today. A number of his ideas were developed in the seventeenth century, in Germany, the Netherlands and England. They either reconciled apparent contradictions within his thought or exploited their ambiguity for political advantage.

It took 300 years–the time until the unification of Germany and Italy in the 19th century–before Bodin’s description of the nation-state came to dominate Europe. But his mercantilism was adopted almost immediately by every European government, large or small. It remained the reigning philosophy until Adam Smith showed the absurdity of believing (as mercantilism does) that a nation can get rich by robbing its neighbors.

Yet twenty-five years after Smith, mercantilism was still the doctrine that underlay America’s first and most important work in political theory; The Report on Manufacturers (1791) by Alexander Hamilton. And almost a century later, in the second half of the 19th century, Bismarck based the new German Empire on Bodin’s mercantilism as adapted to Europe by Hamilton’s great German admirer, Friedrich List, in his 1841 book, The National System of Political Economy. However discredited as economic theory, mercantilism, not Adam Smith’s free trade, thus became the policy and practice of governments virtually everywhere (except for one century in the UK).

The Spanish, predictably, never took a liking to Bodin. Their Counter-Reformation ideas disparaged Bodin as a politico, second only to Machiavelli in his alleged advocacy of the subordination of religion to political ends. By contrast, Italy during its Counter-Reformation heydays, did adopt some of his ideas but thinkers in this country had difficulties with his theory of sovereignty. But Bodin has left his strongest imprint on politics in France. Hence, some political commentators regret today’s Non in France and say that the French for all the reasons they may have to do away with the European ideals they themselves are among the strongest proponents for, is simply a denial of their own origins. “A continental Constitution that ensures basic human rights and dignities seems to be as much a French legacy as anyone else’s. […] we are awash in examples of people who lightly toss off their hard- earned heritage”, writes Dawn Miller, an editorial writer of WVGazette, who fails to understand the Non camp, after spending 11 days in a Parisian neighborhood.

Others have issued warnings of doom if the technocrats of Brussels continue to ride roughshod over the clearly expressed aspirations of member states, referring to recent challenges to democratic ideals that are steeped in plenty historic precedent. “There have been enough hints by the electorates of various member states in a sufficiently large number of national elections to give Brussels a sense of what needs to be done. Each time, election results that have reflected the rise of populist, anti-EU parties (such as occurred in France’s last Presidential election) have been dismissed as one-off aberrations”, writes Marshall Auerback in his international perspective on Prudentbear.com He says that as a consequence, the underlying political message is ignored and that this is storing up more trouble for the future. That is why we already see a vacuum in Brussel which is likely to only get more extensive as time goes along and no change is made in operating procedures.

Angelique van Engelen is a freelance writer based in the Netherlands, writing for http://www.contentClix.com. She writes political reports, news, features, web content brochures and research. Contact her for a free quote: Angeliqueve@contentclix.com.

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At the risk of starting the argument of all time, I feel compelled to point out that Americans today are simply not made of the same stern stuff as our ancestors.

You disagree? Please write and tell me honestly what you think your nearest neighbor would do if awakened at midnight by the warning, “The redcoats are coming!” Frankly, my next door neighbor is an active duty Marine, but tucking tail is the first thing that comes to mind. I certainly cannot imagine him handing a rifle to his wife or daughter and telling them to “lock and load.”

Not in this lifetime, at any rate. He’d be too worried about his retirement.

Our ancestors had one or two advantages over us. In the first place, most of those who lived on the American continent at the time of the signing of the Declaration of Independence were no more than one or two generations removed from individuals who had possessed the courage and vision to leave every single thing they had ever owned for unspecified opportunity in a new and savage land. It was one hell of a winnowing, and their descendants were the best of the best that Europe had to offer.

Throughout history, winnowings such as the settlement of our American continent have brought forth the most shining examples of human courage and achievement. Sadly, we have just about run out of Earthly frontiers now, and it cannot happen again until we begin to colonize Antarctica - or outer space.

