05/27/12

Memorial Day with a Twist

Twice in the same week I was looking in the Book of Mormon and came upon the same scripture. Thursday evening while I had a few moments, I randomly opened to the Book of Alma, chapter 46 and began reading in verse 9 about a conflict which had divided the people of the land.

“Yea, and we also see the great wickedness one very wicked man can cause to take place among the children of men.

Yea, we see that Amalickiah, because he was a man of cunning device and a man of many flattering words, that he led away the hearts of many people to do wickedly; yea, and to seek to destroy the church of God, and to destroy the foundation of liberty which God had granted unto them, or which blessing God had sent upon the face of the land for the righteous’ sake.”

An interesting and troubling comparison came to mind; that I could substitute Obama’s name for Amalickiah’s in the verse as if they were the same. I tried to dismiss the thought; the idea that we had someone who intentionally would attack the predominant religion of the people while at the same time doing his best to undermine individual liberties would make such a person treasonous and worthy of our deepest scorn.

And yet…isn’t Christianity under attack by the Obama administration at this very moment; specifically the Catholic Church and freedom of religion as it applies to each of us individually? An article by Jack Cafferty on CNN’s website brought up the issue of Obamacare and the Catholic Church.

“The Catholic Church is suing President Obama for violating the freedom of religion that is guaranteed under the U.S. Constitution.

In what’s being called the largest legal action of its kind, 43 separate Catholic institutions filed lawsuits in a dozen different federal courts this week.”

Then I thought about the racial tensions that have exploded in the past couple of years, racial tensions which were healing in large part to our nation working to make Martin Luther King’s “Dream Speech” come to fruition. Isn’t it amazing “the great wickedness one very wicked man can cause to take place among the children of men;” a reference to the Rev. Jeremiah Wright and the influence he had on Barrack Obama over 20 years teaching Black Theology under the guise of preaching Christianity.

“Around mid-March in 2008, some of Wright’s more extreme statements began circulating in the news, including him referring to the United States as the “U.S. of K.K.K. A.” and arguing that the September 11 terrorist attacks stemmed from America’s corrupted foreign policy, the New York Times reported.”

Then there was Obama’s Harvard Law school mentor, Professor Derrick Bell to consider. Bell was praised for, “…pursuit of racial and social justice and his dogged critique of liberal incrementalism in universities and elsewhere was like a persistent wind that changed the landscape of law schools and influenced the larger academic world as well,” wrote Harvard law professor Lani Guinier.

“Bell was a founder of critical race theory, which examined the intersection of race, power and law in a harsh portrayal of American society as one dominated by class and racial conflict.”

Critical race theory isn’t any different then Black theology; it segregates rather than integrates, divides and blames rather than heals our nation. Martin Luther King is rolling over in his grave at the so-called advances in race relations under the Obama administration; but I’m getting off target a bit.

This morning I was thinking about Memorial Day and our reverence for those who died in battle defending our liberties. I had recently read a reference to the “Banner of Liberty” which Captain Moroni made from a piece of clothing, a flag hoisted up for all to see as they battled against evil as related in Alma 46, starting in verse 12:

“And it came to pass that he rent his coat; and he took a piece thereof, and wrote upon it—In memory of our God, our religion, and freedom, and our peace, our wives, and our children—and he fastened it upon the end of a pole.

And he fastened on his head-plate, and his breastplate, and his shields, and girded on his armor about his loins; and he took the pole, which had on the end thereof his rent coat, (and he called it the title of liberty) and he bowed himself to the earth, and he prayed mightily unto his God for the blessings of liberty to rest upon his brethren, so long as there should a band of Christians remain to possess the land –”

Oh, to have a righteous leader in troubled times; hopefully, a prayer that resides in our hearts. Memorial Day is upon us; our honored dead have flowers placed at their grave markers across the country and scattered cemeteries in distant lands. It is a sacred day intended to rekindle our foundational priorities.

“Behold, whosoever will maintain this title upon the land, let them come forth in the strength of the Lord, and enter into a covenant that they will maintain their rights, and their religion, that the Lord God may bless them.” Alma 46:20

This article has been cross-posted to The Moral Liberal, a publication whose banner reads, “Defending The Judeo-Christian Ethic, Limited Government & The American Constitution.”