We have now experienced a full hundred years of urban civilization. One hundred years separate us from the last of our ancestors who fought the Native Americans for their survival. One hundred years separate us from the last remnant of frontiersmen who strapped on their guns and went out to wrest a living from an unforgiving land.

We’ve become the sort of weaklings our ancestors would be ashamed to claim as descendants. Oh, there remain a few here and there who would make our common ancestors proud, and they or their children will almost certainly be the first to colonize a new planet, but they are now so widely scattered among the rest of us that they are hard to find.

A fellow by the name of Todd Beamer comes to mind, but when I think of that magnificent young man and his friends, I am also forced to recall that the passengers on three other airplanes submitted meekly to hijackers with mere box cutters - hijackers they outnumbered by roughly ten to one.

The awful truth today is that just teaching your child courage and self-reliance can lead to accusations of child abuse.

I remember (painfully) one occasion when I was barely two years old. I laboriously climbed to the top of about a six foot slide in Central Park, then lost my grip and tumbled off said slide head first. I wound up with a goose egg the size of Kansas right in the middle of my forehead, saw whole galaxies of stars, and my mother’s hair turned a shade or two whiter on the spot.

If that had happened in today’s world, my parents would have had a very unpleasant visit from Child Protective Services, and it is quite possible that they would have lost custody of their daughter altogether.

I remember hanging upside down from Jungle Jim bars. I remember swinging so hard on swing sets that I pulled the legs of the swing sets clean out of the ground. I remember running back and forth on a seesaw, wildly keeping my balance as it tipped each way.

Compared to my great-great-grandmother, who climbed aboard a covered wagon in Missouri at the ripe old age of 16 years and drove it to Texas, having a baby on the way, I am your original pansy - but compared to today’s sissy kids, I am Attila The Hun in drag.

Unfortunately, the progression is obvious and not too flattering to today’s generation.

The more we demand safety, the more our government tightens its grip.

We demand safe drugs, so our Food and Drug Administration has made the requirements for testing new drugs so stringent and expensive that drug development has ground almost completely to a halt. Those few new drugs that are being developed are priced right out of reach for the people who need them the most. This government agency actually has the unmitigated gall to tell you what you can and cannot try when you have a terminal illness!

Dozens and dozens of wonderful children’s toys are no longer on the market, because of potential risks if parents were not vigilant, or allowed children of the wrong age group to play with them, etc.

Have you read the idiot warnings on labels lately? Honestly, the last time I purchased a firearm, it had a big label that said that firearms could be hazardous to my health! By itself, this was merely amusing, but it does lose its humor rapidly when you consider what it says about our society.

The last motorcycle helmet I purchased warned me sternly that it was designed to be worn on my head, not on other parts of my body.

The warnings on knives are frankly hilarious.

I shudder to think what will come with my next motorcycle, but I’m sure it will be a good-sized book.

The worst insult of all is that we have pay to print this stuff! Every product we purchase includes warning labels in its purchase price now. It’s a multi-billion dollar industry!

The search for safe energy has brought the search for renewable energy to a standstill. Terrestrial energy sources are dangerous, whether we are talking about the merely overwhelming, like hydroelectric power, or other flammable, explosive or radioactive sources. Solar power is reasonably safe, but it is weak and unreliable as yet. Chemical sources are dangerous because of the kinetic energy locked up in the substances involved. You can’t get away from that without changing the laws of physics.

Hydrogen is the most plentiful element in the entire universe. Combined with oxygen, it burns hot and clean and could provide us with energy for the life of the human race. It is also dangerous.

Because of our fear, because of our cowardice, we are still dependent on energy sources developed before we became so timid as a society. The largest deposits of those energy sources are located in a part of the world that calls America the “Great Satan.” Our president is taking us to war as I write this for control of those resources, an evil and immoral war that cannot possibly have a happy ending for anyone.

If you still believe that we are going to war with Saddam Hussein because of weapons of mass destruction, please tell me why we are not preparing to attack North Korea, which has just admitted to nuclear weapons.