05/27/12

Just One Minute

Hat Tip: Judy W.

05/27/12

Obama Hires Personal Murder Czar, Dems Continue to Threaten SCOTUS

Gulag Bound
By: Sher Zieve

Mark Lloyd

When any country’s leader reaches comprehensive dictator status, he begins either incarcerating or killing off his opponents (aka enemies). One need only look at the rich and murderous histories of Josef Stalin, Adolph Hitler, Mao Zedong, Pol Pot and other tyrannical rulers to know that this is a fait accompli in all totalitarian regimes. In one way or another, each of these tyrants conducted their own personal genocide(s).

In fact, Barack Obama’s FCC “Diversity” Czar Mark Lloyd has touted as legitimate the usage of a willing and malleable press (as was done with the media-based “Big-Lie” that the Tutsis planned to enslave the Hutus which resulted in the Rwandan slaughter of 800,000 Tutsis within a period of 100 days) to conduct just such a genocide for “social change.”

The openly Black Liberation (Marxist) Lloyd also praises Venezuelan Marxist Dictator Hugo Chavez and has said the “whites” need to be forced to step down allow blacks and other minorities to have their turn at power. ObamaCzar Lloyd also says that free speech is overrated and “This freedom is all too often an exaggeration. At the very least, blind references to freedom of speech or the press serve as a distraction from the critical examination of other communications policies.” And with regards to the American people, one of Lloyd’s patently racist comments is, “There are few things I think more frightening in the American mind than dark skinned black men. Here I am!”

Now, in a similar manner to Lloyd’s comments, US Dictator Barack Hussein Obama has announced he has given his latest Czar (John Brennan) the “right” to assassinate those whom Obama chooses. One of the few–if only–outlets actually providing any reportage on this issue is the Associated Press. The AP article “Who will drones target? Who in the US will decide?” advises: “White House counterterror [sic] chief [aka “Murder Czar] John Brennan has seized the lead in guiding the debate on which terror leaders will be targeted for drone attacks or raids, establishing a new procedure to vet both military and CIA targets.”

John Brennan with Barack Obama, in Oval Office for a DHS meeting, May 1, 2009

In the past, the Joint Chiefs of Staff had substantial input into this process. Now, however, appointee-Brennan has been given (by his boss Obama) the role of holding the decision trump card(s) as to when, where and whom will be ‘taken out‘ by the recently enabled and enacted drone aircrafts. One thing the AP story did not cover is the fact that the Obama-drones are now being used–nationwide–for domestic surveillance within the United States. One must–logically, I believe–surmise that it won’t be a great deal longer until Obama uses the Brennan-controlled drones for Obama’s opponents (aka “domestic enemies”). That, after all, was largely why the “domestic-enemy” NDAA bill was crafted by the Marxist pair McCain and Levin. And, now Brennan has been given license to choose who will be killed.

The US Police State is well underway, folks, and I suspect (if the Obama syndicate remains in power) that soon a ‘Berlin Wall’ type scenario will exist here.

WH-situation-room-needs-enlarging-post-BHO

John Brennan, second face from right at top, during purported Bin Laden killing

Then there’s this continuing lunacy from Congress. Not to be outdone by his boss, Sen. Patrick Leahy (D-VT) decided it was his turn to threaten and attempt to intimidate SCOTUS–and specifically Chief Justice John Roberts. Although the majority of the American people oppose the forced imposition of the ObamaCare monstrosity, Leahy warned C.J. Roberts that Congress had passed it and he had better uphold Congress‘ decision ‘or else‘. Essentially, Leahy told C.J. Roberts that he must put aside the 1803 Marbury v Madison decision, which established the basis of Judicial Review under the US Constitution’s Article III. Note: It appears, as Obama has already subordinated Congress to his Executive Branch, Congress is attempting to place the US Supreme Court (and specifically Roberts) in an inferior position to Congress. Note 2: For those who have recently spent the last 16 years, or so, in the government school system you may not be aware that the US federal government is comprised of three co-equal branches: Executive (POTUS), Legislative (Congress) and Judicial (SCOTUS).

Folks, SCOTUS seems to be We-the-People’s last hope toward bringing some semblance of sanity back to the now thoroughly corrupt and insane other-two-governmental-branches and allowing at least one last vestige of liberty. Amongst others, we MUST win this fight or relegate ourselves to our own slavery. If we and the USA are to have any chance, whatsoever, of survival Mr. Obama and his syndicate must be removed from office.

As a last note, Obama is issuing multiple Executive Orders on an almost daily basis to place us more firmly into bondage and to better ensure the complete dismantling of the USA–in case he IS voted out of power in November. Let’s make sure he is voted out–in a landslide–and ensure that all of his subjugating E.O.s are overturned when the new POTUS is elected! Remember that Reagan overturned virtually all the E.O.s President Carter had put into place. There is real hope and change if we make it so and remove the Obama cabal.

Obama and Brennan, Chilmark, MA, Aug. 19, 2011

“If my people, who are called by my name, will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then will I hear from heaven and will forgive their sin and will heal their land”
–2 Chronicles 7:14

Mark Lloyd on using media for genocide and ‘social change’-Part2:
at youtube.com

Mark Lloyd to silence opposition speech-Part1:
at youtube.com

Rwanda: How the Genocide Happened:
at news.bbc.co.uk

Video: FCC ‘Diversity’ Czar on Chavez’s Venezuela: ‘Incredible…Democratic Revolution’:
at newsbusters.org

Audio: FCC’s Diversity Czar: ‘White People’ Need to be Forced to ‘Step Down’ ‘So Someone Else Can Have Power’:
at newsbusters.org

Who will drones target? Who in the US will decide?:
at google.com

Sen. Patrick Leahy tries to intimidate Supreme Court Chief Justice Roberts into upholding ObamaCare (Video):
at therightscoop.com

Sher Zieve is an author and political commentator. Zieve’s op-ed columns are widely carried by multiple internet journals and sites, and she also writes hard news.

Her columns have also appeared in The Oregon Herald, Dallas Times, Sacramento Sun, in international news publications, and on multiple university websites. Sher is also a guest on multiple national radio shows.

Sher can be reached at [email protected].

Graphics added by Gulag Bound

05/27/12

Barack Hussein Obama’s delusions of grandeur. Does he actually believe his own lies?

By: Nelson Abdullah – Oldironsides
Conscience of a Conservative

Barack Hussein Obama has been distorting the facts in his own TV ads and with the complacent assistance of the leftist news media, no one has asked any questions. What more can be said of the biggest liar ever seen in American history. Maybe the news media has just gotten used to it but for the rest of us who haven’t had our memories dulled by too much reality television, the ads stink like a pile of crap. Funded by billions of dollars in campaign contributions pouring in from every pro-communist, pro-Muslim, America-hating leach, the campaign to reelect Obama has been bombarding us with distortions of the truth. One particular campaign ad has no dialog, just a moving scale of events that illustrates the collapse of our economy beginning in January 2008 and then showing the miraculous turnaround brought about by the Messiah/Muslim-in-Chief.

What is wrong with the ad is where it begins (it begins on the far left and isn’t that an appropriate play on words) and the lack of identifying labels to show what caused the collapse that is still being felt. In other words, who drove the truck off the cliff and when did they get behind the wheel.

Seemingly laying the groundwork for an invasion, no one appeared to notice that the news media’s concerted effort to make George W. Bush a very unpopular president during his second term, led to a Democratic Party majority getting swept into office during the elections of 2006 and 2008. Along with the Democratic Party majority came the new chairmanships of the various committees that write the vast array of government regulations that burden our lives in every way.

In the Democrat controlled Congress of 2008, two such important committees were the Senate Banking Committee under the leadership of Democrat Senator Chris Dodd and the House Financial Services Committee, led by Democrat Congressman Barney Frank. Together, these two Democrats passed rules and regulations that committed the Federal National Mortgage Association, commonly known as Fanny Mae, and the Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corporation, known as Freddie Mac, to obligate banks to make sub-prime housing loans to people who were judged to be unable to afford them. An article from the British newspaper, The Independent, tells the whole story.

Thursday, October 09, 2008
Barney Frank and Christopher Dodd deserve blame for Fannie and Freddie

The Independent, a British newspaper, blames the Democrats for the failure of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac:

What is the proximate cause of the collapse of confidence in the world’s banks? Millions of improvident loans to American housebuyers. Which organisations were on their own responsible for guaranteeing half of this $12 trillion market? Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae, the so-called Government Sponsored Enterprises which last month were formally nationalised to prevent their immediate and catastrophic collapse. Now, who do you think were among the leading figures blocking all the earlier attempts by President Bush — and other Republicans — to bring these lending behemoths under greater regulatory control? Step forward, Barney Frank and Chris Dodd.