Cowardice carries its own penalties.

America needs to take a collective deep breath and get a grip. Life is hazardous to our health. No one gets out of it alive. No one. Perhaps we could begin by accepting that one simple fact, because it makes everything else so much easier.

Are you tired of ruinous taxes? Are you tired of government regulators with their fingers in every part of your life, from the cradle to the grave? Are you tired of being forced to pay into a Social Security system that your legislators systematically loot?

Are you tired of paying billions to fight a war against drugs that merely results in your loss of freedom - and makes street drugs more prevalent than ever?

Are you tired of vicious federal agents who manufacture evidence and burn women and children alive in their homes while blatantly violating the Second Amendment of the U.S. Constitution by trying to jail people for the heinous crime of owning the wrong sort of firearms?

What part of “shall not be infringed” is giving them trouble, anyway?

If you are tired of these things, if you truly want these things to go away, then you are eventually going to have to give up the so-called protections of government. You must learn self-sufficiency. You can’t work to dismantle an overbearing government with one hand while your other hand is outstretched for what that government will give you.

You can start by purchasing a handgun and learning to use it. It’s only a very small part of the process, but it’s good for you psychologically to realize that you don’t need help defending your life or your property any longer. You hold your head just a little bit higher. A man or a woman who cannot or will not defend immediate family is not worthy of the name “human.” Even animals defend their young.

Take some chances! It may sound silly, but a skydiving course is not a bad idea. You will find out that life is fun when you aren’t wrapped in cotton. You may find that you like your fellow skydivers better than most of the people you know. Life tastes very sweet when you take big bites. It needn’t be skydiving. Try flying an airplane, scuba diving, or rock climbing - but find something you love to do, maybe something just a little bit risky, and do it. It is never too late to learn physical courage.

Learn to hunt! This is terribly difficult and painful for animal lovers like myself, but it is crucially important to any man or woman to know that they can provide their own food. Long range shooting has been an important skill for centuries. Only in the last hundred years has it fallen into disrepute. Learning to hunt is more than learning to shoot, though. You must also learn to field dress the carcass and prepare the meat for consumption. These are survival skills that every single one of your ancestors possessed. They would be appalled to learn that you do not.

If you do not want to be treated like a helpless infant by your government, the first step is to cease to be a helpless infant.

That is only the beginning, though. It will not be enough.

Government is a cancer. It feeds on itself. Those who possess power over your life will not give it up easily. When they learn that you are trying to free yourself from their grip, their jackbooted thugs will come for you.

They will come for all of us, and for our families.

The day is approaching when each of us will have to decide what we choose to defend with our lives. We must decide if we will accept slavery, or if we are willing, as our ancestors were, to pledge our lives, our fortunes and our sacred honor to secure our freedom.

The redcoats are coming!

About the Author

At a tiny 5′1″, Kathryn A. Graham is a licensed private investigator, pilot, aircraft mechanic and handgun instructor in Texas. Also a prolific author, she has written numerous articles, short stories and a science fiction novel.
http://www.kathrynagraham.com/

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Summary: Learning to survive in the marketplace requires some fancy emotional footwork. Read these tips for raising your writer’s emotional I.Q.

Professional Writers Learn To Manage Their Emotions

By Bonnie Boots

Unpublished writers often feel being paid for publication is the benchmark of a “real” writer So they read all the books on writing and dutifully send off queries, filled with hope and fear that one will be accepted; hope they’ll get the chance to be a real writer, fear they won’t live up to the challenge. Sadly, for some, their fears will turn out to be well founded. The emotional toll of writing for publication will be more painful then they can bear. Shocked, wounded, these natural writers will put their dreams behind them in the mistaken belief that they’re not good enough to write for publication.

Why does this happen? Because books on writing often fail to tell the aspiring writer the one thing they most need to know: the marketplace demands more than talent. It demands that the writer be skilled at dancing between the emotional states of passion and detachment. It seems like a conundrum, and it is, so let’s unravel this riddle.

The writer filled with fervor for the process of writing produces the best product. And in the marketplace, that’s just what your article, poem, short story or novel isa product. Products, whether they are romance novels or car wax, are pretty much processed, pimped and put on the shelves the same way. All sorts of people, from editors to advertising sales managers, have their hand in the marketing process. They have the power to tweak, alter and otherwise transfigure the product. As a writer, it takes emotional detachment to watch, even help as your beloved work is worked on.

The ability to call forth and control your emotional states is a primary survival skill if you hope to write for print. Can it be learned? Yes. In his book “Emotional Intelligence: Why It Can Matter More than IQ,” Daniel Goleman says the ability to master emotions often makes the difference between success and failure in people of equivalent intellectual abilities. He suggests these steps for increasing self-control:

(1) Pay attention to your emotional states. Don’t just let excitement or fear run riot over you. Use your writer’s “inner eye” to observe and record your own emotional states. Simply being aware of your emotions is the first step to controlling them.

(2) Get it off your chest. Rejection hurts. Seeing your carefully considered words edited for publication is painful. If your feelings have been hurt, by all means vent, but do it in a journal and not, under any circumstance, in a nasty email to an editor or a hastily posted blog. Nothing is learned from burning bridges, and you could seriously injure your chances of ever being published. Editors and publishers read the net, too, you know.

(3) Consider the other person’s point of view. Editors and publishers have to deal with issues you know nothing about. Before you take personal offence, stop to consider their side. If an editor doesn’t quickly answer your query, stop and imagine the view from their desk. If you got 1000 letters a week AND had to handle the work of 2 because of staff cuts, might you put mail on the back burner?

(4) Try not to take it personally. This can be especially difficult for writers, because our work is so very personal. But when your feelings are hurt, it’s important to take a step back and realize that in business, decisions may need to been made that have nothing to do with YOU, personally.

(5) Stay well-mannered and self-motivated. Being polite and persevering even when your feelings have been hurt is a definite sign of emotional maturity. The ability to keep your cool and keep moving ahead will take you places talent alone can only dream of.

Like any skill, learning to waltz between passion and dispassion takes practice and persistence. Some writers tap a tentative foot, then withdraw to be wallflowers the first time someone steps on their toes. But you can survive and even thrive by joining the dance with passion and purpose, accepting the thrills as well as the spills as you learn to step with the tune.

Copyright BONNIE BOOTS (www.BonnieBoots.com) Bonnie Boots is an award-winning writer and designer who says all writers should show off their talent by wearing their Write Side Out! Her wise and witty product line of gear that shows the world you’re a writer is at http://www.WriteSideOut.com

About the author:

Copyright BONNIE BOOTS (www.BonnieBoots.com) Bonnie Boots is an award-winning writer and designer who says all writers should show off their talent by wearing their Write Side Out! Her wise and witty product line of gear that shows the world you’re a writer is at http://www.WriteSideOut.com

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This February is host to various events; the most likeable of the two are at entirely different ends of the spectrum, The Cities 2009 Fashion Week & The Brit Awards 2009 Read everything you need to know about the brits.

Both of these events are extremely famous & have developed into somewhat of a tradition & methodically twelve - monthly occurrence.

London Fashion Week takes place in Manhattan, Milan and Paris, the most stylish & treasured cities in the world. The initial Fashion Week was situated in NYC, in 1943 & was situated proposed to attract concentrated attention away from France Fashion during World War 2 when fashion specialists were unable to to take a voyage to France to 1 the Paris Fashion shows. The long awaited wonderful Fashion Week takes place in February, its just basically an opening for creative designers both famous names like Stella McCartney and also up and coming designers to parade their own brand new collections assortments on the catwalk. This then gives brand and store buyers an opportunity to take notice of what is beyond a doubt to be in style this coming new season. Fashion Week starts with New York Fashion Week followed speedily by The Capitals 2009 Fashion Week, Milan Fashion Week and then finally French Fashion Week.