In September 2003 the Bush administration launched a measure to bring Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac under stricter regulatory control, after a report by outside investigators established that they were not adequately hedging against risks and that Fannie Mae in particular had scandalously mis-stated its accounts. In 2006, it was revealed that Fannie Mae had overstated its earnings — to which its senior executives’ bonuses were linked — by a stunning $9.3billion. Between 1998 and 2003, Fannie Mae’s executive chairman, Franklin Raines, picked up over $90m in bonuses and stock options.

Yet Barney Frank and his chums blocked all Bush’s attempts to put a rein on Raines. During the House Financial Services Committee hearing following Bush’s initiative, Frank declared: “The more people exaggerate a threat of safety and soundness [at Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae], the more people conjure up the possibility of serious financial losses to the Treasury which I do not see. I think we see entities that are fundamentally sound financially.” His colleague on the committee, the California Democrat Maxine Walters, said: “There were nearly a dozen hearings where we were trying to fix something that wasn’t broke. Mr Chairman, we do not have a crisis at Freddie Mac and particularly at Fannie Mae under the outstanding leadership of Mr Franklin Raines.”

When Mr Raines himself was challenged by the Republican Christopher Shays, to the effect that his ratio of capital to assets (that is, mortgages) of 3 per cent was dangerously low, the Fannie Mae boss retorted that “our assets are so riskless, we could have a capital ratio of under 2 per cent”.

The web site Politico reported this on October 9, 2008 in a story written by Patrick O’Connor & Amie Parnes:

“During a town hall in Wisconsin on Thursday, McCain called Senate Banking Chairman Christopher J. Dodd (Conn.) and House Financial Services Chairman Barney Frank (Mass.) “willing co-conspirators” in the current financial collapse. ”

“This comes as conservative talk radio hosts and an outside group aligned with the GOP accuse the duo of similar crimes against the economy, particularly an allegation that congressional Democrats blocked legislation to increase regulations and oversight for mortgage giants Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac.”

“The fact is that the same people that are now claiming credit for this rescue are the same ones that were willing co-conspirators in causing the problem,” McCain told supporters at a town hall meeting in Waukesha, Wis., on Thursday. “Congressman Barney Frank and Senator Chris Dodd are two of them.”

Nothing new there. The Democrats are STILL claiming credit for fixing the mess they caused six years ago. Did I misquote the years? No, because in 2006 the Democrats took control of both houses of Congress following a sweeping victory in the mid-term elections and they used their veto proof majority to ram through changes in the banking regulations to allow people who could not afford mortgages to get them, and hundreds of thousands did, and many more subsequently lost their homes in the foreclosure problem that brought down the banks. All the while Republican George W. Bush was catching the blame for what the Democrats had done. And for whom Democrat Barack Hussein Obama has been blaming for all our troubles for the last four years.

Which brings us up to date. So now, in Iowa, Democrat Barack Hussein Obama calls Mitt Romney’s words ‘A Cow Pie of Distortion’

“I know Gov. Romney came to Des Moines last week and warned about ‘a prairie fire of debt’,” Obama said Thursday evening. “But he left out some facts. His speech was more like a cow pie of distortion.”

Want to know what a real “cow pie of distortion” looks like? Take a good look at the latest TV commercial that Barack Hussein Obama has been passing around. That red graph following January 2008 at the start of the ad was all caused by the Democrats.

Barack Hussein Obama’s delusions of grandeur make him the biggest pile of cow poop in Washington. And Obama, along with the 88 Congressional members of the Democratic Socialists of America, are at the center of the problem. In plain language folks, Obama is a piece of shit and he and the rest of the Democrats in Washington should all be flushed down the toilet.

The two illustrations above came from a YouTube post “Published on May 10, 2012 by BarackObamadotcom” The post carries a subtext message that says: “Remember how things were? Do we really want to reverse course now?” Funny as to how I do remember how things were and how good they were before Barack Obama got into politics and YES, I do want to reverse course now. I also happen to know that the FORWARD message also being promoted as Obama’s campaign slogan was copied from a whole bunch of Communist propaganda.