The British Phonographic Industry is also well known nowadays as The Brit Awards are the twelve monthly latest pop music awards ceremony. The awards went underway in 1977 and took place in the Royal Albert Hall. The awards in the beginning broadcast on BBC One it’s now aired on ITV. They are watched by hundreds & millions of individuals every year & are also put out live every year. 2009’s Brits are assured to be incredible and with amazing artists such as Kings of Leon, Duffy and Girls Aloud performing live your assured to be in for extraordinary evening, and you be please to know it wont stop there though. This years Brit Awards Hosts are the side-splitting Gavin and Stacey’s, James Corden and Mathew Horne and the exquisite Kylie so you are gauranteed to be in for a laugh too.

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With elevating insurance premiums, intelligent people everywhere are looking for ways to get deals on auto insurance. And why not? If it can save you some cash then go for it, right? Well, there are many ways to get price reductions on car insurance. Try to check if you or your car is entitled for the following price reductions but remember that these are general price reductions, you have to inquire with your insurance provider if they offer them.

Personal Automobile Insurance Deductions

Person-related discounts are ones that depend on the driver’s own personal situation, status and driving record.

Attending Traffic School If by any chance you have recently got a ticket, you may attend traffic school either online or through a traditional setting to have your ticket expunged from your driving record. Indirectly, this will have an effect of lowering your car insurance costs

Good Student Price Reductions. You may also take into consideration your childs grades to get automobile insurance deductions. If youre insuring your child who drives and he satisfies the GPArequirements of the insurance provider, you may ultimately receive price reductions as well.

Professional Credits. Some insurers offer price reductions if they belong to certain organizations or profession, like scientists, surgeons etc.

price reductions for seniors. People over 55 can usually receive price reductions on their auto insurance. Sometimes, you may also need to take a defensive driving course to qualify for the discount. Call your local Department of Motor Vehicles to find out what courses are available.

Loyalty Credits. If you’ve been a loyal, solid, long-standing client of your insurance provider, they may reward your business with price reductions too.

Maintain a Good Driving Record. Your unspoiled driving history will also reap its rewards in the form of car insurance deductions. Some automobile insurance agents extend deductions for drivers and insurance policy owners who have not been in accidents or have not received any traffic tickets for a certain period of time.

Multi-line Insurance Discount. If you have more than one type of insurance policy with the same car insurance underwriter, many times you’ll also be able to get cheaper auto insurance rates from them.

Vehicle Based Insurance Discounts

It doesn’t come as a surprise that when getting a automobile insurance policy, the insurance agent takes a look at your car. Some of these automobile insurance discounts are given because you’ve bought a safe car.

1. Car Air Bags. There are several types of airbags: front, rear, side-curtain, etc. The better you’re protected, the larger the insurance discount you may be able to receive.
2. Anti-Lock Brakes System (ABS). Many automobiles on the road today are equipped with ABS. Many car insurance agents offer deductions if your car is equipped with these types of brakes and many states even require the insurance underwriter to do so.

Anti-Theft Devices. Any type of add-on to dissuade someone from breaking into or stealing your car can also provide you with lower insurance costs.

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Many implant recipients who received dorum hip used in their hip cup replacement operations are encountering that there are complications that far exceed the regular expectations for recuperation. These poor people are feeling a lot of uncalled-for pain sensation for longer periods of time, needing a revision surgical processes and enlarged medical expenses, and losing revenue by not physically being able to work at their official jobs. Although Zimmer Holdings, Inc. is postulating that that their hip cup implant is not possibly flawed and say it is not their fault for the surgical failures, numerous individuals are filing cases against them and receiving settlements.

Sometime in October, 2008 Zimmer announced that it had reserved $47.5 million to compensate for claims they had received. Many doctors arent so sure that the zimmer hip implant is is not the issue like the company has stated. In fact, when Zimmer tendered on-line coaching to doctors in order to instruct them what was supposedly more correct methods for executing the implant surgical procedure, approximately half of the physicians declined to participate. Thus, the entire state of affairs remains to be bothersome for all doctors involved, but none more than the hundreds of individuals who are facing revision surgical process because of the problems with their implant not staying secure and tight in the socket.

These distressed implant recipients definitely deserve some aid and restitution which is the main reason product liability lawyers are supporting them by telling them to file a lawsuit. durom cups has been resolving these claims before they go to court. Nevertheless, even if the money they are being offered seems like a lot to them, in numerous cases people are resolving too fast and with no provision being made for repeat issues if it happens again. If they don’t hold off and wait, to find out what an actual case is worth, individuals could find themselves ending up paying alot more money out of their own funds when further complications return.

If your orthopedic Dr. informs you that you will need to undergo a revision operation to repair your Zimmer Durom hip replacement device, get in touch with an attorney as soon as humanly possible.

Once your lawyer realizes that you have a good case, be ready to spend some time waiting it out for the best possible settlement that you can get. Take the advice your attorney offers you and dont demand speedy restitution. Being patient at this stage of the case can pay off vs. just rushing the process.

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Branding Today

Have you ever had a good brand experience? How about a bad brand experience? Is there a difference in your mind? How many people do you tell about a positive brand experience? How about for a poor brand experience?

One poor brand experience will not destroy a firm. One poor brand experience per day, however, can ruin a company in the long run for sure. It’s really easy math. If one person receives a poor experience with a brand, they might tell 10 people. At 365 days a year that’s over 4000 people per year. Yikes! Not good at all.

So, how can your employees protect your brand everyday?

It all depends on delivering your internal brand and training. Not only do you have to train employees on customer service issues but also they must know how to deal with a customer that is upset or has a problem.

Let me give you an example. I purchased some artwork on a Carnival Cruise. Upon purchase from the vendor (not from Carnival Cruise itself) I requested custom frames. The vendor, Park West took my order and informed me that it would be 6-8 weeks for delivery.

10 weeks later I called Park West. They told me it shipped. I received my artwork 3 weeks late. I was so excited and I ripped the packaging away only to find they did not put on the custom frames. I waited 10 weeks for nothing.

I called Park West immediately. Guess what? I was going to have to wait another 6-8 weeks for the correct replacement. I asked for a refund and a pick up of the incorrect artwork. They denied me and said it was a final sale.

I called my credit card company. Guess what? The charge went through my Carnival Cruise account. I called them. Guess what? They would not help me, as it’s a third party vendor. This is a third party vendor that Carnival Cruise has partnered with.

Did I mention that this was my 19th Carnival Cruise?

Long story short I had to pay to ship my artwork back and my credit card company took care of me.

I will never take another Carnival Cruise again.

How could Carnival save itself from losing me as a customer? It’s really quite simple. Ultimately because the charge went through Carnival they needed to take responsibility. They should have said you’re a valued guest and we will credit you immediately. At that point I’m thinking wow, Carnival is even better than I thought. But instead I’m writing this article and never ever going on another cruise with them.

Carnival could have saved the brand. If they had gone the extra mile to put themselves in my shoes, I would have had a positive brand experience. I would have used Carnival again, and I would have probably told everyone I know how great there service was.
Developing a proper internal brand strategy and training is the key to delivering a positive brand experience. Don’t make stupid mistakes with your brand.

Scott White is President of Brand Identity Guru a leading Corporate Branding and Branding Research firm in Boston, MA.

Brand Identity Guru specializes in creating corporate and product brands that increase sales, market share, customer loyalty, and brand valuation.

This Article may be freely copied as long as it is not modified and this resource box accompanies the article, together with working hyperlinks.

Over the course of his 15-year branding career, Scott White has worked in a wide variety of industries: high-tech, manufacturing, computer hardware and software, telecommunications, banking, restaurants, fashion, healthcare, Internet, retail, and service businesses, as well as numerous non-profit organizations.

Brand Identity Guru clients include: Sun Life Financial, Coca Cola, HP, Sun, Nordstrom, American Federal Mortgage, Franklin Sports and many others, including numerous emerging growth companies.

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