My name is Nelson Abdullah and I am Oldironsides.

Footnote:

On August 13, 2009, JB Williams of the Canada Free Press wrote the following:
“After decades of failed attempts to take over America via their third party initiatives that couldn’t break America’s two party system, leaders of both the Communist Party USA and Socialist Party USA chose a new strategy.

“Both being the ultimate ‘party of the working class stiff,’ they joined forces in a new venture that would work within the US two party system, by hijacking control of one of the two primary parties. As the Democrat Party had already spent years identifying itself as the “party of the working class,” engaging in socio-economic class warfare as its primary method for expanding its political power, it was ripe for the hijacking.

“Together, Communist Party and Socialist Party leaders established the Democratic Socialists of America, and they share a common ideology which is now the platform and mantra of today’s DNC – CPUSA.

“To gain full control of the Democrat Party, DSA leadership established two congressional legislative bodies, headed by DSA/CPUSA/SPUSA members. Today, these are the two congressional bodies in control of congress.

“They are the Congressional Progressive Caucus established by Socialist Party member Bernie Sanders of Vermont, and the Congressional Black Caucus established by Communist Party member John Conyers of Michigan. “ALL members of these two congressional committees represent the Democratic Socialists of America, as both committees are the creation of, and operate under the control of DSAUSA.”

05/27/12

Memorial Day 2012

By: Dave Logan
ThirdWaveDave

MEMORIAL DAY HISTORY

In Flanders Fields–John McCrae, 1915:

In Flanders fields the poppies blow
Between the crosses, row on row
That mark our place; and in the sky
The larks, still bravely singing, fly
Scarce heard amid the guns below.

We are the Dead. Short days ago
We lived, felt dawn, saw sunset glow,
Loved and were loved, and now we lie
In Flanders fields.

Take up our quarrel with the foe:
To you from failing hands we throw
The torch; be yours to hold it high.
If ye break faith with us who die
We shall not sleep, though poppies grow
In Flanders fields.

AMERICA’S MIGHTY WARRIORS

05/27/12

Hunger Games Reflected part 2, The Orwellian Theme Behind the Movie

Gulag Bound

Berit Kjos
crossroad.to

The second of Ms. Kjos’ series in review of the books and movie, Hunger Games

“The techniques of brainwashing developed in totalitarian countries are routinely used in psychological conditioning programs imposed on American school children. These include emotional shock and desensitization… isolation from sources of support [parents], stripping away defenses… and inducing acceptance of alternative values…”[1]
– Thomas Sowell, PhD.

“Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil walks about like a roaring lion,
seeking whom he may devour. Resist him, steadfast in the faith!”
– 1 Peter 5:8-9

I heard no laughter while watching The Hunger Games on opening day. Just sober silence. This teenage movie — set in a totalitarian world that supposedly replaced a broken America — shows the grim struggle for survival in a world without God, hope or meaning. The only “higher power” is a heartless government that supplies its own choice of artificial thrills and trials. And the people suffer.

The book behind the movie was published by the prominent Scholastic. It brought us the Harry Potter series and countless other books promoting witchcraft and the occult. By marketing its books through our education system, Scholastic may have done more to distort history, mythologize truth and promote moral and spiritual corruption among children than any other publisher.

If you have children in public schools, they probably read the Weekly Reader, which offers news and current events from a strictly non-Christian perspective. It’s publisher, the Weekly Reader Corporation, is owned by Scholastic. This 1990 message illustrates its earth-centered propaganda and twisted view of history:

“Give Thanks to the Earth: The first Thanksgiving feasts were harvest festivals. People gathered to celebrate successful harvests and to thank the Earth for its fruits. You can celebrate the earth every day by always taking care of the environment.”[2] Scholastic News

Brainwashing and Global Change

Decades before the birth of the United Nations, some of the globalist leaders that launched the Federal Reserve called for a radical new agenda for America’s children. With support from several Carnegie foundations, John Dewey prepared a socialist foundation for the new system. As the first president of the American Humanist Association, he was determined to replace Christianity with pluralistic values that fit the global agenda.

Ponder their goals, which are fast changing our schools, churches, families and values:

1917: “..they [the Board of Trustees of the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace] came to the conclusion that, to prevent a reversion, they must control education. Then they approached the Rockefeller Foundation and they said, ‘Will you take on the acquisition of control of education as it involves subjects that are domestic in their significance? We’ll take on the basis of subjects that have an international significance..’ And it was agreed….They decided the key to it was the teaching of American history, and they must change that.”[3]

1970: “…absolute behavior control is imminent…. The critical point of behavior control, in effect, is sneaking up on mankind without his self-conscious realization that a crisis is at hand. Man will…never self-consciously know that it has happened.”[4] Professor Raymond Houghton (More illustrations here)1989: “What’s happening in America today… is a total transformation of our society. We have moved into a new era….We no longer see the teaching of facts and information as the primary outcome of education…..What we are facing is a total restructuring of society!”[5] Dr. Shirley McCune, Senior Director with the Mid-continent Regional Educational Laboratory, a leading (occult) Theosophist speaking at 1989 Governor’s Conference on Education [see this very revealing video]

1994: “We have actually been given a course in how not to tell the truth. How many of you are administrators? You’ve had that course in public relations where you learn to put the best spin on things.”[6] Dr. Jim Causby, North Carolina Superintendent, speaking at the 1994 Second Annual Model School Conference, in Atlanta, Georgia.

Aldous Huxley was well aware of those plans. After all, his brother Julian Huxley became the first Secretary General of the United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). In Brave New World, he told us that a profusion of new suggestions would transform beliefs and attitudes:

“Till at last the child’s mind is these suggestions, and the sum of the suggestions is the child’s mind. And not the child’s mind only. The adult’s mind too — all his life long. The mind that judges and desires and decides — made up of these suggestions. But all these suggestions are our suggestions! … Suggestions from the State.”[7]

Backed by the authority of the United Nations with its hatred for the Bible, Julian Huxley wrote the following in his 1947 book, UNESCO: Its purpose and Its Philosophy:

“In pursuing this aim, we must eschew dogma…. East and West will not agree on a basis of the future if they merely hurl at each other the fixed ideas [of which the Bible is the main obstacle] of the past. For that is what dogmas are — the crystalizations of some dominant system of thought of a particular epoch….. If we are to achieve progress, we must learn to uncrystalize our dogmas.”[8]

Today our government and educational establishments seem more than willing to implement this agenda and punish any parental resistance that get in their way.

The Fictional History Behind the Hunger Games (See our book review)

Let me warn you: the movie is just as seductive as the book, perhaps more so, since the written message is joined to unforgettable visual images. It draws its fans into the oppressive, futuristic nation called Panem (from “Panem et Circenses” meaning “Bread and Circuses“) that supposedly replaced America. The current dictator rules Panem’s 12 Districts from the mighty Capitol somewhere in the Rocky Mountains. With well-trained underlings to fulfill his commands, he can monitor the masses, manipulate weather, and quench revolts initiated by the poor, discontented serfs.

The fictional history tells us that the Hunger Games began in the wake of a revolution seventy-five years earlier. Each year since then, twenty-four young Tributes — ages twelve through eighteen — have been chosen by lottery in each of the 12 Districts. They will be trained to kill, then transported to a selected area — probably in the Rockies. Their only assignment is to try to survive by killing each other. At the end, the sole survivor will be celebrated as a national treasure and a promotional puppet.

The surreal purpose of this annual event is to control, not entertain, the masses. Panem’s yearly battle sows fear, not cheer, even though the rulers demand celebrations. Does that remind you of the Roman Coliseum where trained gladiators and faithful Christians fought to death as huge crowds celebrated?

The main character is sixteen-year-old Katniss who lives with her mother and twelve-year-old sister, Prim, in District 12, the poorest in the land. Since her father died in a coal mine explosion, Katniss has been the family’s sole provider. Day after day, she and her friend Gale hunt rabbits and gather herbs and berries on forbidden government land.

But everything is about to change. In the lottery leading up to the games, the terrified Prim is chosen. Stunned, Katniss quickly volunteers to take her sister’s place. Peeta Mellark, who had long had a crush on Katniss, is chosen next.

After the required time of training, prepping and promotion at the Capitol, Katniss and Peeta are brought to the battlefield. On the first day, eleven of the twenty-four Tributes are killed. Most of the others race into the nearby forests to seek water and shelter from rain and from each other.

Meanwhile, the sophisticated high-tech Gamemakers back in the Capitol keep busy pointing their hidden cameras toward the injured, the dead, and the most popular players. Those images are shown on sophisticated tele-screens across the country. The goal is to unify, pacify and intimidate the viewers into ceaseless loyalty and compliance.

It reminds me of a statement in the book, Amusing Ourselves to Death, by Neil Postman who anticipated today’s rise of Marxist values. To illustrate mental manipulation, he compared two familiar books: Aldous Huxley’s Brave New World and George Orwell’s 1984:

“Orwell feared we would become a captive culture. Huxley feared we would become a trivial culture, preoccupied with some equivalent of the feelies…. [In 1984] people are controlled by inflicting pain. In Brave New World, they are controlled by inflicting pleasure. In short, Orwell feared that what we hate will ruin us. Huxley feared that what we love will ruin us.”[9]

Both have a point. Today, the cultural war against Christ and His Church is being waged on both fronts. The minds of most contemporary teens are bombarded with seductive images and suggestions that mock God’s values and scorn Christianity.

“…the light has come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than light…”
– John 3:19

A Glimpse of the Action

Near the end of the battle, the voice of a Gamemaker is broadcast to the final contenders, calling them back to their starting place. Emerging from the forest, Katniss and Peeta confront a new set of foes: twenty-one fierce, furry, four-legged “mutants” who seem eager to eat them. The book suggests that these “mutants” might be the twenty-one victims brought back to life in new but identifiable animal bodies:

“The mutts are beginning to assemble….There’s something else about them, something that makes the hair rise up on the back of my neck… They are unmistakably human. … The blonde hair, the green eyes, the number … it’s Glimmer [one of the dead Tributes]. I fire into its throat. Its body twitches and flops onto the ground… [Glimmer’s second death?]

“The small one with the red coat and amber eyes… Foxface! And there, the ashen hair and hazel eyes of the boy from District 9 who died as we struggled for the backpack! And worst of all, the smallest mutt, with dark glossy fur, huge brown eyes….Teeth bared in hatred. Rue! [She was a sweet, twelve-year-old girl before she was killed]…

“Have they been programmed to hate our faces particularly because we have survived and they were so callously murdered?”[10]

Perhaps the moviemakers chose to ignore the mystical changes that turned a red-haired girl into a red-furred monster with glaring eyes and sharp teeth. But the scene fits right into the mythical tales and occult phenomena of ages past. Remember, human history is full of cultural and spiritual cycles that show what happens when a civilization that has been blessed by God rejects Him and embraces other “gods” and deceptive snares.

God’s Way to His Shelter

The signs of change are all around us, and we already see some of the devastating consequences: broken families, immoral lifestyles, hopelessness, despair and suicides. Many seek temporary relief in the countless artificial fantasy worlds of digital entertainment. Many are addicted to sensual stimuli or trapped in the forces of darkness and find no way to escape!

Their struggles serve as a wake-up call to many of us. How can we (parents and grandparents) guard and guide our children through the dangers ahead?

Here are a few suggestions:

Know (memorize) God’s Word, the only source of genuine wisdom. (Proverbs 2:6). (Here is a list that I use to help me remember some of my favorite verses: Encouragement from A to Z)
Explain the Gospel, make sure they understand it, and pray that they truly be “born again” into His family.
Read books and testimonies by faithful Christians who stood firm in their faith in the midst of persecution. (For example: A Small Price to Pay and Trapped in Hitler’s Hell)
Learn the historical facts needed to defend what we know and believe.
Recognize the difference between OBSERVATION and assumptions. A lot of supposed “science” today is based on useful assumptions rather than observable facts.
Put on The Armor of God
Pray for God’s strength, protection and guidance. Then follow Him, not the corrupt ways of the world!

These charts may be helpful: New Emphasis in Schools and Culture, Three Sets of Meanings of Educational Buzzwords, and Checklist for the family.

As our children learn to see all things from God’s perspective, they will accept what is true and good but reject what is false and wrong. Remember,

“…be strong in the Lord and in the power of His might….For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this age….Therefore take up the whole armor of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand.” Ephesians 6:10-13

“Thy word have I hid in mine heart that I might not sin against thee.” Psalm 119:11